Fiddler on the Roof review at the Barbican: the most exquisite misery
Fiddler on the Roof review: ★★★★★
It isn’t officially summertime until the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre drops a five-star musical. In 2023 it was La Cage Aux Folles and last year their gently simmering Fiddler on the Roof raised the stakes. For summer 2025 Shucked was another smash, but back to Fiddler on the Roof, as the Barbican Theatre has right nabbed the Regent’s Park production for an eight-week summer reprisal.
Perfect if you missed it the first time round, this production of Fiddler on the Roof also deserves to be staged in doors with the bells and whistles of a traditional theatre. In Jordan Fein’s absorbingly beautiful production, there might be drunken moments of relief, but the sense of threat never truly lifts, and the stage is forever cloaked in an uncomfortable darkness. I didn’t see the Open Air production but I imagine this one is even more potent.
Based on the Sholem Aleichem stories and book by Joseph Stein, a group of Jewish villagers are experiencing the threat of expulsion during the rule of Imperial Russia at the turn of the last century. The story feels fairly reductive, particularly when protagonist Tevye, a traditionalist, agrees to let his daughter choose her own husband against family rules after giving it a second’s thought (a sin in their community). And the second act goes out with a whimper, the narrative arc lacking a suspenseful plot by the curtain.
Fiddler on the Roof at the Barbican Theatre: beautiful song cuts through the dour story
Still, Tom Scutt’s suspenseful set design and the might of the cast deliver the type of human storytelling that smacks you around the chops and then comes back for seconds.
We meet Tevye and his five daughters while they’re living in a settlement in Russia. The song ‘Tradition’, reprised at least four times throughout the show, sums up the vibe: during a period representing a cultural changing of the guard, Tevye’s five Jewish daughters are wanting to marry who they want rather than the creepy retirees they’re matched with by family members, and he is essentially driven to an existential crisis by their demands. Beautiful song and dance cuts through the dour story, bringing the strength of their feelings and ostracization to vivid life.
Adam Dannheisser’s Teyve is played 10 percent too much for laughs, leaning into slapstick physical comedy and fourth-wall-breaking audience interactions that can feel a little cheapening. But it’s the only mark against the otherwise outstanding ensemble, with special mention to Lara Pulver’s formidable vocals and acting chops as Golde, Tevye’s wife of 25 years.
Choreography is by Julia Cheng who did the West End’s current production of Cabaret, one of the best shows in the capital right now. This is similarly immersive and rule-breaking. Hits including If I Were A Rich Man, Sunrise/Sunset and Matchmaker rouse the soul.
Fiddler on the Roof is playing at the Barbican Theatre until 19 July