The musical Fiddler on the Roof, first seen by Broadway audiences in 1964, only seems to grow more popular with each passing year. Central Arkansas has seen more than a few Fiddlers gracing stages at Murry’s Dinner Playhouse, Argenta Community Theatre and elsewhere.
Now the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre festival is taking on the tale of Tevye, the Jewish milkman, who sings and dances, laughs and cries with his family and the tradition-loving population of a 1905 Russian village. Normally Fiddler is presented on a traditional proscenium stage with the audience at a safe remove from the particular pageantry that this musical, which has wedding and an elaborate dream sequence amongst other boisterous scenes, offers.
In a twist, the Shakespeare Theatre production, directed by Jeremy Williams, brings the audience up on the stage of Reynolds Performance Hall for an intimate, in-the-round staging. As a result, the sold out audience on opening night was treated to a production of Fiddler that, for what it lacked in polish, it made up for in spirit and nerve.
Peter Kevoian’s performance as Tevye, the world-weary father who keeps asking God for a little bit of attention, is keenly felt. Tevye is written as part earnest matriarch and part Borscht Belt comedian and no doubt larger than life performers are drawn to the role. Kevoian brings that gravitas though he doesn’t have the subtlest of voices. He does better with the ballads such as “Sunrise, Sunset” than the zestier, trickier numbers like “If I Was a Rich Man.” Still, Kevoian makes us believe and care as Tevye’s old world ways give way to the new.
Jo Blackstone as the long-suffering Goldie, Tevye’s wife, paired well with Kevoin in the duet, “Do You Love Me?” The daughters Tzeitel (Jocelyn Vammer), Hodel (Hannah Moulder) and Chava (Sydney Ippolito) all brought their own unique energy to the performance. Perhaps the highlight was a company number, “Antaveka” in which Tevye’s village says goodbye to the town they love. This Fiddler turned that into an especially poignant moment.
Additional performances of Fiddler on the Roof will be at 7:30 p.m. Friday and June 27, 2 p.m. Sunday and 2 and 7:30 p.m. June 21 and 24. Ticket information is available by calling (866) 81o-0012 or online at arkshakes.com.