L’Chaim! 50 Facts About Fiddler on the Roof on the Musical’s 50th Anniversary | Broadway Buzz | Broadway.com L’Chaim! 50 Facts About Fiddler on the Roof on the Musical’s 50th Anniversary Features By Broadway.com Staff September 22, 2014 - 2:41PM Famous Tevyes (left to right): Topol, Zero Mostel, Josh Groban (!) & Harvey Fierstein Happy 50th to 'Fiddler'! Wonder of wonders, it’s the 50th anniversary of Fiddler on the Roof! It’s been five whole decades since the celebrated musical first premiered on Broadway on September 22, 1964. To celebrate, Broadway.com is doing a daily bottle dance will offer up a week of Fiddler features. With some help from the new book Tradition!: The Highly Improbable, Ultimately Triumphant Broadway-to-Hollywood Story of Fiddler on the Roof, we’ve got 50 Fiddler facts about the hit musical by Joseph Stein, Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick.

So grab your yarmulke and study up—the show is aiming to return to Broadway in the 2015-16 season! 1. It's widely known that Fiddler on the Roof is based on Sholem Aleichem's stories, but did you know that the real name of this "Jewish Mark Twain" was Solomon Naumovich Rabinovich? His pen name Sholem Aleichem literally means "peace be with you." 2. Composer Bock and lyricist Harnick originally wanted to write a musical based on Aleichem's Wandering Stars, about a traveling Yiddish theater company. "It would have to had 40 minor characters on stage and it was just too big," Harnick said in an interview. They settled on the Tevye the Dairyman stories instead. 3. Pass the apples and honey ! Bock and Harnick began writing Fiddler on the Roof on September 11, 1961, which was Rosh Hashanah (a.k.a. the Jewish New Year). 4.

The first draft of the show was called The Old Country—other working titles included Tevye, Not So Long Ago, Not So Far Away and Where Poppa Came From. 5. The title of the musical and Boris Aronson's set design for the original production are based Marc Chagall’s painting “The Fiddler.” 6. Stephen Sondheim urged director/choreographer Jerome Robbins to get involved with Fiddler after hearing the score at a private party at Stein’s home in New Rochelle. Good thing Jerry listened to Steve! 7. Harold Prince originally passed on producing Fiddler on the Roof. Bock and Harnick sweetened the deal by offering Prince their musical She Loves Me, and wonder of wonders, Prince agreed to take on Fiddler. 8. Speaking of passing up a terrific opportunity, Stein showed Fiddler to Zero Mostel while he was still starring in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. Mostel turned it down, but later had a change of heart when he heard a more complete version of the show. 9.

Walter Matthau, Eli Wallach, Rod Steiger, Tom Bosley (who played the title role in the Bock-Harnick hit Fiorello!), Jack Gilford, Danny Thomas and Alan King were all considered for the role of Tevye in the original Broadway production. 10. Lee Grant, Nancy Walker and Mercedes McCambridge were all considered for Golde. 11. The first person cast in the show was Austin Pendleton. Pendleton, who played Motel the tailor, would later go on to be a notable director and actor. 12. Famed comic actor Gene Wilder also auditioned for Motel. Though he didn't get the part, he would go on to star alongside Mostel in Mel Brooks' 1968 film The Producers. 13. There were many changes made to the script as the production got rolling. For example, Tevye's first number, "What a Life," which was sung to his horse, was replaced with "If I Were a Rich Man." 14. Fiddler on the Roof held the record for the longest-running show on Broadway for 10 years, when it was succeeded by Grease. 15.

Maria Karnilova, who played Golde in the original production, famously played stripper Tessie Tura in the original cast of Gypsy. 16. Bea Arthur auditioned multiple times for the role of Yente, but Robbins thought she was too contemporary for the role. She eventually got the part, but many of her lines were cut. In her 2002 Broadway show, Just Between Friends, Arthur says Robbins was only director who ever made her cry, and called him “a really dreadful human being.” 17. When Fiddler on the Roof premiered in Poland in 1985, the show's authors donated their royalties to preserving the country's Jewish monuments. 18. Joanna Merlin, who originated the role of Tzeitel, was cast in the show on November 22, 1963. She came out of the theater to learn that President John F. Kennedy had been shot. 19. Bert Convy, who originated the role of the revolutionary Perchik, went on to be a famous host of TV game shows, including Win, Lose or Draw and Super Password. 20.

According to Pendelton, Robbins finally staged "Tradition" in the middle of the final week before they were set to leave for their Detroit tryout. It only took him an hour and a half to stage it. 21. Paul Lipson, who was Mostel's understudy and later played Tevye in his own right, clocked over 2,000 performances in the role. His first performance in the part was during the pre-Broadway Washington, D.C. engagement. 22. Fiddler was nominated for 10 Tony Awards and won nine (all but Best Set Design). 23. No one mentioned Zero Mostel in their Tony acceptance speeches. When Mostel went up to accept his award, he said, "Since no one else has thanked me, I will thank me.” 24. Bette Midler joined the Broadway cast of Fiddler as Rivka, one of the villagers, and understudied the role of Tzeitel. When Merlin left the show, Midler took over and played the role for four years. 25. Merlin went on to be a casting director for Sondheim musicals.

She worked with producer Prince on Company, A Little Night Music, Follies and Sweeney Todd. 26. Fiddler on the Roof premiered in Tokyo on September 6, 1967—it has since been mounted in Japan more than 1,300 times. 27. The iconic violin solo in the film was played by renowned violinist Isaac Stern. 28. United Artists was contractually obligated to ask Robbins if he wanted to direct the film version. The director, who was wary after the conflicts that arose during the filming of West Side Story, turned the offer down. 29. Norman Jewison was then asked to direct the film—he agreed, but he was worried the producers assumed he was Jewish. “The whole world thinks I’m the Jewish son of a Jew—Jewison,” he said. 30. Jewison thought Mostel was “too big” to star in the film, and went in search of another actor to play Tevye. Danny Kaye was an early choice, but "his wife turned us down saying he was too young to have marriage-age daughters," Harnick said. 31.

