“Without our traditions our lives would be as shaky as a fiddler on a roof.” For fifty years, the Golden Age musical, Fiddler on the Roof, has deeply impacted audiences with its splendid score and poignant storyline. With honest simplicity, it follows the eviction of a Jewish family scrambling to make a living in Tsarist Russia. But the power of the piece is rooted in history. Neither adaptations, or time, have stolen from its historical significance. In fact, the true message of this production has never rung truer. As we currently exist in a world of political turmoil and prejudice, we can take to heart the characters’ oppression in its connection to contemporary refugees.

Prior to the Fiddler’s theatrical debut, it was a novel. Written by Joseph Stein in 1905, it was based upon an earlier collection of Yiddish stories by Sholem Aleichem. During this period in Russia, it was under the rule of Tzar Nicholas. Meanwhile in Western Europe, liberal and democratic movements gained momentum, and Russia remained an absolute monarchy supported by fundamentalist ideals. Nicholas’s political methods involved a large influx in anti-Jewish propaganda. Through this fear of a minority, violence was inevitable. Pogrom after pogrom ravaged shtetls scattered across Russia. In the year 1882, 166 pogroms deteriorated Jewish communities. Anatevka, the fictitious village in Fiddler on the Roof, is subject to the same harsh historical occurrences. The title Fiddler on the Roof is an idiom illustrating how their fragile existence was on the brink of danger and tragedy.

The story of Fiddler on the Roof is a balancing act in itself. The leading man and father, Tevye, is constantly conflicted between his desire to lead a pious life guided by the teachings of the Torah, and his paternal instinct to fulfill his daughter’s more liberal wishes.

Ultimately, Tevye compels us to ask ourselves: is tradition a constraint, or the backbone of culture? Not only did this delicate equilibrium pose a struggle within a family setting, but it also encompassed society as a whole. Tsarist Russia required, with threat of brutality, the Jewish to acquiesce to rules and regulations. Simultaneously, Jews attempted to perform their religious practices in private. Fast forward to a century later. The internet and press is teeming with articles recounting yet another wave of refugees. Images of weather-beaten, stick-thin families in rags swarm social media platforms. We are witnessing the same crisis portrayed in one of America’s most beloved musicals. But this time the story has a different leading man: Syria. The Syr- ian refugee crisis has exploded to over two million people who have fled their country. Another four million have been displaced, totaling to a startling figure of six million refugees forced into eviction. History has repeated, once again haunting us with humanitarian nightmares. In response, cries for a resolution are passionate and widespread. As Fiddler on the Roof makes its return to the Broadway stage, this inspired adaption is as relevant as ever. In fact, Tevye, played by Danny Burstein, starts the play wearing a contemporary jacket, and ending with it on, to symbolize modern refugees. While a modest gesture, it speaks loudly of the advocacy in the arts today.

Analy High School’s production class will be sharing its own interpretation of this iconic piece in April. The director, Starr Hergenrather, was drawn to this rich and towering story of a people’s strength and resilience for its modern-day relevance. Hergenrather, an outspoken individual where social issues are concerned, channels her compassion for refugees directly into the show. April 8th through 16th, come let your heart soar with bittersweet emotion, sing with timeless classics, and be dazzled by the famous bottle dance. Fiddler on the Roof is sure to instill a warmhearted recognition for the real refugees in our world.