This year’s Bellarmine musical production is The Fiddler on the Roof. Fiddler tells the story of the citizens in a town called Anatevka in Tsarist Russia, 1905, mainly revolving around the theme of tradition. Every citizen of Anatevka judges each other’s actions based off of their traditions. At the center of the story, the lead character Tevye, played by senior Tommy Martin, has to make many decisions that go against the normal tradition of the lives of the people in Anatevka. At first, these actions seem like the right choice, but, they trigger consequences that will affect the whole town.

You can’t really classify the musical into one genre. It has elements of drama, adventure, comedy, and romance. The cast does a great job of evoking these emotions in the audience by their performance on stage. Throughout the night you’ll be laughing, crying, singing along, and captivated by the performance. The hours upon hours of work put into the show can be seen upon the stage.

The performance displays a unique array of dances and songs. The songs and dances have a somewhat modern take on traditional folk and Jewish styles or themes. This is especially shown in the wedding scene. Everything about it makes it seem like a traditional Jewish wedding. All of this allows the audience to really experience the atmosphere of the time period along with the traditions of the characters in the show.

Several cast members or scenes really make the show worthwhile to go and see. During the wedding scene, seniors Franz Jacob Hernandez, Jonah Konop, Johnathon Yu, and junior Jonah Thorpe-Kramp perform a dance with bottles on their heads. They were able to not drop a single bottle during a performance, an astounding feat. The entire dream scene is an enjoyable sight to see. The cast does a crazy undead dance sequence while senior Sanaya Nordine belts her heart out as a creepy ghost wife. The dancing during the bar scene is one of the best in the show. You have cast dancing on tables, performing spins and flips, as well as some traditional Russian dances mixed in. It’s topped off with an outstanding solo by junior Mark Estabrook.

Two newcomers to Bellarmine musicals, freshmen Miranda White and Cecilia Lewis, play two important roles as the lead’s daughters along with senior Nathalie Hanson. All of them display their incredible musical talents on stage in their own solo parts in the song “Matchmaker”.

Finally, to top the show off is the performance by the lead, played by senior Tommy Martin. He gives it his all on stage every show. He ties the whole show together by his acting, dancing, and the emotions he displays in his numbers such as the solo “If I Were a Rich Man” and the duet “Do You Love Me” along with senior Molly Bordeaux.

The show is a combination of a lot of great things rolled into one. Many who have seen it say it’s one of the best Bellarmine musicals they have seen. The talents of the performance, both on and off the stage, help make this year’s performance of The Fiddler on the Roof a truly memorable sight to see.