Frank Sinatra’s agent called Jewison to try to get his client an audition, but he didn’t envision the crooner as a Jewish milkman. 32. Israeli actor Chaim Topol was playing Tevye in Tel Aviv when he was asked to audition for the London production. He barely spoke any English, and learned to speak the language by studying the script. 33. Three villages in Yugoslavia were transformed into Anatevka for the film. 34. Jewison tried to get Anne Bancroft to play Golde in the film but was unsuccessful. Other possible Goldes included Colleen Dewhurst, Zoe Caldwell, Dorothy Loudon, Marian Seldes and Beverly Sills. It finally came down to Norma Crane and Lee Grant—Crane got the role. 35. Robert De Niro read for the role of Perchik—the role in the film eventually went to Paul Michael Glaser, who later became Starsky in the hit cop TV show Starsky & Hutch. 36.

Richard Dreyfuss, Rob Reiner and John Ritter auditioned for the role of Motel, but were passed over for Leonard Frey, who had played a small role (Mendel, the rabbi's son) in the Broadway production. He was nominated for an Oscar for his performance. 37. Of the film’s major reviews, eight were favorable, six were negative and two were mixed, according to the American Film Institute. The movie cost $9 million to make and grossed $50 million in its initial release. 38. Fiddler was nominated for eight Academy Awards in 1972, winning three: Best Cinematography, Best Sound and Best Scoring: Adaptation and Original Song Score. The French Connection beat it for Best Picture. 39. There have been five Broadway productions of Fiddler on the Roof to date.

The original 1964 production ran for 3,242 performances; the 1976 production ran for 167 performances; the 1981 production ran for 53 performances; the 1990 production ran for 241 performances, and the 2004 production ran for 781 performances. 40. In 2007, Time magazine ranked Fiddler on the Roof the 7th most frequently produced musical in American high schools. 41. Composer Jerry Bock died November 3, 2010—10 days after the death of Fiddler book writer Joseph Stein. 42. Translated into Spanish, Un Violinista sobre el Tejado premiered in Panama’s National Theatre of Panama in October 2012, featuring Aaron Zebede as Tevye. 43. Grammy winner Josh Groban played Tevye in high school—if you missed his performance, don't worry, it's all available on YouTube . 44. John C. Reilly played a Russian commissar in a local Chicago production.

He stood backstage and sang “Sunrise, Sunset” every night because he was upset he didn’t have a singing role. 45. The Book of Mormon and Frozen star Josh Gad played Tevye in his high school production. He calls it his “least celebrated” performance. 46. Beam me up, Hodel! In 1971, Star Trek star Leonard Nimoy played Tevye for eight weeks in Ohio, Massachusetts and upstate New York in a local touring production. 47. When Harvey Fierstein told producer Susan Bristow he'd like to star in the 2004 revival of Fiddler, she responded, "Who are you going to play, Golde?" 47. While sitting in her seat before the curtain went up, Jerome Robbins' sister Sonia Cullinen suffered a heart attack on opening night of the 2004 revival of Fidder. She was taken to Bellvue Hospital, where she was pronounced dead. 48. Sacha Baron Cohen played Tevye when he was studying at Cambridge. For his Sweeney Todd movie audition, he sang “If I Were a Rich Man.” 49.

Harnick wrote new lyrics to “Sunrise, Sunset” for same-sex weddings in 2011. The male version includes these lines, "When did they get to be so handsome?/When did they grow to be so tall?/Wasn’t it yesterday when they were small?" 50. The final script of Fiddler on the Roof is dedicated “to our Fathers.” Prince said later that the show was “clearly conceived” by Stein, Bock, and Harnick “as a kind of valentine to their grandparents.” Check back all week long for more Fiddler features! Fiddler on the Roof - NYC | Broadway.org Fiddler on the Roof First Preview Date: Nov 20, 2015 Opening Date: Dec 20, 2015 Closing Date: Dec 31, 2016 Show Run Time: 2 hours and 45 minutes with 1 intermission A dazzling cast and a lavish orchestra tell this heartwarming story of fathers and daughters, husbands and wives, and the timeless traditions that define faith and family.

Featuring the Broadway classics "To Life (L’Chaim!)," "If I Were A Rich Man," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," and "Tradition," Fiddler on the Roof introduces a new generation to this uplifting celebration that raises its cup to joy. To love! To life! Regular Ticket Price: $35 - $167 Premium Ticket Price: $167 - $227 Buy Online Tickets By Phone: (212) 239-6200 / (800) 432-7250 Tickets may also be purchased in person at the box office. See Theatre Information for location and hours. Current Week's Schedule 3:00 Additional Fees Tickets purchased online and by phone are subject to a per-ticket service charge of $7.50 and a per order handling fee. Handling fees vary by how your tickets are delivered. Facility fees, where applicable, are included in the ticket price. Note: You can avoid on-line and telephone fees by purchasing your tickets in person at the show's box office.

Group Tickets For groups of 12 or more, please visit Broadway Inbound or call (212) 239-6262 (outside the NY metro area (800) 432-7780.) Rush Information $37 - A limited number of $37 general rush tickets will be available to purchase at the box office of the Broadway Theatre at the opening of each day. Cash or credit. Patrons are limited to two tickets per person. Show Advisory Children under the age of 4 are not permitted in the theatre. Theatre Accessibility TheatreAccess.NYC provides assistance to theatregoers with disabilities. Those who are hard of hearing or deaf, have low vision or are blind, who cannot climb stairs or who require aisle seating or wheelchair locations, who are on the autism spectrum or have other developmental or cognitive disabilities now have one great place to find out everything you need to know to choose a show, buy tickets and plan your trip to Broadway. Show Details Anatevka, a small village in Russia. 1905, on the eve of the Russian Revolution.

Description A dazzling cast and a lavish orchestra tell this heartwarming story of fathers and daughters, husbands and wives, and the timeless traditions that define faith and family. Featuring the Broadway classics "To Life (L’Chaim!)," "If I Were A Rich Man," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," and "Tradition," Fiddler on the Roof introduces a new generation to this uplifting celebration that raises its cup to joy. To love! To life! Credits Powered by IBDB.com Music by Jerry Bock. Book by Joseph Stein. Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Inspired by the work of Jerome Robbins. Based on the stories by Sholom Aleichem. Sholom Aleichem's stories used by special permission of Arnold Perl. Directed by Bartlett Sher. Choreographed by Hofesh Shechter.

For full credits, view the show on IBDB.com Theatre Details Monday through Saturday: 10 am to 8:30 pm Sunday: Noon to 6 pm Cast Recording Regular Ticket Price: $35 - $167 Premium Ticket Price: $167 - $227 Buy Online Tickets By Phone: (212) 239-6200 / (800) 432-7250 Tickets may also be purchased in person at the box office. See Theatre Information for location and hours. Additional Fees Tickets purchased online and by phone are subject to a per-ticket service charge of $7.50 and a per order handling fee. Handling fees vary by how your tickets are delivered. Facility fees, where applicable, are included in the ticket price. Note: You can avoid on-line and telephone fees by purchasing your tickets in person at the show's box office.

