National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene's Drama Desk Award–winning Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish will play a seven-week return Off-Broadway engagement November 13, 2022-January 1, 2023, at New World Stages. The production of the classic musical is presented in Yiddish with English and Russian supertitles.
Oscar and Tony winner Joel Grey will again direct with Steven Skybell returning to the role of Tevye, the milkman navigating family, faith, and changing traditions in the Russian shtetl of Anatevka. Skybell won a 2019 Lucille Lortel Award for his performance in the initial Off-Broadway run of the production.
READ: After a Lifelong Quest to Play Tevye, Steven Skybell's Prayers Were Answered
Choreography is by Jerome Robbins with musical staging and new choreography by Staś Kmieć. Additional cast and creative team will be announced in coming weeks.
Fiddler on the Roof features a book by Joseph Stein, based on stories by Sholem Aleichem, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. The Yiddish translation is by Shraga Friedman. The original 1964 Broadway production, produced by Harold Prince and directed and choreographed by Robbins, won nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
“The fictional Anatevka of Fiddler on the Roof is based on shtetls that were located outside of Kyiv in present-day Ukraine. We can’t help but think of the displaced residents of Anatevka while a new generation of refugees are fleeing their homeland due to the current crisis,” says NYTF Artistic Director Zalmen Mlotek. “It seems like an appropriate moment for us to revisit this timeless show, and to experience its joy, sorrow, humor, and universal truths in this expressive translation that enriches the experience for all audiences, whether or not you know a word of Yiddish.”
READ: Why Off-Broadway’s Fiddler on the Roof Is the Most Authentic Production You’ll See
The production from National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene was a surprise hit in summer 2018, when it began performances in a limited run at the Museum of Jewish Heritage downtown. The production extended four times before transferring to Stage 42, where it officially re-opened February 21, 2019. The Off-Broadway run then extended from June 30, 2019, to September 1, 2019, and then again to its final date: January 5, 2020.
Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish won the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical, the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical, a New York Drama Critics Circle Special Citation, an Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Musical Revival, and a Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Musical for Skybell.
Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish is produced in association with Hal Luftig, Jana Robbins, LHC Theatrical, Jenny Steingart, Steven Chaikelson, Ruth Hendel, Braemar House Productions, Jamie deRoy & friends, Nina Korelitz Matza/Nicola Behrman, Anita Waxman/Martin H Borell, and The Shubert Organization in association with Sandy Block, Roy Gabay, executive producer.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public July 27 at 10 AM at NYTF.org/Fiddler.
