Back Alley Musicals will stage Fiddler on the Roof featuring a very talented cast of 56 local and area performers accompanied by an 18-member orchestra for its summer musical the last two weekends of July at Owensboro’s RiverPark Center.
Fiddler on the Roof tells the story of Tevye, a poor Russian dairyman, his wife Golde, and his five daughters as he tries to maintain his family and Jewish traditions as outside influences encroach upon their lives. The show’s universal theme of tradition cuts across barriers of race, class, nationality and religion, and touches the audience with its humor, warmth and honesty.
Multi-talented veteran community theatre actor Fred Eiras will portray Tevye on stage. While off stage, he has been very busy for the past two months designing and building the sets for the production. A builder by profession, Eiras has built sets for several BAM productions. This set is particularly dear to his heart because it will be the setting for his debut with BAM in the role of Tevye, whom he played 20 years ago while living in San Francisco, CA. He says he can relate much more to the part now that he is married with a family. In fact, his son Anthony and daughter Gina are members of the cast.
Loré Renner North, in the role of Tevye’s wife Golde, also
struggles with changing traditions as she watches their children grow up and make decisions that she could never have made. She can also relate to her role as a mother since her daughters Abby and Emma are among the cast, with Abby playing one of her daughters (Chava). René Little portrays Yenta, the Matchmaker, who is accustomed to working out marriage arrangements for the community’s sons and daughters. But, life is changing in their little village and the young people are not so ready to accept the old customs.
Fiddler was the first Broadway musical to surpass 3,000 performances and celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Among the most enduring songs from Fiddler are Tradition, Matchmaker, If I Were a Rich Man, and Sunrise, Sunset.
Amy Cox is directing the show, which will have a live orchestra under the direction of Greg Olson. Dennis Jewett is the choral director. Fiddler on the Roof will be staged in Cannon Hall, RiverPark Center, 101 Daviess St., on July 18, 19, 25, and 26. Saturday performances are at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees will be at 2 p.m. Reservations can be made through the RiverPark Center Box office at www.riverparkcenter.org or by calling (270) 687-2787 beginning July 1. Tickets are $30 for adults and $15 for students.