Group Tickets For groups of 12 or more, please visit Broadway Inbound or call (212) 239-6262 (outside the NY metro area (800) 432-7780.) Rush Information $37 - A limited number of $37 general rush tickets will be available to purchase at the box office of the Broadway Theatre at the opening of each day. Cash or credit. Patrons are limited to two tickets per person. Show Advisory Children under the age of 4 are not permitted in the theatre. The best seats in the house, available from the official ticketing agencies even when other tickets are sold out. Group sales are the best way for a minimum of 10 (or 15 or 20, depending on the show) theatregoers to arrange tickets to the same performance. Discounted tickets, available right before the show. Often cash-only; other restrictions apply. Some theatres can accommodate patrons standing at the back of the house on the main level or in the mezzanine. These inexpensive tickets may be available when the show is otherwise sold out. Inexpensive tickets available to students with valid IDs. Restrictions apply.

Theatre Accessibility TheatreAccess.NYC provides assistance to theatregoers with disabilities. Those who are hard of hearing or deaf, have low vision or are blind, who cannot climb stairs or who require aisle seating or wheelchair locations, who are on the autism spectrum or have other developmental or cognitive disabilities now have one great place to find out everything you need to know to choose a show, buy tickets and plan your trip to Broadway. Current Week's Schedule Anatevka, a small village in Russia. 1905, on the eve of the Russian Revolution. Description A dazzling cast and a lavish orchestra tell this heartwarming story of fathers and daughters, husbands and wives, and the timeless traditions that define faith and family. Featuring the Broadway classics "To Life (L’Chaim!)," "If I Were A Rich Man," "Sunrise, Sunset," "Matchmaker, Matchmaker," and "Tradition," Fiddler on the Roof introduces a new generation to this uplifting celebration that raises its cup to joy. To love! To life! Credits Powered by IBDB.com Music by Jerry Bock. Book by Joseph Stein. Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. Inspired by the work of Jerome Robbins.

Based on the stories by Sholom Aleichem. Sholom Aleichem's stories used by special permission of Arnold Perl. Directed by Bartlett Sher. Choreographed by Hofesh Shechter. For full credits, view the show on IBDB.com Fiddler on the Roof (1971) - IMDb IMDb 2 January 2017 8:47 PM, UTC NEWS There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error Fiddler on the Roof ( 1971 ) G | In prerevolutionary Russia, a Jewish peasant contends with marrying off three of his daughters while growing anti-Semitic sentiment threatens his village.

Director: Norman Jewison Writers: Sholom Aleichem (adapted from stories) (as Sholem Aleichem), Arnold Perl (adapted from Sholem Aleichem stories by special arrangement with) | 2 more credits » Stars: From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video ON DISC a list of 30 titles created 10 Dec 2010 a list of 23 titles created 28 Oct 2012 a list of 41 titles created 30 Sep 2014 a list of 21 images created 5 months ago a list of 46 titles created 3 months ago Title: Fiddler on the Roof (1971) 8/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Won 3 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 13 nominations. See more awards » Videos Edit Storyline At the beginning of the twentieth century, Jews and Orthodox Christians live in the little village of Anatevka in the pre-revolutionary Russia of the Czars.

Among the traditions of the Jewish community, the matchmaker arranges the match and the father approves it. The milkman Reb Tevye is a poor man that has been married for twenty-five years with Golde and they have five daughters. When the local matchmaker Yente arranges the match between his older daughter Tzeitel and the old widow butcher Lazar Wolf, Tevye agrees with the wedding. However Tzeitel is in love with the poor tailor Motel Kamzoil and they ask permission to Tevye to get married that he accepts to please his daughter. Then his second daughter Hodel (Michele Marsh) and the revolutionary student Perchik decide to marry each other and Tevye is forced to accept. When Perchik is arrested by the Czar troops and sent to Siberia, Hodel decides to leave her family and homeland and travel to Siberia to be with her beloved Perchik.... Written by Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Did You Know? Trivia By the early 1970s Hollywood roadshow presentations--especially musicals--were now no longer popular with critics and audiences.

Recent musicals, including Camelot (1967), Doctor Dolittle (1967), Star! (1968), Finian's Rainbow (1968), Sweet Charity (1969), Hello, Dolly! (1969), and On a Clear Day You Can See Forever (1970) were not as captivating, imaginative, realistic,, as the film adaptations of Broadway musicals prior, had been., those successful film adaptations, including West Side Story (1961), The Music Man (1962), Mary Poppins (1964), My Fair Lady (1964), The Sound of Music (1965), The Jungle Book (1967), Oliver! (1968), and Funny Girl (1968) were in the 1960s, so Norman Jewison , Walter Mirisch and United Artists were worried about how the film would do once it got released.

When it was finally released in late 1971 it defied naysayers and received overwhelming critical acclaim and became the highest-grossing film of the year, besting films like Shaft (1971), Stanley Kubrick 's A Clockwork Orange (1971), Diamonds Are Forever (1971), Dirty Harry (1971) with Clint Eastwood , and the Academy Award-winning The French Connection (1971). See more » Goofs During the first few shots of crowd holding candles on their way to the wedding, the sun changes positions above the horizon. (But as such indicates the length in time of the journey by foot, which could be intentional, in which case the slow melting of candles might be a goof in its own right). See more » Quotes [first lines] Tevye : A fiddler on the roof. Sounds crazy, no? But here, in our little village of Anatevka, you might say every one of us is a fiddler on the roof trying to scratch out a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck. It isn't easy.

You may ask 'Why do we stay up there if it's so dangerous?' Well, we stay because Anatevka is our home. And how do we keep our balance? That I can tell you in one word: tradition! See more » Crazy Credits Topol and the cast sing "Tradition" without any opening credits rolling. At the end of the number, the fiddler, standing on the left of the screen, launches into an extensive solo while the opening credits roll on the right of the screen. See more » Connections Muny Fiddler on the Roof Features Stage Premiere of Added Bock & Harnick Song | Playbill Muny Fiddler on the Roof Features Stage Premiere of Added Bock & Harnick Song The song was written for the 1971 Fiddler film. Sheldon Harnick (Joan Marcus) The Muny production of Fiddler on the Roof , which continues through August 5, features the stage premiere of a new song.

