Levels will perform the classic musical, “Fiddler on the Roof,” on Thursday, Aug. 10 through Sunday, Aug. 12 at 8 p.m. in The Levels Teen Center on the lower level of the Great Neck Library’s Main Building, 159 Bayview Avenue in Great Neck.
Levels, the library’s cultural center for teenagers established in 1974, gives teenagers the opportunity to create large projects in the arts with guidance from a staff of adult working artists.
They present several fully-staged theatrical productions a year — all directed, produced, designed and performed by students in seventh grade through college-age.
“Fiddler on the Roof” is adapted by Joseph Stein from the “Tevye” stories by Sholem Aleichem.
The musical takes place in 1905, in the Russian Jewish village of Anatevka, where everyone lives according to the traditions of the past.
But times have begun to change.
Tevye, the simple, hardworking dairyman, must decide what to do when his daughters wish to marry for love rather than have the village’s matchmaker choose their husbands for them.
Each choice his children make pushes Tevye farther from what his heart and his religion will allow.
And there are darker things on the horizon — it is rumored that Jews have begun to be forced from their villages by the Russian authorities.
Somehow, Tevye and his neighbors must redefine themselves and find a place in this new and different world, where their existence feels as shaky as… well, as a fiddler on the roof.
The score, by Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock, is filled with songs almost everyone knows: “Tradition,” “Matchmaker, Matchmaker,” “Sunrise, Sunset,” “If I Were a Rich Man,” “Do You Love Me?,” “Miracle of Miracles” and more.
The original production starring Zero Mostel and directed and choreographed by Jerome Robbins won nine Tony Awards including Best Musical.
The 1971 film adaptation won three Oscars, and the play has since gone on to become a favorite the world over.
The all-student production staff includes director Sara Chitsaz, choreographer Daisy Korman and musical director Elaine Zhang.
The show is produced by Joy Chang and Kate Smolens, with set design by Simona Fine, costume design by Rebecca Hirschhorn, lighting design by Tyler Brechner and makeup design by Rayna Cooke.
Tyler Hakimian serves as head of construction.
The cast of high school and middle school students includes Spencer Berman, Rayna Cooke, Ethan Elgadeh, Lucia Geng, Rebecca Hirschhorn, Ava Hoffman, Dana Kagan, Evelyn Kim, Daisy Korman, Zachary Lee, Julian Malater, Alex Mousazadeh, Molly Racsko, Adam Schiff, Katie Wang, Kevin Wang, Justin Wooster, Elana Xu and Aaron Young.
The orchestra, all student musicians, includes Sara Chitsaz, William Huang, Hani Kang, Ethan Ng, Freddy Sion, Omeed Tartak, Elana Xu and Elaine Zhang.
Admission to the performance is free and open to the public.
Tickets are intended to guarantee seating as space is limited, and can be requested at the Circulation Desks of all Great Neck Library facilities.
Doors open 45 minutes in advance of showtime for ticketholders and 15 minutes for non-ticketholders.
For more information, contact Levels at 516-466-8055 ext. 216 or email levels@greatnecklibrary.org.
