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| Angwin
Meets Anatevka
by Lainey S. Cronk
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 The
men grow out their beards; villagers dance in the halls of Paulin;
and on the grass by the tennis courts stands Tevye, giving his
opening speech to Angwin.
The Fiddler on the Roof has come to the hilltop, and a dedicated
cast and crew fill the air with their lines, songs, dances and
theatrical enthusiasm as they throw themselves into the Napa Valley
Musical Theatre production that will be the first musical produced
in the newly remodeled Lincoln Theatre.
If you wander into Paulin Hall some evening, you’re likely
to encounter a lot of actors (there are over 41 in the musical,
all PUC students, faculty or staff) and crew (the artistic and
administrative team consists of over 20 people, including professionals
from Napa and San Francisco). They may be doing Japanese warm-up
exercises, or discussing what’s not working in a particular
scene, or dancing around in the halls for lack of any other available
space.
Some of the actors are no surprise—students who have consistently
been front-and-center in PUC’s drama and music. “But,” says
Mei Ann Teo, our English department Resident Artist and Fiddler’s
director, “look at the majors of these students: graphic
design, nursing, business, chemistry...the list goes on. Then look
at the faculty and staff who are involved! Of course you'll have
your Linda Gill from the English department. But add to that George
Hilton (a mathematician and a pastor), Dean Kevin Kibble, CAPE's
James Dick (as Motel), Greg Schneider from behavioral science (as
Tevye), and Lary Taylor - a business professor. You have student
leaders like Stacey Guffey, senators in our marketing team, and
two high school students. And we expect them ALL to sing, dance
and act.”
Moreover, the cast has to do plenty of background work; in addition
to learning their lines, they must discover the “back stories” and
personalities of their characters. Greg Schneider tells how they
went to the grass north of the tennis courts to practice Schneider’s
two long speeches in the prologue. Teo gave him different scenarios
in which to practice; the most memorable, Schneider recounts, was
the time she said, “This is Anatevka, and you must leave
forever; now deliver your speech.”
“
I really appreciate that kind of direction,” Schneider says, “and
have drawn things from that experience to help make those speeches
more than just rehearsed lines.”
Teo also brought in a Rabbi to talk to the team about the Jewish
traditions of marriage and Sabbath. “I wanted to hear the
reason behind the actions, so that we wouldn’t be copying
it blindly,” she explains.
Indeed, making the production something truly meaningful and excellent
is a long process. “You have all these other things going
on,” explains Marjorie Bushong (Tzeitel), “and then
you go to rehearsal and it’s difficult, because in order
to act you have to be free.” Bushong adds, “You also
have to be very vulnerable – which is funny since you’re
acting a part; but you have to be vulnerable and that can be really
hard.”
Fortunately, the group is under capable, positive leadership. “Working
with Mei Ann is incredible,” reflects student Ruth Delgado
(a villager), “because she’s so open to everybody’s
ideas. Someone will say, ‘Hey Mei Ann, what about this?’ and
she’ll say, ‘Okay, let’s try it.’”
“It feels very large,” Schneider adds. “I’m slowly making
my way up the mountain… I’m perhaps a third of the way there. But
I’ve never had a moment when I looked myself in the mirror and said, ‘You
were stupid to do this!’”
That seems to be the prevailing feeling among the cast and crew, despite an overwhelming
amount of time and work they all must pour into this production. “Every
one of the production crew who are new to PUC,” says Teo, “are AMAZED
at the dedication and delightful personalities of our cast. They have all continually
expressed how enjoyable it is to work with people on the hill.” She adds, “The
journey that all of us have taken together has been pretty amazing.”
After all, the actors and crew are compelled not only by their love of theater
but also by the strength of the Fiddler story. “There are so many levels
to this story,” says music director Gennevieve Kibble. “No wonder
it has such universal appeal!”
“Fiddler is a work of strength, depth, richness,” Schneider says. “It’s
such a wonderful story, such an opportunity to grow in so many ways.”
INFORMATION
Fiddler on the Roof will feature five performances: May 8 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m.;
May 14 at 8:30 p.m.; and May 15 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. (The 2 p.m. performance
on May 15 features a sing-along for audience members!)
Ticket prices are $15, $20, and $25 based on seating locations. Groups of 10
or more attending a single performance are eligible to receive a $5 discount
per ticket.
For more information or to purchase tickets, call 707-944-1300.
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