Originally written for the 1971 Fiddler film by Jerry Bock (music) and Sheldon Harnick (lyrics), “Any Day Now” is sung by the Perchik in Act Two, replacing “Now I Have Everything.” The song has been orchestrated by music director Brad Haak and is sung by Marrick Smith, who is playing Perchik. It is performed by the 24-piece Muny orchestra. Director Gary Griffin discovered the song in 2014 when he worked with Harnick on an evening about Fiddler’s creation and history at New York’s 92nd Street Y. “I just loved this song,” said Griffin, “When Sheldon casually mentioned that he had always wanted to see it put into a stage version, I asked his permission for us to use it for The Muny production. I am so honored he said yes and is coming to St. Louis to see our production.” While in St. Louis, Harnick will be inducted into the Muny Hall of Fame. “We are so honored,” said Muny artistic director and executive producer Mike Isaacson .

“Not only do we give our audiences a world premiere of a song written by one of Broadway’s greatest writing teams, we also join our colleagues around the country who have been celebrating the incredible contributions of Mr. Harnick.“ The cast is led by Michael McCormick (Tevye), Anne L. Nathan (Golde), Nancy Opel (Yente/Fruma-Sarah), Haley Bond (Tzeitel), Briana Carlson-Goodman (Hodel), Colby Dezelick (Fyedka), Alan Schmuckler (Motel), Carly Blake Sebouhian (Chava), Marrick Smith (Perchik), Peter Van Wagner (Lazar Wolf), Andrew Crowe (The Fiddler), Randall Dodge (Nachum), Elise Edwards (Bielke), Gary Glasgow (Avram), Jeremy Lawrence (Rabbi), Adam J.

Levy (Mendel), Michael James Reed (Constable), Emma Resek (Shprintze) and Jerry Vogel (Mordcha) with Michael Biren, Stephanie Bissonnette, Polly Cornelius, Thom Dancy, Brandon Fink, Patrick Garr, Sarah Goldrainer, Lissa deGuzman, Zachary Daniel Jones, Tanner Pflueger, Taylor Pietz, Todd Rhoades, Darren Robinson, April Strelinger and Zoe Vonder Haar. The company is joined by The Muny kid and teen youth ensembles. The production also has scenic design by Robert Mark Morgan with costume design by Amy Clark, lighting design by Rob Denton, sound design by John Shivers and David Patridge and video design by Nathan W. Scheuer. Wig design is by John Metzner, and the production stage manager is Bonnie Panson. Fiddler on the Roof has a book by Joseph Stein , music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick; the musical is based on the stories of Sholom Aleichem.

“Set in 1905 in the tradition-steeped village of Anatevka, Russia,” Fiddler on the Roof, according to the Muny, “is a poignant folk-tale that tells the story of Tevye, a poor dairyman, and his five daughters. With the help of a colorful and tight-knit Jewish community, Tevye tries to instill in his daughters their cultural traditions in the face of changing social mores of Czarist Russia. Rich in historical and ethnic detail, Fiddler on the Roof is a cherished American-musical laden with happiness and tears.” For more information visit Muny.org . * The Broadway revival of Fiddler continues at the Broadway Theatre.

Watch clips from the Broadway production below: RELATED: 'Fiddler' Songwriters Discuss Putting Themselves In The 'Soul Of The Characters' : NPR 'Fiddler' Songwriters Discuss Putting Themselves In The 'Soul Of The Characters' Embed Embed 'Fiddler' Songwriters Discuss Putting Themselves In The 'Soul Of The Characters' 'Fiddler' Songwriters Discuss Putting Themselves In The 'Soul Of The Characters' Embed Embed Composer Jerry Bock and Lyricist Sheldon Harnick Composer Jerry Bock and Lyricist Sheldon Harnick Embed Embed <iframe src="" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Together Sheldon Harnick and the late Jerry Bock wrote the songs for the Broadway show Fiddler on the Roof. Both men spoke to Fresh Air in 2004; Harnick spoke to Fresh Air again in 2014. DAVE DAVIES, HOST: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Dave Davies sitting in for Terry Gross.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) DAVIES: The musical "Fiddler On The Roof" is back on Broadway in a revival starring Danny Burstein as Tevye, a husband and father and a milkman in Anatevka, a small Jewish village in czarist Russia. The year is 1905. The role of Tevye was originally played by Zero Mostel. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "FIDDLER ON THE ROOF") ZERO MOSTEL: (As Tevye) A fiddler on the roof - sounds crazy, no? But in our little village of Anatevka, you might say every one of us is a fiddler on the roof trying to scratch out a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck. It isn't easy. You may ask why do we stay up there if it's so dangerous? We stay because Anatevka's our home. And how do we keep our balance? That I can tell you in one word - tradition. (MUSIC) MOSTEL AND UNIDENTIFIED ACTORS: (As Tevye and characters, singing) Tradition, tradition. Tradition. Tradition, tradition. Tradition.

DAVIES: When "Fidler" opened on Broadway in 1964, it ran for 3,242 performances which was then a Broadway record. It's since been performed around the world. On today's FRESH AIR, we'll listen back to interviews Terry recorded with the show's lyricist, Sheldon Harnick, and the late Jerry Bock, who wrote the music. Bock died in 2010. Their other musicals include "Fiorello!" and "She Loves Me." They were on FRESH AIR in 2004 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of "Fiddler" while a previous revival starring Alfred Molina was on Broadway. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST) TERRY GROSS, HOST: Jerry Bock, when you were writing the music for "Fiddler On The Roof," how - how Jewish did you want the music to sound? How much did you want it to sound like Klezmer music and how much did you want it to sound like Broadway music? JERRY BOCK: It never entered my mind in either case.

I knew the ambience was going to be Russian and that it took place in a shtetl. But I had no compulsion to research either early Klezmer or, particularly, Russian music at the turn of that century or just before the turn of the century. The music that I hadn't been able to write with all our shows was something that I had silently deposited in my creative mind. And the opportunity to now express myself with that kind of music just opened up a flood of possibilities for me. SHELDON HARNICK: The only piece of music that I can think of that was definitely influenced by some Jewish music was "If I Were A Rich Man" because Jerry and I had gone down to see a Hebrew Actors' Union benefit. We went down looking to see whether there were any performers in that that would be useful for our show, and there was one. There was a man named Svie Schuyler (ph) who became our innkeeper. But as part of the entertainment, a mother and daughter came out and they did a Hasidic chant all in thirds and sixths with just syllables, no actual words.

