Fiddler on the Roof is a historical play that has been around for ages, when it first took to stage in 1964. The Bishop Gorman theatre guild went above and beyond to bring life to this old musical, giving it a refreshing taste and enjoyment. 

I had first gone to see a Bishop Gorman musical back in 2015, and since then I have been mostly consistent at attending the theatre productions, especially musicals. I was not fortunate enough to catch a showing of Secret Garden earlier this year, but after experiencing how thrilling Pirates of Penzance was last year despite my own hesitation about this unfamiliar musical, I was fully confident that the Theatre Guild would produce an amazing production. I could have never anticipated how much Fiddler on the Roof blew me away. 

The casting of the show was absolutely amazing. Each member of the production had perfectly filled their role, enriching the quality of the production and making it enjoyable. Through each line, each scene, and every note it was very clear how much hard work, time, and effort the students spent months into the production. I had gone into the show without really knowing who was playing whom until I got my program guide. I was amazed to see my fellow peers shine on the stage. Three individuals in particular stood out the most to me in their roles: Chandler Shulman, Olivia Rodriguez, and Marissa Romero. 

Last year seeing Pirates of Penzance, Shulman’s debut on the stage, I was fully confident he would blow the crowd away, and it was no less of an understatement to say Shulman was the perfect Tevye. He perfectly fit the role that brought life, emotion, and humor to both the show and the crowd. Not only did he do an amazing accent, he captured the crowd and made the watching experience even more enjoyable. I could not imagine enjoying Fiddler as much as I did if it was not for Shulman playing Tevye. 

After figuring out Rodriguez was a cast member I was already anticipating for the lights to go down. Earlier this year with the fall arts festival I was able to witness Olivia’s amazing talent as an actress, and it shined as her role as Tzeitel. With both a beautiful voice and amazing acting, Rodriguez not only captivated the audience but also complimented her fellow cast members such as Hodel and Chava, played by Marie Munoz and Anabella Cross, that highlighted their talents as well as her own.

Similar to Rodgriuez’s ability to bring out the best in her role and her cast member’s, Romero was a perfect Golde. She perfected the motherly role, her singing parts, and was one of the key characters to captivating a major scene that was a show stopper, Tevye’s Dream. This scene was by far the most high quality scene I have ever seen produced by the Bishop Gorman theatre department. The blocking, stage design, and use of props in Tevye’s Dream was both humorous to where the entire audience was laughing, but had also brought the audience to a surreal feeling seeing the mesmerizing stage design to convey this nightmare. It took a large amount of skill to effectively pull off that scene the way the cast did, and they never fell short of going beyond the stars. A key part to that as well was Romero’s talent to pull off such horror witnessing this horrific nightmare Tevye had, that made this eccentric moment even better. 

I, however, am not the only one that was blown away from the production. Senior, Madelyn Moore also attended opening night. She had previously seen Fiddler on the Roof before at the Smith center and wasn’t entirely delighted, but seeing the Gaels performed had a different view.

“I absolutely loved seeing Fiddler on the Roof! It was funny, emotional, and heartwarming. The entire cast and crew clearly put their all into the show, which made the experience even better.” 

It was not  just students, however, who attended and were impressed by the show. Rev. William Kenny, also known as Fr. Bill has been an avid supporter of the Bishop Gorman theatre productions. In regards to his review of the show, he said, 

“I was very impressed with the quality of the acting, and also the musicians. I especially thought Chandler was very very good. I brought some friends with me, some of whom had never been to a Gorman play before, and they were also amazed by the quality of the performance.”

One of the friends Kenny brought, was the associate pastor to Holy Spirit, Fr. Jose Unlayao, also known as Fr. Jojo. This was Unlayao’s first Gorman show. 

“I loved the overall performance. They are very talented teens. It was funny and exhilarating, in addition to lively choreography. My favorite songs were ‘Tradition’, ‘If I were a rich man’, ‘Do you love me’, and ‘Matchmaker, Matchmaker’. The best of all was the humor and wryly self-dramatizing dialogues of Tevye towards God. Congratulations to everyone who made this classic piece enjoyable to watch. God bless you all.” 

I am eternally grateful I was able to experience Gorman’s production of Fiddler on the Roof. This was such a thrilling experience for me. I do not believe I could have ever seen Fiddler and enjoyed it without the effort, casting, and skill of the Theatre Guild.