Miracle of Miracles! Yiddish "Fiddler on the Roof" Returns to Off-Broadway for 7 Week Run

Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish is returning by popular demand for seven weeks only in an Off-Broadway limited engagement at New World Stages, directed by Academy Award and Tony Award winner Joel Grey and starring Steven Skybell as Tevye.

If you haven't seen the Yiddish version, produced by the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, here's a chance to experience the richness of a production that will have English and Russian supertitles. It will be playing from November 13 to January 1 at the New World Stages at 340 West 50th Street in Manhattan. The video (below) of the cast rehearsing the opening song Traditsye (Tradition) will give you a taste of this show.

Don’t miss the beloved story of a community and its struggle to balance traditions and desires in a changing world. The little town of Anatevka will bustle with the sounds of mame-loshn in this Yiddish language adaptation.

The production has been hailed as “a richer, deeper interpretation” by The Wall Street Journal, “a mitzvah” by Time Out New York, and AM New York gives it four stars, calling Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish “perfect.”

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Tovah Feldshuh is Dr. Ruth Westheimer in a New Show About Her Life at the Museum of Jewish Heritage

93-year-old Dr. Ruth Westheimer is well known as a sex therapist, talk show host, author, professor, Holocaust survivor, and former Haganah sniper. 

Her life story is being portrayed in Becoming Dr. Ruth, a limited-run show at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Battery Park in lower Manhattan. 

The one-woman show, written by Mark St. Germain and directed by Bay Street Theater’s Artistic Director Scott Schwartz, chronicles the life of Dr. Ruth, from her early years fleeing Nazi Germany, living as an orphan in Switzerland, to her service in the Israeli armed forces as a sharpshooter, and her later life and career in New York. 

Actress Tovah Feldshuh has transformed herself into a replica of Dr. Ruth for this performance, which runs through January 2.

Dr. Ruth and Feldshuh have been longtime friends, as revealed in this joint interview that appeared on the NY1 TV station last week.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.  

Yiddish Version of "Fiddler on the Roof" Delights in New Folksbiene Production

Fiddler on the Roof is once again delighting audiences, this time with an outstanding cast performing the full 3 hour long musical sung and spoken completely in Yiddish. For non-Yiddish speakers, there are two large screens on the sides of the stage showing all the dialogue in English and Russian.

The production, which we attended on Monday night, is directed by Tony winner Joel Grey with musical direction by Zalmen Mlotek. It features Steven Skybell as Tevye and stand-up comedian Jackie Hoffman as Yente the matchmaker. 

You'll find it at the Museum of Jewish History in lower Manhattan in Battery Park. The show has received rave reviews every since it opened on July 4. It runs through September 2. As of today, all performances are sold out, but the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene has posted a wait list where you can sign up to be notified of cancellations and available seats. 

Here's a TV news interview with Yente (Jackie Hoffman) in which she tells the backstory of how the non-Yiddish speaking cast took a crash course in the language and memorized their lines, and a video of highlights from the production.

Enjoy! 

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.