And Jerry called me the next day saying he'd been so taken with this that it inspired him to write something similar. BOCK: And that was a collaborative thing again because what affected us was both the word chant as well as the accompanying music. It's only part - I don't want to put it down because I think it's a surprising part and an endearing part of the whole song, "If I Were A Rich Man." GROSS: So let's hear Zero Mostel from the original cast recording doing "If I Were A Rich Man." (SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "FIDDLER ON THE ROOF") MOSTEL: (As Tevye) Dear God, you made many, many poor people. I realize, of course, that it's no shame to be poor. But it's no great honor, either. So what would've been so terrible if I had a small fortune? (Singing) If I were a rich man, ya-ha dee-a dee-a dee-a dee-a dee-a dee-a dum (ph). All day long, I'd biddy biddy bum (ph). If I were a wealthy man.

I wouldn't have to work hard, ya-ha, beeble, beeble, beeble, beeble, beeble, bubble, bum (ph). If I were a biddy, biddy rich, yidle, diddle, didle, didle (ph) man, I'd dig a big tall house with rooms by the dozen right in the middle of the town. A fine tin roof with real wooden floors below. There could be one long staircase just going up and one even longer coming down, and one more leading nowhere just for show. I'd fill my yard with chicks and turkeys and geese and ducks for the town to see and hear, squawking just as noisily as they can. And each loud (imitating chickens squawking) would land like a trumpet on the ear as if to say, here lives a wealthy man. Oh, if I were a rich man, ya-ha, deedle, deedle, deedle, beeble, beeble, bubble, bum (ph).

GROSS: Sheldon Harnick, the yidle-deedle-digga-digga-do (ph) part, (laughter), did you actually write out the syllables that you wanted Zero Mostel to sing? HARNICK: Well, it wasn't that I necessarily wrote them for Zero, but what happened was this. When Jerry played me the music he wrote, he did the whole song in that kind of a Hasidic chant, and we decided that it would be great fun to preserve part of the chant and not just to write wall-to-wall lyrics for the song. But my problem was I don't come from a background where I was comfortable chanting in that fashion. And I thought, OK, I'll have to create some kind of syllables which give the effect of that kind of chanting. And I came up with the didle-deedle-didle-digga-digga-deedle-didle-dum (ph), which I thought was kind of fun and sounded a little like the chanting. But when we played the song for Zero, he said, I come from a background - I don't want to do the syllables you've written.

Is it OK with you if I do it the way I think it should be done? And I said, absolutely. I said, can't sing it that way. So Zero did it with his - stylistically, it sounded quite... BOCK: Authentic. HARNICK: Authentic, yeah. BOCK: By the way, if Sheldon had said no, absolutely not, you must do the lyric, he would've done it his way anyway. HARNICK: Right. GROSS: Was he hard or easy to work with? BOCK: Both. GROSS: (Laughter). HARNICK: In terms of music, he was - although he was not a singer, he was extremely musical so in that sense, he was very easy. And, as a matter of fact, he did me a huge favor. After he started to learn if "I Were A Rich Man," I got nervous about it because I thought most of the song is rather droll. And then I went for a serious ending, and I began to worry whether I should change the ending and make the ending droll also. So I suggested that in a conference we had one day, I think Hal Prince was there and Jerome Robbins and Zero.

And Zero looked at me, he said, Sheldon, don't change the ending. If you want to - this is the man. The jokes in the song are terrific, but this is the man that you've described, the one who wants a seat by the eastern wall, who wants to be able to pray. This is the real Tevye. So he saved - we kept the ending, and I'm glad we did. BOCK: I'm glad too. GROSS: The only song that actually has a Yiddish word in it - "L'chaim," which is a toast to life. So Sheldon Harnick, when you were writing the lyrics, it seems to me you intentionally avoided using anything Yiddish with the exception of this song. HARNICK: Well, there is one other song. The "Dream" uses the word Mazel Tov. GROSS: Oh, that's true - a blessing on your head, mazel tov, mazel tov. HARNICK: Well, there was a reason for that. Not too long before we went into rehearsal, I went to see a comedian named Lenny Bruce.

I'd heard that Lenny Bruce was controversial because he used a lot of profanity and obscenities in his act, and I was curious. So I went to see him and it turned out that the obscenities and the profanities were all done as characters that he portrayed and so that they sounded like things those particular characters would actually say. And I wasn't disturbed by the profanity or the obscenity at all. What did disturb me was that when he wasn't doing the characters and he was just talking, he would throw in Yiddish words and they would elicit laughter from a few people here and there, but many of the other people in the club turned to each other and said, what'd he say? What'd he say? So I thought it'll be probably useful to use a couple of Yiddish words in our show, in the dialogue and in the lyrics - just a couple for flavoring. But if anyone laughs when they're used then they come out. And also when they're used, they have to be used in a way that the audience will know what they mean. So of course in "To Life" there's an explanation that goes along with those words. BOCK: You can define it.

HARNICK: Right. To life, to life, l'chaim, l'chaim. Nobody could miss that. And the word mazel tov is usually used in a setting where it's pretty clear that it means congratulations, you know? BOCK: Unhappily, after the show was running - the original show was running, our dear star Zero would occasionally go into a matinee and use more Yiddish than we ever could've dreamed of in certain performances to sort of make him a confidant of what he thought that kind of audience was. We all - we all thought that was naughty, to put it mildly. GROSS: (Laughter). Did you yell at him afterwards? HARNICK: Yes, yes. Joe Stein made a terrible mistake one day. We were in the audience when he used a kind of really naughty Yiddish word. And we went backstage and Joe said to him - he said, Zero, you were wonderful today. Buddy, I couldn't have done it better. (LAUGHTER) HARNICK: And Zero was furious and he said, what do you mean by that?

And Joe said - he said, Zero, do you have to add those kind of words, especially the words that have the naughty implications? And Zero kind of did what he wanted so it was another two weeks before he would take those words out. Then when he thought, OK, I've done it enough, then he took it out. So that answers your question. Yes, he was difficult. But, audiences adored him, you know? Whatever he did, usually what he did was so funny that audiences just loved him. DAVIES: We are listening to an interview with lyricist Sheldon Harnick and the late composer Jerry Bock. Terry Gross spoke with them in 2004. We'll hear more of their conversation after a break. This is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR. The musical "Fiddler On The Roof" is back on Broadway in a revival starring Danny Burstein as Tevye the milkman. Let's get back to Terry's interview with the show's composer, Jerry Bock, and its lyricist, Sheldon Harnick.

