43
The Youngstown Playhouse ‘Fiddler’ remains in tune despite slight lack of polish
By Eric McCrea
Youngstown
Traditions can bind entire communities together, as long as we’re all willing to live within their constraints.
Having recently reached its 50th anniversary, “Fiddler on the Roof” is a tradition that once again is gracing the stage of the Youngstown Playhouse.
Tevye, played by David El’Hatton, is a hardworking man with five daughters and an acerbic wife named Golde (Stephanie Cambro.) The village matchmaker, Yente, played by Molly Galano, has found a man to marry their oldest daughter. However, Tzeitel (Shanley Monroe) is in love with the tailor, and begs her father to let her out of the arrangement. Tevye must find a way to appease everyone, without causing a huge disruption in the village. He fabricates a message from an ancestor to convince Golde, but straying from tradition proves to be more trying than he imagined.
El’Hatton was an unusual fit in this role. He isn’t vocally commanding, but most of his songs were supported by a strong ensemble, so numbers such as “Sunrise, Sunset” and “The Sabbath Prayer” are still quite moving. He’s a bit too youthful to play a man who’s been married for 25 years, but this didn’t prevent him from charming the audience. He did not fail at imbuing Tevye with a sense of uncertainty, which is integral, as his world is being turned upside down, piece by piece.
Cambro is a natural as a tough and superstitious mother, serving as Tevye’s anchor. Throughout the turmoil and difficulties the family faces, she makes everything feel safe. She and El’Hatton were quite endearing with their song “Do You Love Me.” The pair also was comic gold in the dream sequence.
Emily Schrader shined as Hodel, particularly standing out with her song “Far From the Home I Love.” She was a delight with Monroe and D’Ella Heschmeyer as Chava in the familiar “Matchmaker, Matchmaker.”
Cheney Morgan delivered a solid performance as Perchik, and was impressive in his duet with Schrader. Not one to be overlooked, Don Wolford was spot-on as Motel, bringing a nerdy appeal to the song “Miracle of Miracles.”
Also worthy of note were John Pecano as the Fiddler, Frank G. Martin as Lazar Wolf and Joanna Andrei as Grandma Tzeitel.
Choreography by Stas Kmiec felt a bit chaotic in big songs such as “Tradition” and “To Life” but an impressive take on “The Tailor Motel Kamzoil” was nearly perfect.
As a whole, the show could use some polishing. A few delays with lines or minor hiccups with scene changes certainly weren’t enough to derail the entire production or affect its overall entertainment factor, but they indicated that a few details may have been neglected. A second weekend showing should be much improved.
A simple, but transformative set designed by Jim Lybarger served the show well, and lighting designed by Leslie Brown turned each scene into a work of art.
“Fiddler on the Roof” runs today at 2:30 p.m. and Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. For reservations, call 330-788-8739.