Open Air Theatre, Regents Park
Following rave reviews and a successful run in 2024 at the Open Air Theatre, Fiddler On The Roof has gone indoors to The Barbican, prior to a UK tour. Once again it has been hailed with 5 and 4 star reviews.
The story of a Jewish family trying to reconcile tradition and the modern world and their settlement being driven out of Russia at the turn of the 20th century has become one of the most successful musicals of all time. The music by Jerry Bock and Joseph Stein and book by Sheldon Harnick appeal to all nationalities through the last sixty years. Inevitably the shadow of past productions, particularly those involving the great Topol as Tevye, hangs over any new one. The 5 and 4 star reviews by the London theatre critics were united in saying that Jordan Fein‘s open air interpretation is a triumphant reinvention that looks both forward and backward. Tom Scutt‘s set was seen as a winner in itself, silencing any jokes about Fiddler On The Roof being staged at the only large London theatre without a roof. Adam Dannheiser was widely praised for his toned down version of Tevye. Indeed, the whole cast including the actual fiddler received plaudits.
[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]
Reviews of the Barbican presentation
5 stars
Rachel Halliburton at The Arts Desk reassured us, ‘this transfer to the Barbican has not robbed the show of its magic. We are gripped from the opening coup de theatre, in which Raphael Papo’s astonishing fiddler – whose violin seems to conjure lightning from the air – appears in a wheat field in early morning mist that rises up to become a “roof”.’
Olivia Rook at LondonTheatre didn’t miss the outdoors. She explained, ‘Aideen Malone’s lighting design works overtime to capture the musical’s changing mood: the joyful first act is flooded with warm, rich light; after the interval, as violence threatens to invade Anatevka, the stage is marked by stark white light and long shadows.’
The Mail’s Patrick Marmion praised ‘the terrific Adam Dannheisser as Tevye…He is a proper put-upon mensch, who dutifully drags the weight of his Jewish heritage behind him like the cart normally hauled by his lame horse. With a twinkle in his eye, Dannheisser is a big softy who brings heartiness, pathos and mischief to the part.’
The Standard’s Nick Curtis was back and even more impressed: ‘The transferred show is pretty much faultless, despite the loss of connection to the elements and the thrill of the cast passing through the audience one got at Regent’s Park. But I see I only gave it four stars back then. What was I thinking, God? This is a must-see.’
4 stars
Alex Wood for WhatsOnStage observed, ‘Rather than the rural sprawl evoked last year, Scutt uses rows of chest-height crops to pen in the town, while a looming slab of granite is suspended above. It creates a sense of claustrophobia, a community simultaneously teetering on a cliff-edge and ready to fall into the abyss, while also living under a great weight positioned directly overhead.’
Alexander Cohen for BroadwayWorld missed the outdoor sunset but ‘the comparatively confined Barbican has sharpened its dramatic knife edge that slices even deeper into the soul.’ He pointed out, ‘Dannheiser is the show’s beating heart, but it’s the women who serve as its lifeblood, pulsing energy through every vineagery exchange.’
It was The Stage’s Sam Marlowe’s first time at the show. She spoke of ‘the power and passion of the show, and the startling alacrity with which the union of story and score regularly cause the heart to soar and the skin to tingle.’
The Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish also missed it first time around. He felt he had missed the magic of the sunset but was still impressed: ‘Fein privileges emotional truth over experimentation, the imperishable score rendered with musical heft and folksy simplicity, the lighting beautiful without being self-advertising. Julia Cheng’s choreography, particularly in the famous bottle-balancing dance sequence, replete with precise, angular, sweeping leg moves, is a joy.’
Another newcomer was Time Out’s Andrzej Lukowski. He was impressed by Jordan Fein’s ‘superb take’ onnthe musical as a ‘dark clown show’. He noted ‘The air of dark absurdity is aided by a wonderfully evocative set from Tom Scutt – a nocturnal wheat field with a huge sward sliced out and raised above the stage to form the titular roof, while the band sit at the back, only partially obscured by the crops. I missed the show at the OAT last summer, but here Scutt’s set has an alluringly Beckettian claustrophobia to it’.
Fiddler On The Roof can be seen at The Barbican theatre until 19 July and will then tour
Reviews of the premiere at the Open Air Theatre in Regent’s Park
Calling the show ‘Absolutely terrific’, Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage (5★) wrote, ‘The quality of Jordan Fein’s wonderful, emotional production is that it perfectly holds the balance of Fiddler on the Roof, neither tilting towards saccharine nor bitterness, towards schmaltz or politics.’ She was equally impressed by the cast: ‘At the heart of all this is the quiet underplaying and resonant voice of Dannheisser, who turns Tevye not into a Topol-style caricature but into a wry, ironic man, buffeted by events he cannot control, yet always finding it possible to assert love. He is matched by Laura Pulver’s Golde, full of emotion she doesn’t often express, but finding tenderness in gesture and stillness.’