They were on FRESH AIR in 2004 while a previous revival starring Alfred Molina as Tevye was on Broadway. GROSS: Now, I want to go to another song, and that is "Do I Love You?" And... BOCK: "Do You Love Me?" HARNICK: "Do You Love Me?" GROSS: "Do You Love Me?" HARNICK: No, no, do you love me? BOCK: We're very flattered (laughter). GROSS: All of Tevye's daughters, like, they want to fall in love. They don't want their father Tevye to decide who they're going to marry. They don't want the matchmaker to decide it. At this point, they want to fall in love, and at least one of them already has. And she wants to marry the man she loves. And this is leading Tevye to wonder, well, what about his relationship? Does his wife love him? What is love? And he sings this song, and it's a lovely song. Sheldon Harnick, can you talk about the lyrics? HARNICK: Yes.

During rehearsal, when we were in New York, I began to feel that there was a song that would develop out of Tevye's saying, do you love me? I always thought when Golda would say, do I what, because that was - love was not something that people married for generally in those days. They married for security. They married for economic reasons, you know, companionship - but not love. So when I pictured her saying, do I what, I thought, that's very funny. But I couldn't figure out where the song went from there. And when we got to Detroit - our pre-Broadway tour - I used to take long walks every day and try and figure out what they would say. And the lyric came very slowly and in a kind of unconventional form. When I finally finished it, after about a week, I gave it to Jerry very uncertain about what I had. And I said, I know that it's - it looks more like a scene than a song, so do what you can with it, and if I have to rewrite the lyric, I will. And I was absolutely delighted when Jerry set the lyric exactly as I gave it to him.

BOCK: I just wanted to add very quickly, Terry, that the difference between Zero's "Do You Love Me?" and Alfred's is astonishing. Zero did get laughs. He approached it as almost a kind of incredulous to ask and took advantage of every humorous possibility. Alfred does it most sincerely in terms of true and real questioning. He wants to know the answer. And as a result, it's a very moving moment rather than a humorous one. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DO YOU LOVE ME") ALFRED MOLINA: (As Tevye) Golde, (singing) do you love me? RANDY GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) Do I what? MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Do you love me? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) Do I love you? With our daughters getting married and this trouble in the town, you're upset, you're worn out. Go inside, go lie down. Maybe it's indigestion. MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Golde, I'm asking you a question. Do you love me?

GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) You're a fool. MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) I know. But do you love me? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) Do I love you? MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Well? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) For 25 years I've washed your clothes, cooked your meals, cleaned your house, given you to children, milked the cow - after 25 years, why talk about love right now? MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Golde, the first time I met you was on our wedding day. I was scared. GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) I was shy. MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) I was nervous. GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) So was I. MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) But my father and my mother said we'd learn to love each other. Now I'm asking - Golde, do you love me? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) I'm your wife.

MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) I know. But do you love me? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) Do I love him? MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Well? GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) For 25 years I've lived with him, fought with him, starved with him. Twenty-five years my bed is his. If that's not love, what is? MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) Then you love me. GRAFF: (As Golde, singing) I suppose I do. MOLINA: (As Tevye, singing) And I suppose I love you to. GRAFF AND MOLINA: (As Golde and Tevye, singing) It doesn't change a thing. But even so, after 25 years it's nice to know. GROSS: I have to ask you the "Sunrise, Sunset" question. It's a song that became a terrible cliche for quite a while because everybody was doing it at those emotional moments when your child is finally grown up. Did you... BOCK: My favorite cliche.

GROSS: Yes, exactly, and probably one of the most lucrative cliches, too. Did you ever think when you were writing it the kind of life the song was going to have? HARNICK: No. Jerry had written the music first. He sent it to me on a tape, and I thought, gee, that's a lovely song, I think that would be perfect to sing at the wedding. And the lyric kind of crystallized on the melodic curve of the song. When we finished it - Jerry was living in New Rochelle at the time - we called his wife down to the studio and we played it for Patti. And when we looked at her at the end of the song, she was crying. BOCK: Tears in her eyes, yes. HARNICK: And then I played it for my sister shortly after that and she was crying. And we thought, ooh, now, this song probably - this has more effectiveness than we imagined. BOCK: Mind you, we didn't know whether they were tears of joy, or, that's awful. (LAUGHTER) GROSS: Jerry Bock, what did you listen to when you were writing the show? Did you listen to much music?

BOCK: Not really. Somehow, as I said, I had unknowingly, unwittingly stored a lot of the sound of it without having been able to express myself with it. I love Russian music. I love Romanian music. Minor is my major key. (LAUGHTER) BOCK: And so with all that in mind, I think Sheldon and I probably wrote maybe 3 to 1 for every song that was used. We wrote at least three, and if we were asked to write 10 or 15 more, we probably could have because it was the kind of show that allowed us to express ourselves as we had never expressed ourselves before. GROSS: I want to thank you so much, not only for talking with us, but thank you for all the great songs you've given us. Thank you so much. HARNICK: Oh, thank you. BOCK: Thank you Terry. DAVIES: Composer Jerry Bock and lyricist Sheldon Harnick speaking with Terry Gross in 2004. Jerry Bock died in 2010. A revival of "Fiddler On The Roof" opened last month on Broadway.

Coming up, some songs which were written for "Fiddler" but didn't make it into the show. We'll hear the demo recordings. I'm Dave Davies, and this is FRESH AIR. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR. I'm Dave Davies. The musical "Fiddler On The Roof" is back on Broadway in a revival starring Danny Burstein as Tevye. We just listened to Terry's 2004 interview with the show's lyricist Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock, who wrote the music. Bock died in 2010. Harnick was back on the show two years ago to talk about an album he'd just released from his private collection, featuring demos and performances of Harnick himself singing his songs. Some never made it into the shows they were intended for. Others he wrote for reviews early in his career. The album's called "Sheldon Harnick: Hidden Treasures 1949-2013." We aired the interview on Harnick's 90th birthday. He'll be 92 in April.

