Matchmaker, Matchmaker

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"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" is a song from the 1964 musical Fiddler on the Roof , with music by Jerry Bock and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick. It was later made into a film in 1971. The story revolves around a poor Jewish milkman, Tevye, and his five daughters, as he attempts to maintain his Jewish traditions. His three eldest daughters marry, but each daughter's choice of husband moves further and further away from their traditions.

Contents

Production

BlueGobo explains "The sisters (including Bette Midler) sang "Matchmaker, Matchmaker" on the 1968 Tonys as part of a tribute to past Best Musical winners that were still running at the time." [1]

Synopsis

Tevye and Golde's daughters sing about a matchmaker choosing a partner for them. Hodel and Chava sing excitedly about their future marriages, arranged by the matchmaker, Yente. However, Tzeitel, the eldest daughter, warns the others that, as they are from a poor family, they'll have to marry whoever Yente brings for them, regardless if it's an unhappy marriage. Towards the end of the song, the sisters quickly realise that they might rather remain on their own than marry just anybody. [2]

Analysis

The blog Sermons From Seattle explains "The story [of Fiddler] is that the matchmaker is to meet with the mother and father and match their three daughters to prospective husbands. But the girls want to choose their own partners and not use the matchmaker. Traditions are changing. Those old traditions are beginning to crumble". [3]

This song epitomises the more traditional views regarding this issue that the daughters question at the very beginning. As time passes, they begin to think for themselves and change the tradition.

Critical reception

Allmusic said the song was one of the "famous and now-standard songs" from the film. [4] The Washington Times said it was the "big number" for "Tevye's forward-thinking daughters". [5] The Washington Post describes the song as "eager". [5] Broadwayworld wrote it is a "good comic scene". [6]

ChronicleLive's critic posited that "Matchmaker, Matchmaker, sung by the three rebellious older daughters, is just one of the fabulous musical numbers in this show". [7] Star Tribune described it as "wistful". [8] MostMetro said the song was "fun, graceful [and] typifies their close-knit sisterhood". [9]

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Chaim Topol, also spelled Haym Topol, mononymously known as Topol, is an Israeli actor, comedian, singer, film producer, author, and illustrator. He is best known for his portrayal of Tevye the Dairyman, the lead role in the musical Fiddler on the Roof, on both stage and screen, having performed this role more than 3,500 times in shows and revivals from the late 1960s through 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tevye</span> Fictional character

Tevye the Dairyman, also translated as Tevye the Milkman is the fictional narrator and protagonist of a series of short stories by Sholem Aleichem, and various adaptations of them, the most famous being the 1964 stage musical Fiddler on the Roof and its 1971 film adaptation. Tevye is a pious Jewish dairyman living in the Russian Empire, the patriarch of a family including several troublesome daughters. The village of Boyberik, where the stories are set, is based on the town of Boyarka, Ukraine, then part of the Russian Empire. Boyberik is a suburb of Yehupetz, where most of Tevye's customers live.

<i>Fiddler on the Roof</i> 1964 musical

Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, a milkman in the village of Anatevka, who attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon his family's lives. He must cope with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters who wish to marry for love; their choices of husbands are successively less palatable for Tevye. An edict of the tsar eventually evicts the Jews from their village.

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"Tradition" is the opening number for the 1964 Broadway musical Fiddler on the Roof. In the song, the main character, Tevye, explains the roles of each social class in the village of Anatevka, and how the traditional roles of people like the matchmaker, the beggar, and the rabbi contribute to the village. The song also mentions the constable, the priest, and the other non-Jews with whom they rarely interact. Later in the song, an issue involving an argument between two men about selling the other person a horse and delivering a mule creates a ruckus in the village. Overall, the song sets up the major theme of the villagers trying to continue their traditions and keep their society running as the world around them changes.

Neva Small is an American theatrical, film, and television actress and singer. She made her singing debut at the age of 10 at the New York City Opera, and her Broadway debut the following year. She has numerous acting credits on and Off-Broadway. She is best known for her portrayal of Chava, Tevye's third daughter and the one who marries a gentile, in the 1971 film Fiddler on the Roof.

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Michele Marsh sometimes credited as Michèle Marsh, is a French-American television, theater, and film actress. She is best known for her portrayal of Hodel, the second of Tevye’s five daughters who falls in love with a student radical, in the 1971 film Fiddler on the Roof. She has acted mainly in television and in West Coast theatre. She now resides in Idyllwild, California, where she performs with the Idyllwild Actors Theatre.

"Do You Love Me?" is a song from the 1964 musical Fiddler on the Roof. It is performed by Tevye and his wife Golde.

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References

  1. "Fiddler on the Roof (Original Broadway Production, 1964)". BlueGobo.com. 1964-09-22. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  2. "In the Eye of the Beholder: Fiddler on the Roof". Films42.com. 1964-07-27. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  3. "Series B". Sermons From Seattle. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  4. William Ruhlmann (1964-09-22). "Fiddler on the Roof [Original Broadway Cast Recording] - Original Broadway Cast | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  5. 1 2 John Vreeke - Director (2007-11-28). "Fiddler On The Roof". Johnvreeke.com. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  6. Patrick Brassell. "BWW Reviews: FIDDLER ON THE ROOF Is a Long But Moving Evening at Portland Center Stage". Broadwayworld.com. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  7. LesleyOldfield (2013-09-25). "Review: Fiddler on the Roof at the Theatre Royal, Newcastle - Lesley Oldfield". Chronicle Live. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  8. "Epic 'Fiddler' remains a warm and human story at Chanhassen". Star Tribune. 2013-10-07. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  9. "'Fiddler on the Roof' Review – Human Race Theatre Company – Tradition in Transition". Mostmetro.com. 2013-11-08. Retrieved 2014-07-04.