Fiddler on the Roof at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh*****

Although folk tales about Tevye the milkman first appeared at the beginning of the last century, the message they carry couldn’t be more timely.

For Fiddler on the Roof is about Jews being persecuted in Ukraine or, as it was then, tsarist Russia.

So while Israel bombs Palestine and Russia wages war on Ukraine, maybe their governments would do well to pay a visit to the theatre where all life is laid out before them and they can see just how their actions affect the people they are there to serve.

Tevye and his family and friends live in fear of the tsar and, ultimately, are forced out of their homes and emigrate to places like America.

Their lives are simple but they find happiness in each others’ company, though Tevye is steeped in tradition and when his three eldest daughters marry for love, rather than being paired up by the matchmaker, he finds it difficult to accept. The overriding message is, however, that love conquers all.

The cast is large but there is a sense of intimacy as we accompany them on their daily trials and triumphs and the community they create. There’s an energy and a vitality which makes you think that, off stage, they all enjoy working together. The choreography is exciting and the staging stunning though, again, there are parallels to life today when the Russians burn the village’s fields and the smoke and lighting effects made me think immediately of modern day wildfires,

Tom Scott’s set is good to look at, earthy and rustic, while Aideen Malone’s lighting and Nick Lidster’s sound add lots of extra layers for our enjoyment. And then there’s the fiddler. Raphael Pao was nominated for an Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role at Regent’s Park, and it’s easy to see why.

The musical’s creators were convinced their show would not go very far, but it became Broadway’s longest running show, clocking up eight years, and in London it kept going for 2,030 performances before being made into a film. Since then it has won a whole raft of awards and, again, it’s easy to see why. Now the provinces have the chance to see this magnificent production, which was staged at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre this summer. Don’t miss it!

Image: Marc Brennan

Fiddler on the Roof is at the Festival Theatre Edinburgh until Sept 13

capitaltheatres.com

It then continues to tour:

Sept 16-20: Wycombe Swan High Wycombe

Sept 23-27: Liverpool Empire

Sept 30-Oct 4: Southend Cliffs Pavilion

Oct 7-18: Bord Gais Energy Theatre Dublin

Oct 21-Nov 1: Manchester Palace

Nov 4-8: Eastbourne Congress Theatre

Nov 11-15: Canterbury Marlowe Theatre

Nov 18-22: Cardiff New Theatre

Nov 25-29: Sunderland Empire Theatre

Dec 9-Jan 3: The Alexandra Birmingham