Some shows are timeless, and Maite Uzal believes “Fiddler on the Roof” falls into that category.
“The music is so brilliant,” said the Spanish-born Uzal, who plays the role of Golde in the national tour which will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 26 at the Columbia County Performing Arts Center.
Also, the story line transcends time. At its heart are subjects that touch most lives.
“The themes are universal,” she said. “The show is about family and love.”
“Fiddler on the Roof” has many songs that are familiar to theater-goers. “Matchmaker, Matchmaker,” “If I Were a Rich Man” and “Tradition” are among the more famous songs from the show that was first staged in 1964. It was later turned into a film of the same name.
On Broadway, it was the first musical in theater history to surpass 3,000 performances and held the record for longest-running Broadway musical for nearly a decade, according to the PBS website, which aired a documentary on the play in 2020.
It won nine Tony Awards including best musical. It was revived in 2015.
Uzal, who recently appeared as Claudio in a gender-switched version of “Much Ado about Nothing,” is dedicating her performances to her mother.
Uzal said her mother has a couple of similarities to Golde, the wife of Tevye and the mother of five.
“Golde is a multitasker,” she said.
Like Golde, her mother can also juggle multiple things.
But what inspired Uzal most was what she learned from her about being a mother since Uzal is not.
“Lots of conversations never would’ve happened if I hadn’t played this role,” she said.
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Through those conversations, she developed her concept of Golde and gained a new perspective on her mother.
“It’s definitely been a gift to understand my mother,” she said.
The two had a lot of time to spend together after she returned to her native Spain during the early stages of the pandemic. They were locked in their home together for months as COVID-19 cases swelled.
“I was in New York City from March to July. At least, you could go outside,” she said. “In Spain, we could not leave the house. It was illegal.”
The Columbia County date isn’t listed on the national tour website. The show opens in North Charleston Oct. 29.
According to an email from Melissa Cohen, the national press representative for the tour, “the tour is teching at the Columbia County Performing Arts Center, with one preview performance.”
Tickets are $50-$80 and are available at ticketmaster.com.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the Features Editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at charmain@theaugustapress.com
