• Fiddler on the Roof, 6/12/19 (Tues), West End

I had no intention of seeing this show for the umpteenth time, especially so soon after the magnificent Yiddish version on my last New York visit. But I was attracted by the rare Tuesday matinee, and the Trevor Nunn production and this cast had been very well received.

The show is indestructible and works beautifully here as always. But the acting is variable and overall not very Jewish, at least by the Yiddish-theater-inspired standards as conceived originally. While the daughters and young kids were all terrific, Tevye, Golde and Yente in particular were not ideal. The English accents are fine (it’s Anatevka, after all), but the timing was off; even normally guaranteed laughs didn’t come off here because of a peculiar delivery. This could be a UK thing or perhaps the actors may have had a different understanding of the jokes, but the blank spots where there should have been laughs should have told them something. There were numerous odd choices throughout, such as anger or tears by Tevye where a world-weary shrug would have better fit his personality as written. Trevor Nunn seemed to view Jewishness just as a setting rather than as a sensibility. Golde was supposed to be played by Broadway veteran Judy Kuhn, who would have been perfect, but she was replaced with no announcement and no cast list. Can they do that?? I wonder if the audience even realized, or cared, that one of the principals was not performing.

Still, the story and songs are so solid and the characters so wonderfully realized that it didn’t matter in the end. Nunn knows how to keep things moving smoothly, including a great handling of crowd scenes. The stage was fully populated before the show even began as various characters wandered through and hung out as we were taking our seats, until disappearing just before the opening. That was bookended by a great ending as the town’s entire population walked across stage and the half-hanamichi into the audience and out, then doubled back to repeat the action in what felt like a huge exodus. The choreography was also well executed. The single set – this originated in the tiny Menier Chocolate Factory – was more realistic than usual, with tables and other set pieces swiftly brought in when needed in fluid presentation. The orchestra and sound were flawless, and the hanamichi (probably introduced at Menier for lack of space) was a nice touch in this theater, bringing the action adeptly into the audience. The nuts and bolts of the show worked fine.

Still, I spent a lot of time imagining other people in the main roles, and remained bothered by the awkward speech patterns and timing. That said, the British woman next to me who had never seen the show was in tears by the end and absolutely loved it, so maybe I’m not the right person to judge. But after the revelatory Yiddish version, this seemed run-of-the-mill.