Out of all shows in Lyric Opera which were included into my subscription, The Fiddler was my most anticipated! I read the reviews, and the interviews with the artists saying that “it’s not your mother’s Fiddler.” Since I really like the musical, and since I really-really love the book, I was sure it will be the best experience ever.

And it turned to be not exactly that. The musical is already a step away from the book, with reduced number of daughter, Golda not dying, and some parts of the plot omitted. But it still has a spirit of the book, and a very intimate touch.

The Lyric performance feels like further away. Way more of a “show,” way louder. The traditional Jewish melodies are modified beyond recognition.

“If I Were a Rich Man,” in my opinion, is something very different than this clip: it is a very sad song, and Tevye is no Samson. The orchestra is great, the voices are amazing, but it is not the story I expected to hear…

Yesterday, we went to see Tosca in the Lyric Opera. We – meaning, myself, mom, and my neighbor. My neighbor dreamed about this night since the day I got these tickets. And yes, the performance was outstanding, especially the soloists who sang the leading parts. Everybody was invited to see how the stage crew changed the set during the first intermission. The stage manager explained to us that the set is fifty years old and told us a lot of details about its construction, and then about costumes and wigs – most of the costumes came from the Convent Garden 2005 production.

After the performance, my neighbor told me that she could not help but think about Ukraine and all the historical parallels. I feel that no matter what show we watch these days, we see the parallels with the war, and each injustice we see on stage resonates with what we see on our screens in the reports from Ukraine.