By his own count, Theodore Bikel played Tevye the milkman in the enduring musical Fiddler on the Roof more than 2,000 times, more than any other stage performer. But unlike Zero Mostel, who originated the role on Broadway, the Vienna-born actor-activist-folk troubadour scrupulously avoided the Borscht Belt shtick that so frequently was attached to the character. “I’m so much … [Read more...]
Bikel, Tevye and Aleichem: Film celebrates stories and storytellers
Actor-activist-folk troubadour Theodore Bikel turned 90 in May, the year he celebrated 75 years in show business. Born in Vienna in 1924, he fled Austria with his family 14 years later as the Nazis occupied his native land. So he knows firsthand what it is like to be uprooted from your home, just as Tevye the dairyman — a role Bikel has played more than 2,000 times — was in … [Read more...]