Tracker Pixel for Entry

A new tradition ‘Fiddler on the Roof’ begins new future for Sheyenne High Theatre

Theatre | February 11th, 2016

photo by Michael Benedict

In its first year as its own theater department, Sheyenne High School Theatre is paving the way for the future with a classic from the past.

“Fiddler on the Roof” will open the West Fargo high school’s first solo season as its cast and crew latch onto the musical’s elements of tradition to build on for years to come.

“Last year, I’d say there was a bit of a disconnect, certainly for the students and maybe myself and our audience,” director Adam Pankow said. “This year I think we’re coming in with a different attitude about this, not necessarily hanging onto the coattails of another school.”

The two-weekend run of the musical tale of Tevye the milkman, his family and the changing times of tsarist Russia rounds up 90 Sheyenne students from onstage to backstage to the orchestra pit.

Capitalizing on a classic can be hard though, Pankow said. “That’s kinda the rub isn’t it? It is a show people hold near to their hearts.”

Sheyenne High pumps its own passion into this timeless show in elements of design and metaphors.

Simple, minimalist trees stretch 25 feet from floor to ceiling, a big symbol for Sheyenne’s “Fiddler,” Pankow said.

“They cast a shadow over us, these trees. The trees are before us, are around after us—they are a constant,” he said. “They are to remind us of the past and the present moving forward.”

Other than some creative license with design, Pankow said no roles have been changed or the time period (the Russian Empire, 1905).

“It’s a story that honors our own past as people and the journeys our ancestors took over to America or wherever they came from,” he added.

“Fiddler on the Roof,” a staple of musical theater, Pankow said, concerns humanity at its core, no matter the time period.

“At its essence, it’s a story about people and changes and how they cope,” he said.

IF YOU GO:

Fiddler on the Roof 

7:30 p.m. Feb. 12, 13, 19, 20, 2:30 p.m. Feb. 14, 

21800 40th Ave E, West Fargo

$8 adults, $6 students 

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee NelsonMore than 1,000 pro-worker events are planned for Thursday, May 1 across the country, including rallies in Fargo-Moorhead, Grand Forks, Minot and Jamestown. East Grand Forks and Bismarck will host protests…

From concerts and car shows to Japanese art and Juneteenth celebrations, there's so much going on around the region this summer. This year's High Plains Reader Summer Events Calendar is back and bigger than ever. It's packed with…

June 21, 11 a.m. - 11 p.m.Fargo Theatre, 314 Broadway N., Fargo“We Watch Shudder,” Fargo’s favorite horror podcasters, bring on the darkness during the longest day of the year. The Darkest Day of Horror Film Festival features…

By John Strandjas@hpr1.com One description that perhaps aptly describes the mental state of many lately is that they feel they are attached to a string. Or several strings. Call it the notion that people are played like puppets,…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comFor sale: White House in D.C. housing dung beetles and giant leechesI suspect someone close to Donald Trump has read “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich,”because the Trump administration is…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com After a very inspiring conversation with Kayla Houchin of Sonder Bakehouse a few weeks ago, I decided that it’s an appropriate time to write a column about some of the sweet people who are involved…

Mooncats and Pert Near Sandstone play Empire TheatreBy Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comThe MoonCats describe themselves as “Americonscious Campfire Folk.” They have a clear acoustic folk sound with a sense of whimsy — think…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com The writing/directing partnership of Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck has to be one of the most curious cases of crazy connect-the-dots career moves in recent cinema. From short documentaries and…

By Raul Gomezraul@hpr1.com Minutes before Modern’s Celebration of Life opened its door at the Sons of Norway, I was fiddling with the bar computer, trying to pull up the playlists of Modern’s work I had set aside for the…

By John Showalterjohn.d.showalter@gmail.comHigh Plains Reader had the opportunity to interview two mysterious new game show hosts named Milt and Bradley Barker about an upcoming event they will be putting on at Brewhalla. What…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com There appear to be differences in the incidence of mental illnesses between men and women. For example, women are more likely to be diagnosed with depression, post-traumatic stress…

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson.nd7@gmail.com Our trucking business has me driving almost daily from gas plants in western North Dakota's oil patch to Canada. I haul natural gas liquids (NGLs) products we used to see flared off at…