West End stars Maria Friedman and Anita Dobson will join the transfer run of the Menier Chocolate Factory and Trevor Nunn’s critically-acclaimed new staging of the much-loved classic Fiddler on the Roof next month.
From 18 June 2019, triple Olivier Award winner Friedman (Chicago, Ragtime) will take over the role of Golde from quadruple Tony Award nominee Judy Kuhn while stage and screen favourite Dobson will follow her successful stint in the touring production of Annie by stepping into the role of the matchmaker Yente (currently played by Louise Gold).
Recently extended until 28 September in response to high public demand, the production moved to the re-configured Playhouse Theatre, following a sell-out debut run at the Menier Chocolate Factory in March.
Featuring an acclaimed performance by Andy Nyman (Assassins, Menier Chocolate Factory, Hangmen, Wyndham’s Theatre) as Tevye, the West End cast includes: Nicola Brown (Chava), Harriet Bunton (Hodel), Dermot Canavan (Lazar Wolf), Stewart Clarke (Perchik), Joshua Gannon (Motel), Matthew Hawksley (Fyedka) and Molly Osborne (Tzeitel).
The company also features Miles Barrow, Sofia Bennett, Philip Bertoli, Lottie Casserley, Elena Cervesi, Lia Cohen, Talia Etherington, Shoshana Ezequiel, Isabella Foat, Fenton Gray, James Hameed, Adam Linstead, Adam Margilewski, Robert Maskell, Benny Maslov, Robin McIntyre, Gaynor Miles, Ellie Mullane, Tania Newton, Craig Pinder, Valentina Theodoulou and Ed Wade.
The production, which is the first version of the classic musical in London in over a decade, marks a re-kindling of Nunn’s successful relationship with the Menier. The acclaimed director’s previous work with the prestigious venue included hit productions of Aspects of Love and a revival of A Little Night Music which transferred to both the West End and Broadway.
Presented by Chocolate Factory Productions, Sonia Friedman Productions and Michael Harrison, the production features choreography by Jerome Robbins and Matt Cole, with set design by Robert Jones, costume design by Jonathan Lipman, hair and make-up design by Richard Mawbey, lighting design by Tim Lutkin and sound design by Gregory Clarke. The creative team is completed by musical supervisor and director Paul Bogaev with orchestrations by Jason Carr.
With a book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, Fiddler on the Roof is based on Tevye and His Daughters (Tevye the Dairyman), a series of stories by author and playwright Sholem Aleichem written in Yiddish between 1894 and 1914 about Jewish life in a village in Imperial Russia at the turn of the 20th century.
Debuting on Broadway in 1964, Fiddler on the Roof became the first musical theatre production to play over 3,000 performances and held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for nearly ten years before losing the top spot to Grease. Featuring Zero Mostel in the iconic role of Tevye the milkman, the show collected nine Tony awards and was followed by five successful Broadway revivals.
The show opened in the West End in 1967 with Israeli actor Topol as Tevye, the role he had previously played in the Tel Aviv production of the show. His performance in the role would lead to his casting in Norman Jewison’s Oscar-winning film version launching the star’s international career.
First revived in London in 1983 for a four-week season at the Apollo Victoria Theatre with Topol reprising his performance as Tevye. The star would also return in 1994 for two months at the London Palladium before headlining the UK touring production.
The last London revival which starred Henry Goodman opened at the Savoy Theatre in 2007, following a launch run at the Sheffield Crucible. The most recent UK production in 2017 and featuring comedy favourite Omid Djalili, was one of the highlights of Daniel Evans and Rachel Tackley’s first season at the Chichester Festival Theatre.
Angela Thomas
Tickets for Fiddler on the Roof are available HERE.
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