Fiddler on the Roof

Last night, Lesley and I went to the Broadway musical Fiddler on the Roof. In a word, it was, amazing. The songs, the costumes, the choreography, the acting, everything, was amazing. In fact, if this play is coming to your area, I highly recommend it. This tour featured Topol as Tevye, and he was magical. By far the best scene from the movie adapted for the stage was Tevye's dream. The ghost of Lazor Wolf's first wife was played by a person sitting on the shoulders of another, who's incredible vocal range dazzled the audience. Topol was a regular rock star at the end of the play. Of course, he got a standing ovation. I loved how after he thanked the audience, the orchestra, his fellow actors, he looked up to heaven and thanked God.

It had been so long since I had any sort of cultural outing. It was wonderful to see this play with Lesley, who could appreciate everything as much as I did.

Seeing this play brought me great happiness, but there was another feeling that cannot be described with positive words. You see, "Fiddler on the Roof" will always remind me of my father.

My dad died when I was nine years old, so my memory of him is cloudy at best. But there are a few things that will never leave me, and many of those memories are associated with this movie. I do not know if it was his favorite or not. I do not even know if we owned the movie when he was still alive. But I do know that he loved music. He loved God. He had an amazing voice. Maybe that is why he loved this musical so much.

Sitting through this play tears welled up in my eyes several times. At our church's Easter feast in 1984, my father preformed Tevye's song "If I were a Rich Man." I don't know if my memories of this performance are from his actual performance or from seeing the recording that somebody made, but I can still hear him changing the words "I see my wife, my Ann, looking like a rich man's wife" or "screaming at the children day and night: Naomi, Aaron, Benjamin, Cyprianna!" The picture at the beginning of this post is my father as he is singing this song.

My father used to tell me that he would sing "Sunrise, Sunset" at my wedding. It is a powerful song, sung by Tevye and Golde at their oldest daughters canopy wedding. "Is this the little girl I carried? Is this the little boy at play? I don't remember growing older, when did they?" It is the most appropriate song for a father to sing to his daughter. I did get this song sung at my wedding - by my maternal aunt and uncle. It was beautiful; it made me cry then, and it makes me cry now.

After my dad died I remember my two year old sister having problems at night. She would wake up crying for her papa. I can only imagine how hard this must have been for my mother; hearing her baby cry out late at night, them both wanting the same person. Singing to my sister worked, as she has always been a musical person. I can still hear my mother quietly singing "Sabbath Prayer" to Cyprianna: "May you be like Ruth and like Esther. May you be deserving of praise."

I was blessed with a remarkable father. He was talented and hard-working. He was a loving Christian who was not afraid of death, even when it was staring him in the face. It was difficult at times watching the play, but, it was peaceful too.

"Fiddler on the Roof" has had such an impact on my childhood. Perhaps, if my father had not died, it would have been just a movie, just a musical. A great one for sure, but not so powerful or meaningful. But since he passed when I was so young, I am grateful that I have such tangible imagery to remind me of him. I am sure this will be a sensitive and emotional subject for me until I die, as it is hard reconciling the facts of death at the age of nine.

I love you, Papa.