The Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS) performed their 17th and final production of Joseph Stein, Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock’s musical “Fiddler on the Roof” on the stage of the Columbia Theatre for the Performing Arts last Friday.
The show sold over 700 tickets and was a smashing success with the audience, receiving a sustained standing ovation at curtain call.
“Fiddler on the Roof” is based on the stories of Sholem Aleichem, a Jewish Russian-Ukrainian author and playwright, and revolves around the story of a poor dairy farmer Tevye, played by JPAS veteran Stephen Rushing.
The play is set in Tsarist Russia during the early 20th century, a time of rapid social changes and growing anti-semitism. With his wife Golde, Tevye has five daughters, who he struggles to keep within the traditions of his Jewish faith despite the influences of outside forces. Tevye must cope with the tradition-breaking marriage choices of his three oldest daughters (Tzeitel, Hodel and Chava) and the eviction of all Jews from their village by order of the Tsar.
“I think the show was great,” said Rebecca Gillen, resident of Hammond. “I really liked the scene with Fruma-Sarah, the dream scene, and they did a huge stage performance where she’s on stilts, and Golde’s grandmother comes back and Tevye has to explain to his wife that his daughter isn’t going into an arranged marriage. “
The performance featured several dances and songs, such as “If I Were a Rich Man,” “To Life” and “Wedding Dance,” which featured a dance where five actors balanced bottles on top of their heads while performing complex choreography. During intermission, musical director Alan Payne assured the audience that the bottles were in no way attached to the actors’ hats.
Kenneth Beck, the show’s director and choreographer, sat in the back row of the theatre, and was among the first to rise for the ovation.
“The show went very well,” said Beck. “We had a couple of weeks off before this show, so we had a couple of missed cues, but I think we did very well. The crowd was amazing. I was very pleased.”
Rushing agrees with Beck, and even after 17 performances he’s ready to go at it again.
“We had a great audience that was quite different than any other audience we’ve had,” said Rushing. “They got more of the jokes and more of the laughs, and it gives the actor a wonderful new way of performing. I could do this again, many times over.”
The JPAS plans to return to the Columbia stage with their production of the Broadway musical “Hairspray” on February 10. More information and tickets can be found by calling the Columbia’s ticket box at 958-543-4371.