Note: While the musical follows plot ot the basic stories by Sholem Aleichem, there are many differences between it and the original. Not only has the time been condensed from fifteen years to just a few months, but the whole tone and many details are different. For more on this and on the characters as portrayed in the original stories see Tevye and His Daughters

THE CHARACTERS IN THE MUSICAL
Tevye: Tevye is a Jewish husband and father of the very traditional type living in a world which is rapidly changing. He loves his five daughters and does his best for them. Although he is poor, he is more educated than most of the Jews of Anatevka, knowing a lot about the Bible and the Torah. He gets on well with his Christian neighbors, and is close to God, never failing in his prayers and frequently speaking to Him about his troubles and asking Him questions, but his faith is never in doubt.

Golde: The marriage of Tevye and Golde was arranged; they did not meet until shortly before their wedding twenty-five years ago. There was never any discussion of love, but they live together harmoniously. She is also very traditional, a good mother, housekeeper and cook, managing very well with their meager resources. She wants something better for her daughters, namely wealthy husbands. Happiness is not a consideration. She probably has had a rudimentary education, knows the prayers by heart and quote a few sayings, but she is not able to read the Torah nor does she wish to.

The Daughters: In the stories, Tevye and Golde have seven daughters and the stories of five are told. In the musical there are five daughters and the marriages of only three are told. If Tevye is always asking questions, but accepts his life. His daughters challenge everything and embrace change.
Tzeitel is the oldest and, by tradition, must marry before any of her sisters can. The matchmaker has been busy n her behalf, but she is in love with Motel, a poor young tailor. Although she is basically traditional, she is brave enough to break the rules and make a pledge with him, not waiting for an arranged marriage, and she asks her father's permission to become engaged to Motel even though he has agreed to a marriage for her with a much older man. Although she is very poor with Motel and their children, she is happy and content with her traditional marriage.
Hodel, the next oldest is very intelligent and more interested in the outside world than the rest of her family. This attracts the student and radical Perchik. She goes further is defying tradition by becoming engaged before asking her father and by dancing with Perchik, a man, at the wedding. In spite of their exile in Siberia, her marriage is a happy and productive one.
Chava* also likes books and learning in spite of others saying that girls don't have to read. Although at first she avoids Fyedka, she finally loves him and carries her defiance of tradition even further by eloping and being marries to a Christian by a priest! This is a crushing blow to Tevye who, bowing to tradition, declares her dead to the family. *The "CH" is pronounced as in the Scottish "loch". If you have trouble with this say HAH-vah

The original stories of Shprintze and Bielke do not have happy endings and are not told in the musical in which they have only small parts.

The Suitors:
Motel: He believes that even a poor tailor deserves some happiness. He is a very hard worker and provides a modest and happy home for Tzeitel and their growing family.
Perchik: As a young student from the city of Kiev he represents the new Jew. He is faithful in observing basic Jewish religion but is not rigorously orthodox. He warns the Jews of Anatevka secure in their old traditions, of the forces which are rising against them. While it is not explicit, he is probably a fledgling Communist and involved in plots to overthrow the Tsar.
Lazar: A widower with no children, the butcher is relatively well off but is uneducated and crude. At the wedding he seems to want to make peace but the facade breaks when Tevye starts to quote the Bible and shows his true colors.
Fyedka: Is a young Russian and a Catholic. In contrast to that of the education of the Jews, he has been exposed to world history and literature, including the poetry of Heinrich Heine, a German and a modern Jew. He does not agree with the actions of the Russian government but is not an activist like Perchik.

The Matchmaker Yente: She personifies today's idea of a matchmaker and meddler. In fact, the name is now used to designate such a woman. In reality, as in the original stories, Jewish matchmakers were men and theirs was considered a necessary service in a society in which being single was frowned upon. In fact, Yente considers it her duty. Before she leaves for Jerusalem she says, And you want to know what I'll do there? I'm a matchmaker. No? I'll arrange marriages, yes? Children come from marriages, no? So I'm going to the Holy Land to help our people increase and multiply. It's my mission.