Marianka Swain for The Telegraph (5★) called it ‘a masterclass in balancing innovation with tradition.’ She said, ‘in a stripped-back but exquisitely crafted production, Fein gets to the very soul of the work.’ She noted, ‘Fein’s staging is also beautifully attuned to the park’s natural magic. The shiver-inducing coup de théâtre is the sun actually setting during the bittersweet song Sunrise, Sunset. The bleaker second half then takes place in the dark of night.’
The Observer’s Susannah Clapp (5★) noted, ‘its painful progression can suggest any group of people struggling with internal change, under threat from authorities, bullied into movement. It’s hard to imagine a production that would do so more powerfully than Jordan Fein’s. His is also the best use of the Open Air theatre I have seen for ages.’ Among the many aspects of the production liked by Mark Lawson in The Guardian (5★) were the way ‘Fein foregrounds comedy, setting the piece in the tradition of deflective Jewish humour’, and ‘Adam Dannheisser perfectly times the one-liners … but also conveys the character’s deep faith’.
David Benedict for The Stage (5★) was impressed by ‘Fein’s arrestingly intelligent second-act directorial decisions (which) deepen and darken the action and make the show richer and stronger than any recent London revivals.’ Cindy Marcolina at Broadway World (5★) called it ‘Charming, heart-rending, and utterly gorgeous’.
Gary Naylor on TheArtsDesk (5★) handed out plaudits to the star: ‘Adam Dannheiser…brings charisma to burn to the role’; to the director: ‘maintains a breakneck pace (I cannot recall time passing so swiftly in the stalls) and uses the unique qualities of his stage beautifully’; and to everyone involved.
Tim Bano for Time Out (4★) called it ‘a production about reinventing a classic musical through small gestures and symbols, rather than radical high concepts’. He praised ‘using the sun almost like a design element. It’s all gorgeous evening sunshine for the earlier, happier parts of the story, but the haunting wedding tune ‘Sunrise, Sunset’ is designed to kick in just as the light fades, and then the bleaker second half takes place under black skies.’
Suzy Feay for The Financial Times (4★) wrote ‘Adam Dannheisser brings huge warmth but dials down the bombast as this timid man in a big man’s body’.
Neil Fisher writing for The Times (4★) was not entirely convinced by the star: ‘The paterfamilias of this story can be stoic, wry, fierce, anguished, uproarious, pious. The appealing Adam Dannheisser goes for something between all these things — not entirely convincingly.‘ But he had no doubt about the production: ‘Consider Jerry Bock, Joseph Stein and Sheldon Harnick’s masterpiece revved up rather than revamped. Underneath a mighty canopy of wheat — a dramatic set by Tom Scutt that shows us both the deep roots of this Jewish community and its fragility — Fein’s production is a fast-paced, ensemble-driven night.’ He pointed out, ‘perhaps Fein’s greatest work is to balance the joy with the pain’.
Aliya Al-Hassan at LondonTheatre (4★) said ‘(Fein) manages to bolster all the joy, humour and sense of community, then brings us back down to earth as the insidious creep of antisemitism destroys the integral fabric of this society. ‘The Standard‘s Nick Curtis (4★) called it, ‘a liberating, exuberant and humane production where the great songs – Tradition; If I Were a Rich Man; Sunrise, Sunset – touch you to the core. It also feels sadly contemporary without even trying.’ Fiona Mountford for i-news (4★) called it ‘a musical triumph’.
The Express‘s Stefan Kyriazis (4★) liked so much about the show: For starters, he loved the set: ‘I felt like I was dreaming.’ He observed, ‘The ensemble are strong, the musicians (tucked at the back of the set and costumed like villagers) wonderful and the dancers are a joy.’ As for the production: ‘Set against Tom Scutt’s magnificent stage and costume designs, director Jordan Fein beautifully treads the tightrope of respecting and celebrating the 1964 show while sensitively adding some modern nuances’. The ending, he reported, ‘is pure, powerful theatre’. His only reservation seemed to be about the star: ‘Adam Dannheisser has a rich singing voice and brings warmth and easy wit to Tevye’s innate charm. I just didn’t quite feel the sense of a weary towering figure struggling to keep himself and his family afloat.’
Jane Prinsley at The Jewish Chronicle (4★) was not alone in thinking ‘this production is Golde’s, with Olivier-award-winning Lara Pulver’s sharp and knowing performance’. She was impressed that ‘Innovations never distract from the narrative, and the play’s relevance today speaks to its enduring power.’
Critics’ Average Rating 4.4★
Value rating 66 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)
Fiddler On The Roof can be seen at the Open Air Theatre until 28 September 2024. Click here to buy tickets direct from the Open Air Theatre
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