Talking to Jonathan Hashmonay, who plays Tevye in the national tour of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

Jonathan Hashmonay 
photo by Joan Marcus

by Gil Benbrook

With dozens of regional productions annually, numerous Broadway revivals, a well regarded film adaptation, and having been translated for many international versions of the show, Fiddler on the Roof is, arguably, one of the most beloved and most frequently produced musicals of all time. 

Based on the tales by Sholem Aleichem and featuring a score with music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick that includes such classic show tunes as "Sunrise, Sunset," "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," "If I Were a Rich Man." "Tradition," and "Do You Love Me?" Fiddler on the Roof tells the story of Tevye, the poor Jewish milkman who has five daughters. The show is set in Russia in the early 1900s and focuses on how Tevye must face changing times as he deals with his strong-willed wife and daughters as well as the non-Jewish residents who also inhabit their small village of Anatevka.

The national tour of the show comes to the Orpheum Theatre, with peformances from December 2-4.

Jonathan Hashmonay who plays Tevye in this production sat down to answer some questions about the show, his character, and how growing up in Israel has informed his portrayal.

Fiddler on the Roof is a classic, beloved musical but for someone who isn’t aware of this show what would you tell them it’s about?

Jonathan Hashmonay: "To me this musical is about Family, Love, Tradition, and the modern world. All of these aspects amalgamate to form a masterpiece that is still relevant today. The constant struggle between modernization and tradition, and the exploration of how love can fit into a world that is unaware of its true meaning, makes for a timeless story."

Jonathan Hashmonay 

What past experience have you had with the musical?

"Certain songs have been with me for as long as I can remember. I can’t even recall when was the first time I heard 'If I Were a Rich Man.' It has always been around. But my first experience with the musical in its true form was in college. We learned about it in History of Musical Theatre class and I immediately fell in love. Later that year my musical theatre program took a trip to NYC and we got to see this production on Broadway! I later saw it 3 more times and brought all of my friends and family to see it. It became my favorite show soon after." 

Tevye is one of the most well-known musical theatre characters. What aspects of the role do you identify with, and which did you least identify with?

"The thing I identify with the most has to be his love for his family. Everything he does, and all that brings him joy in his life are his daughters and his life at home. And I feel the same way about my family. Even though I don’t have kids, my immediate and extended family are all extremely close. And there is nothing in the world that I enjoy more than spending Sabbath dinner with all of us together. I think Tevye feels the same way. 

I don’t think there is an aspect of Tevye that I don’t identify with. As an actor, my job is to look at the character and find ways of understanding and justifying his reasonings and thoughts even if they are not my own. I’ve worked very hard to make sure that I can identify with every nook and cranny of his mind and his choices. If I had to pick one thing, it would be his relationship with Golde. He uses her belief system against her in the dream which ends up backfiring but he maybe should have realized earlier that it would."

You grew up in Israel and are a descendant of holocaust survivors. How did that experience and your family history help in your portrayal?

"That is actually a very difficult question. This show takes place in 1905, before the holocaust took place. My Judaism is highly influenced by the holaucust. I therefore spent countless hours researching and thinking about what it means to be Jewish before the holaucust. However, even with all this research, I wasn’t able to completely disassociate from it. It is part of who I am; it changes the way I look at people, and situations; it changes how I view conflict and struggle. And therefore by association bleeds into my portrayal of Tevye. 

I think about my home country a lot in this show. Especially during the wedding and in Act II. During the scene where the Constable orders the Jews out of Anatevka I think about leaving my home and all of the things I miss about it. My home is with me always on stage. "

The national tour company of Fiddler on the Roof
photo by Joan Marcus

Was there any type of research you did to prepare for the role?

"The production has many books and videos that we used as research. The original Shalom Aleichem stories, a book called 'Life is with People', that talks in great detail about life in the shtetl in the Pale of Settlement, and the documentary 'Miracles of Miracles' are just a small part of the research work that has gone into my preparation. I’ve also interviewed my grandparents, my parents, and any of their friends who had anything to do with the Pale of Settlement or had to go through similar experiences. The hardest part of it all is not having children. Trying to learn about the love and sacrifice that parents feel through other people’s accounts has been incredibly challenging and is an ongoing learning experience. "

What is your favorite moment in the show and why is it your favorite?

"My favorite moment in the show is the Horse Mule argument in the opening number. The intense disagreement that stems from such a seemingly simple event exemplifies on of the most fundamental Jewish traits in my opinion. Each side passionately defending their opinion with such fervor, or 'chutzpah' in Yiddish, and then immediately forgetting about the whole thing and going back to dancing together is the thing I love most about my heritage. I often notice it in my day to day life. I will have an extremely heated discussion with my friends or family and after 20 minutes of intense and seemingly bitter debate, we smile and go have lunch together as if nothing happened. I think that is one of the best ways to learn and grow and is directly related to my Judaism. "

Have you been in any previous productions of the show? If so, how does this production of the show differ from those?

"I’ve never actually been in any other production of Fiddler, so I don’t have any personal experience. However, based on my knowledge of the show I can say that most productions take a more presentational approach where as our production tries to keep everything rooted in reality as much as possible. "

You graduated from Penn State’s musical theatre program. What was your experience like there and what were some of your favorite classes or favorite parts you played there?

"I’ve always been a singer, but I’ve never acted until I got to Penn State in 2015. It was a life changing experience to learn a new art form from scratch at such a high caliber. Therefore, anything to do with the study of acting was my favorite. Of particular interest to me was Shakespeare. The deep analyzation of text and finding subtext between words that are no longer in use was illuminating. 

I think the transition into college life was particularly hard for me. I moved to college from Israel after spending three years as a singer in the IDF Ground Forces Band. My military service, while not as combative, still required a mentality that no one in my program could really understand. Additionally, I was older than everyone there (I started when I was 22). But my teachers and classmates accepted me and taught me how to fit in to this new industry and life. I am extremely grateful for them. "

Jonathan Hashmonay (right) and the national tour company of Fiddler on the Roof
photo by Joan Marcus

Why do you think this show is still relevant today?

"There are aspects of this show that, as long as humanity survives, will be relevant. Traits such as love and the longing for similarity are part of being human and are always relevant no matter the time. However, this show is much more than that. Particularly with the war in Ukraine, and the refugee crisis that it created, a show that lets you see into what it feels like to be kicked out of your home is of particular relevance. Not to mention with the rise of anti-semitism world wide, this story becomes doubly important."

What do you hope audiences will take away from seeing Fiddler on the Roof at the Orpheum Theatre?

"Out of everything that this show is, most of all, I hope that audiences are able to see the power of listening to the other and adaptation and forgiveness. Many characters in this show go through different levels of change and every time they do, their lives become closer to what they want them to be. I think this is a beautiful take away and can be applied to many aspects of life. "

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which plays the Orpheum Theatre from December 2-4