Over the past weekend, the musical Fiddler on the Roof experienced great success in its ticket sales, with every performance selling out completely. The show premiered on Friday and was performed by students, with the special faculty appearance of Professor of Mathematics Barry Tesman, who played the role of the Rabbi.

Jeremy Lupowitz ’15, who starred as Tevye, commented on the long process of preparing this musical. Lupowitz said, “It’s exhausting, physically and mentally. […]We did full runs of the show every night starting the Sunday prior to opening night. For a 2 and a half hour show, that’s a lot of stress on your voice, your body, and your brain.” Despite the many hours of dedication, Lupowitz was really pleased about how the show turned out: “Performances have been outstanding so far. I feel really blessed to be a part of what I think a lot of people will remember as being a very special production. It’s been an incredible experience to work with such a talented cast and production team to produce such a beautiful work of art.”

Students have also really enjoyed the performances. Zach Benalayat ’17 commented, “I thoroughly enjoyed the play, especially the play’s sense of humor. I think Tevye’s performance really captured the exasperated tone of the play. The singing was all on par and no one seemed off key.” Senior student Julia Roberson agreed, and said, “I was extremely impressed by the incredible singing and the costumes. The play was even more moving than I remembered, so I was really touched by the show.”

The musical did not come without problems, however. Lupowitz stated, “Preparing for a musical is […] difficult because you have a whole new element to incorporate into the process. You have to set aside rehearsal time to teach and learn the music as well as incorporate the orchestra later on.” He continued, “It can also be tricky as a performer to make a musical feel real and natural, as most of us don’t go bursting out into song in the middle of a conversation during a typical day.”

Despite these issues, though, Lupowitz was pleased with the ultimate outcome: “I can’t say enough for the audience turn out. We’ve sold out all four performances and we still have people calling begging us for tickets.” According to him, “I don’t remember there ever being this much buzz or excitement about a show I was involved with, so that’s been really rewarding.”

Beginning soon, students will be able to buy tickets for the Dance Theater Group’s fall concert, titled “Vox, Velocity and Vectors,” which will take place from November 21st to the 23rd in Mathers Theatre. As Lupowitz said, “It’s a collaboration with the music department that will feature the college choir, DICE, and guest artists, Relâche.”