The Constable: He is a Russian functionary but respects and is friendly to Tevye. He does not agree with the pogroms but obeys orders even though he does not understand them. He apologizes for how he has to treat his friend. There is no scene such as the destruction in the musical in the original stories.

The Fiddler is new to the musical. It is based on the Marc Chagall 1912 picture of a Fiddler on a roof which provides the title for the play. It is one of the many works he painted illustrating Jewish life in Eastern Europe. The fiddler is a metaphor for survival by means of tradition and joy.

Note: There are several sites on the Internet which have the lyrics to all of the songs. Google "Fiddler on the Roof Lyrics" to locate them.

THE SYNOPSIS
Tradition: Without the traditions of the Hasidic Jews to keep their lives in order, the people would be as shaky as the fiddler on his perch on the roof.

Anatevka: This is the name given to the town in Fiddler on the Roof in which Tevye and his family live. It is an amalgamation of the village and the town in the original story. Tevye lives in the village and is the only Jew there. The nearby small city or shtetl, where the other Jews portrayed live, is called Kasrielevsky by Sholem Aleichem.

Villagers: As above these could not be Jews in the original stories unless, like Tevye, their ancestors had lived in a village for many generations, Russian law forbade most Jews to live in villages.

Sabbath: The Jewish Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, the day the Bible says God rested after creating the earth and everything on it. Orthodox Jews still celebrate it as a holy day on which they do no work, go to the temple, say prayers, study the Torah and other such activities. It starts at sundown on Friday night and lasts until the first stars appear on Saturday night. During this time they eat three festive meals: dinner Friday night, breakfast on Saturday and dinner on Saturday. Although most do not follow the most stringent rules*, since they are not supposed to work, most of the meals have to be prepared before hand. Before dinner on Friday, they also bathe and clean the house. Before starting the meal the woman of the house lights two candles; one represents observing the laws and the other remembering their history. This ceremony is shown in Fiddler on the Roof.

Inn: In Aleichem's story, this scene takes place in Lazar's house, but this would not allow the song and dance with which it ends. However, it has the Jewish Innkeeper, Mordcha, serve liquor which was in actuality forbidden at the time.

Miracles: In this song, Tzeitel and Motel refer to three miracles which are related in the Jewish Bible or Old Testament. They are Daniel in the lions den, God's parting of the Red Sea so the Jews could escape from the Pharaoh, and the subsequent provision of manna for them to eat while they were in the wilderness.

Laban: In this Jewish Bible story, Jacob wants to marry Rachel and works seven years for her father Laban to get her. However, on the wedding night, Laban substitutes the older sister Leah and, in the dark he can not tell the difference. Perchik uses this to portray the venality of managers but also refers to the requirement that the oldest sister must marry first.

Heine: Heinrich Heine (1797-1856) was a Jewish German poet and writer.

Destruction: There is no such scene at the wedding in Aleichem's stories. In another story, the Christian villagers feel pressure to do something because of the pogroms elsewhere, but they like the dairyman and are reluctant. The Constable suggests Tevye himself do something like breaking a few windows to make it look as though an attack had been made.

Warsaw and Cracow: Several years later, these two cities in Poland also experienced very serious pogroms. It is to be hoped that Tzeitel and Chava were able to get the America before they occurred.

OTHER
Village: Under nineteenth century Russia law, only Jews whose ancestors had lived there for many generations (like Tevye) were allowed to live in the small villages which were still almost medieval. The others were forced to move to a small city or Shtetl.

Menachem Mendl is a character in many of Aliechem's stories. He travels through Russia trying to make his fortune, but every scheme fails. He is a relative of Tevye's by marriage 'twice remover'.

Jerusalem: For more on Zionism and the Jews who moved to Jerusalem at this time see the article Jerusalem, Diaspora and Zionism.

Constitution: The 1905 Russian Revolution, resulted in a limited monarchy with a multiparty system defined by the Constitution of 1906.

* In Biblical times, those who did not observe the Sabbath laws could be stoned.

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Revised February 2011
Please credit Lyric Opera San Diego when using this material.