Let's begin with a demo recording of "Sunrise, Sunset" from "Fiddler On The Roof," featuring Harnick accompanied by Jerry Bock. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SUNRISE, SUNSET") HARNICK: (Singing) Is this the little girl I carried? Is this the little boy at play? I don't remember growing older. When did they? When did she get to be a beauty? When did he grow to be so tall? Wasn't it yesterday when they were small? Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset, swiftly flow the days. Seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers, blossoming even as we gaze. Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset... (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST) GROSS: Sheldon Harnick, welcome back to FRESH AIR, and happy birthday. It's so wonderful. HARNICK: Oh thank you, thank you very much. GROSS: One of the pleasures of this new double CD is that there are songs that you wrote for "Fiddler on the Roof" that were taken out of the musical that were never used. HARNICK: Many of them. GROSS: Yeah.

And it's you performing them. And "Fiddler on the Roof" is set in 1905 in a Jewish village in Czarist Russia, where the Jews are under attack and eventually forced out. So let's hear one of those songs. And this was supposed to be the opening number for "Fiddler on the Roof." It's called "We've Never Missed A Sabbath Yet." Tell us about what your intention was in writing this song and why you decided to not use it. HARNICK: The intention was to start the show with an exciting musical number. And the excitement came from the fact that the sun was going down, the Sabbath was almost here and the mother and the five daughters still had so much work to do, so the mother's urging the girls on to help clean up, get ready for the Sabbath. And it just - it made for an exciting musical number. It wasn't used because when Jerome Robbins became our director, we had many, many meetings before we went on to rehearsal. And at each meeting, he started with the same question - what is this show about? And he would say there's something that gives this show its power, and we don't know what it is.

And finally, at one of those meetings one of us said hey, you know what this show is about? It's about changing of the way of life of a people in these Eastern European communities, these little towns, these shtetls. And Robbins got very excited about that. He said if that's the case, then what you have to write is a member about traditions because we're going to see those traditions change. And that's so important in the show. Every scene or every other scene will be about whether a tradition changes or whether a tradition remains the same. So instead of a song with the mother and the daughters getting ready for the Sabbath, he wanted us to write a song about tradition because he thought that's what the show is really about. GROSS: And this song actually includes musical lines that were used in other songs for "Fiddler." Do you want to give us an example? HARNICK: When the song was cut, some of the melodic lines wound up as underscoring for other scenes.

And one theme in the song "We've Never Missed A Sabbath Yet," the theme is (singing) de, dum, pum, pa, pa, pa, da, pum, pum, pum. While we were in rehearsal, we cut a song that was written for the three older daughters because we had the three older daughters - one was an actress, one was a dancer and one was a singer. They could all sing well enough to sing a simple song, but we wrote a difficult song, and the actress and the dancer had trouble with it so the song was cut and we had to write a new song. So we wrote a song, "Matchmaker," which was much simpler. And what Jerry Bock did was he took the theme from "We've Never Missed A Sabbath Yet" - (singing) dum, pum, pa, pa, pa, da, pum, pum, pum - and he made it into (singing) de, de, de, de, de, de, de, de, de, de. He was very economical. He never wasted anything.

GROSS: And also, you took a line that was originally written for the Sabbath song and used it in "Tradition." But instead of the lyric for "Tradition," it's like, (singing) there's noodles to be made and chickens to be plucked. What's the lyric... HARNICK: Oh my God, you pick that out. That's right, yes. GROSS: So what's the line that you actually used in "Tradition" instead of there's noodles to be made and chickens to be plucked? HARNICK: As far as I remember, there was no actual lyric written to that. But what Jerry did, he took the melody for that. At the very beginning of "Fiddler on the Roof," there's a violin solo, an unaccompanied violin solo. And he took that melodic line from "We've Never Missed A Sabbath Yet" and gave it to the violinist. So he starts by playing, (singing) bum pa, dum, pum, pum, pum pa, dum, pum, pum. I don't believe that I ever put a lyric to that. There was a lyric put to it.

Our publisher, Tommy Valando, said why don't you take that, write a lyric to it so we can publish a song called "Fiddler on the Roof?" So I did. I wrote a special lyric... GROSS: Oh. HARNICK: And I know that - I remember the first words was (singing) a way above my head. And it went on from there, I don't remember the lyric. But I wrote a lyric that was meant to be a commercial lyric so we could have a song called "Fiddler on the Roof." GROSS: Oh, so you'd have a title song. HARNICK: So we'd have a title song. Yeah. Even... GROSS: And the song was never actually in the show. HARNICK: But it was in the sheet music. (LAUGHTER) GROSS: Like another era (laughter). Well, OK, so now we have to hear "We've Never Missed A Sabbath Yet," the song we've been talking about that was cut from the show that was meant to open the show, "Fiddler on the Roof." And we'll hear Sheldon Harnick singing with Jerry Bock at the piano.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "WE'VE NEVER MISSED A SABBATH YET") HARNICK: (Singing) Mama, Mama, we finished what you told us. Mama, Mama, could we go out and play? No. I rubbed and I scrubbed and the table's nice and clean. And I scrubbed all the chairs up and down and in between. Mama, Mama, can we go out? Mama can we go out? Mama can we go and play? There's still too much to do today Did you change the towels? Uh-huh. Then put on the Sabbath tablecloth, set the table and don't go away. (Singing) Mama, Mama, you mustn't be so nervous. Mama, Mama, for heaven's sake relax. So who can relax while there's so much to be done, keeping one eye on the soup and the other on the sun? Mama, Mama don't be nervous. Mama, we'll be ready long before the sun has set. We've never missed the Sabbath yet. (Singing) Somehow the house will be clean, floors will be swept, soup will be cooked, beef will be boiled.

Oh, there's noodles to make and chicken to be plucked and liver to be chopped and challah to be baked. A race with the sun, so at the proper time the candles can be lit and blessed. There's noodles to make and chickens to be plucked, liver to be chopped and challah to be baked. Race with the sun, so at the proper time the challah can be baked and blessed. DAVIES: We're listening to an interview Sheldon Harnick recorded with Terry Gross in 2014. We'll hear more after a break. This is FRESH AIR. DAVIES: This is FRESH AIR. And we're listening to Terry's 2014 interview with Sheldon Harnick, the lyricist for "Fiddler On The Roof," which is back on Broadway. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED BROADCAST) GROSS: So in the show "Fiddler on the Roof," there's a song called "Anatevka," which the Jews in this small town sing when they're forced out of their village, Anatevka. And it's a very - the song that's used in the show is both about well, it's just a place.

