Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Superficially idyllic, an impression underlined by the woodland setting of the Open Air Theatre in Regent’s Park, the Ukrainian village of Anatevka is home to dairyman Tevye and his five daughters, the eldest of whom need to find suitors. The large cast of Fiddler on the Roof rips through the rousing opening number, “Tradition”, underlining the values of the community at the turn of the 20th century: a stable family is a hierarchy with “the pappa” firmly placed at the top. In “Matchmaker”, the girls are happy to accept whatever marital fate they’re offered. But the winds of change are about to sweep through this rural hideaway and shake its firmest convictions, not least about the sexes.Yente the matchmaker (Beverley Klein) has an irresistible offer — an elderly butcher — for eldest daughter Tzeitel (Liv Andrusier) and the deal is sealed in the tavern with the upbeat “To Life”. Tevye will be better off, if not exactly the rich man of the musical’s most famous song. However, Tzeitel loves the goofy tailor Motel (Dan Wolff, delightfully clumsy and off-key) and cowardly Tevye concocts a lurid ghost story to convince his wife to forsake the prospect of a wealthy son-in-law.Jerry Bock’s score combines the plaintive harmonics of eastern European Jewish music with the exuberance of musical theatre, while choreographer Julia Chang underlines the theme of sexual division by crafting energetic dance routines for the men, including a drunken showstopper with wine bottles balanced on heads. But the women aren’t going to stand dutifully clapping on the sidelines for much longer. Second daughter Hodel (Georgia Bruce) is already showing signs of rebellion with Perchik (Daniel Krikler), a firebrand blow-in from Kyiv.Perchik is a sign that things are changing in Russia, but good-natured Tevye has ignored warnings of wider disturbances. Toasts to the tsar include the wish that he leaves them alone, but the arrival of a quartet of bullet-headed Russians spells trouble that Tevye’s friendship with the local constable can’t allay. After the interval it is as though the brutality that ended the first half never happened. Eventually the family and community are forced to realise they are not immune from the course of history.Chaim Topol’s defining Tevye (on stage and in the 1971 film) overshadows the central role, though it’s a nice touch that granddaughter Darya Topol Margalith joins the cast. Adam Dannheisser brings huge warmth but dials down the bombast as this timid man in a big man’s body, striving to align as many opposing views as possible with his refrain: “On the other hand . . . on the other hand . . . on the other hand.” Wife Golde (Lara Pulver, the lynx-eyed villainess from Sherlock) is the real powerhouse of the family. Tom Scutt’s design features a curving roof that is also a wheat field, sheltering the musicians beneath. Virtuosic Raphael Papo weaves throughout the action as the enigmatic Fiddler, performing a thrilling duet with Chava (Hannah Bristow), Tevye’s third daughter, on clarinet. Chava brings about his most painful crisis yet. Marching off through the alien corn, he leaves large questions — the nature of faith, family, homeland — for the audience to resolve.★★★★☆To September 21, openairtheatre.com