It's not an important place, but it's also very nostalgic song for the place that they are being forced to leave, the place that is their only home. But initially, in "Fiddler On The Roof," there was a song called "Letters From America." So tell us what the intention was with "Letters From America" and why it became "Anatevka." HARNICK: Well, we felt we needed, it's traditional kind of to have an up-tempo song opening the second act to get the second act of to a good start and we thought we needed that. So Joe Stein remembered that his father had told him while he was still in Europe, when people went to America, they would write letters describing the life in America that made everybody's mouth water. They just wanted to immediately to move to America, although some of the letters were very funny. Like one correspondent said, you know, we only work half a day here, 12 hours. (LAUGHTER) HARNICK: So we wrote the song and part of it was very active. I think you'd call it a kazatsky, a Russian kazatsky (singing) yum pum pa dum. Yum pum pa dum.

Ya va da ta dada. Yum pum pa dum. Anyway, it was Hal Prince, our producer on the show, who pointed out to Jerry Robbins - because Robbins wasn't sure what we were working on. He just wasn't sure that it was a right way to open the act. So he did - he showed what he had created to Hal. And Hal said guys, this is not your usual Broadway show. We don't have to start with the villagers gambling on the green. It's just not the way to start. So what we did was have Zero Mostel come out as Tevye and bring the audience up to date on what had happened since the end of act one. Then as we worked on the show in our pre-Broadway tour, Robbins came to Jerry Bock and me one day and he said, you know, I want to end the show - or just shortly before the end, I want to have a song for our principals where they're about to be expelled from this village where they've lived all their lives. I want a song for them which will describe how they feel about having to leave this village, Anatevka.

And he said I think if we take that song from "Letters From America" that had been fast and if we slow that down - (singing) yum pum pa dum. Yum pum pa dum, he said I think that will have the melancholy quality that we need. And Jerry and I bought that idea immediately. So then I set to work to write a nostalgic song. It goes – a song - premature nostalgia as these principal actors, Tevye and his wife Golda and the butcher and the matchmaker, as they try to imagine what life will be like when they're no longer living in their beloved little Anatevka. GROSS: So let's hear the demo version that you made of "Letters From America," the song that was cut. And then we'll segue into a little bit of the song that you wrote instead, "Anatevka," the song that was actually used in "Fiddler on the Roof." (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "LETTERS FROM AMERICA") HARNICK: (Singing) Here in Anatevka, 90 percent are behind in the rent and we're hungry to a man.

Once a Rothschild saw our town, crossed himself and ran. HARNICK: (Singing) However, who needs America? Who needs a new community changing our ways to I don't know what? Who needs America? Maybe there's opportunity. Maybe I'd like America, but in Anatevka, Anatevka, thoroughly orthodox Anatevka, where else could Sabbath be so sweet? Anatevka, Anatevka, obstinate, orthodox Anatevka, no pigs me wanders through the street. Where is the rabbi more widely renowned or revered? (SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, "FIDDLER ON THE ROOF") UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As Yente) Well, Anatevka hasn't exactly been the Garden of Eden. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As Tevye) That's true. UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: (As Golde) After all, what have we got here? (Singing) A little bit of this, a little bit of that. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As Yente) A pot. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As Lazar) A pan.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #4: (As Mendel) A broom. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #5: (As Avram) A hat. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #2: (As Tevye) Someone should've set a match to this place years ago. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #4: (As Mendel) A bench. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #5: (As Avram) A tree. UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: (As Golde) So what's a stove? UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #3: (As Lazar) Or a house? UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #4: (As Mendel) People who pass through Anatevka don't even know they've been here. UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: (As Golde) A stick of wood. UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR #1: (As Yente) A piece of cloth. UNIDENTIFIED ACTORS: (As characters, singing) What do we leave? Nothing much. Only Anatevka. Anatevka. Anatevka. Underfed, overworked. Anatevka. Where else could Sabbath be so sweet? Anatevka. Anatevka.

Intimate, obstinate Anatevka. Where I know everyone I meet. Soon I'll be a stranger in a strange new place. Searching for an old familiar face. From Anatevka. I belong in Anatevka... GROSS: So we heard two recordings back to back there, "Letters From America" - that was the demo version made by the songwriters Jerry Bock and my guest Sheldon Harnick. And then we heard the song that they used instead after they took "Letters From America" out of the show and that song was from the cast recording, the original cast recording, of "Fiddler on the Roof." The song is "Anatevka." You know, when I hear some of the songs from "Fiddler on the Roof," I get tears in my eyes, in part because my parents had very few albums when I was growing up. But they had "Fiddler on the Roof," and they played it over and over and over and over. And it really started to drive me crazy. (LAUGHTER) GROSS: But when I hear it now, you know, my parents passed, you know, like several years ago.

And when I hear it now, I think about my parents and I think not only about how good the songs are but I think what those songs meant to them and what it was like for them in the 1960s to go to Broadway and see a show about Jews on a shtetl in Eastern Europe because their parents had been Jews in shtetls in Eastern Europe. And I'm sure you know how much this musical meant, you know, has meant to so many people. HARNICK: Yes. Well, one of the things - when Jerome Robbins became our director, he told us this story. He said when he was 6, his parents took him to that part of Poland where their ancestors came from. And even at the age of 6, he remembers it as being a very emotional experience. Then during World War II, as he read about the extermination of these little village by the Nazis, he was certain that the village that he'd visited when he was 6 was one of those villages that had been obliterated. So when we gave him the opportunity to direct "Fiddler," he said I want to put that culture back on stage.

I want to give it a theatrical life of another 25 years. He was being modest because now it's almost 50 years and it's still going strong. But he was like a man obsessed with restoring that culture. He did enormous research. And I think Jerry more than anyone else is responsible for the success that "Fiddler's" had. Not that Joe Stein and Jerry Bock and I didn't do good work, but it was what Robbins brought to it with this obsession to put that culture back on stage that made the show what it is. GROSS: Sheldon Harnick, thank you so much for talking with us. It's just been a treat to hear some of the stories behind some of your songs. And I wish you a great 90th birthday and a great 90th year. (LAUGHTER) HARNICK: You have made this a wonderful birthday already. DAVIES: Sheldon Harnick speaking with Terry Gross in 2014 on the occasion of his 90th birthday. Harnick wrote the lyrics for fiddler on the roof, which is back on Broadway, starring Danny Burstein.

Coming up, critic-at-large John Powers considers "Billions," the new Showtime series about Wall Street corruption. This is FRESH AIR. Copyright © 2016 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at for further information. NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by Verb8tm, Inc. , an NPR contractor, and produced using a proprietary transcription process developed with NPR. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.

Question: The musical "Fiddler on the Roof" is set in what country?
Answer: Russia