C

ollaboration remains a compelling 
enjoyment factor in the conducting 
achievements of Andy Einhorn, 
who has expressed this value since his stu-
dent years growing up in Texas. 
This month, he brings that outlook 
to Ann Arbor as he joins University of 
Michigan (U-M) musical theater students 
with award-winning Broadway stars and 
the Grand Rapids Symphony to present a 
concert version of Fiddler on the Roof host-
ed by the University Musical Society.
Einhorn, who has appeared in Ann 
Arbor as conductor for Audra McDonald 
and in the Motor City with the 
Detroit Symphony Orchestra, 
takes the stage Saturday-
Sunday, Feb. 19-20, in Hill 
Auditorium for the first live 
performance of John Williams’ 
orchestral arrangement of the 
movie score.
“We’re combining enormous 
talents from different organizations, and 
that synthesis is the true essence of collab-
oration,
” said Einhorn, whose most recent 
live New York projects included serving 
as music supervisor and musical director 
for productions of Hello, Dolly! starring 

Bette Midler and Carousel starring Renée 
Fleming.
“We have a script and will be presenting 
the libretto trimmed down a bit. We don’t 
have the same scenic element onstage, but 
we do have some scenic elements onstage, 
props and costumes so that people under-
stand the time period and the place of the 
story we’re telling.
”
Taking the leading roles will be Chuck 
Cooper (Tevye), who won a 1997 Tony 
Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical 
as he appeared in The Life, and Loretta 
Ables Sayre (Golde), a 2008 Tony nominee 
for Best Featured Actress in a Musical as she 
appeared in South Pacific. 
“The amazing thing about Fiddler on 
the Roof is that it’s universal,
” said Einhorn, 
who served as music director of HBO’s 
Peabody Award-winning documentary 
Six by Sondheim and music supervisor 
for Great Performances Peabody Award-
winning special Broadway Musicals: A 
Jewish Legacy on PBS. 
“Fiddler is for everybody because it’s a 
story of tradition and family. Our approach 
to the show and the way that I’m approach-
ing the music can relate to every person no 
matter what color, gender, race or who that 

person is. They all understand family and 
tradition — all the good and the bad.
“Fiddler on the Roof in a new context can 
remind everybody why this is a universal 
piece and [give] reason for talking about 
this piece today with immigration, racism 
and antisemitism going on in the world.
”

SOMETHING NEW
One film musical technique that is being 
adapted to stage with this concert is under-
scoring, using music that’s never been heard 
to accompany the script.
“In old musicals, underscoring was used 
as transition music,
” Einhorn explained. 
“In the Fiddler film, John Williams created 
underscoring for emotional storytelling, 
and we’re using underscoring to enhance 
the script here.
” 
“John Williams won his first Academy 
Award for the work he did on Fiddler, and 
I think it’s an unparalleled device to use his 
underscoring to support the storytelling of 
this production. He laid the groundwork for 
what we do in contemporary musicals now 
to better serve the telling of the story.
”
Einhorn has performed in many pre-
sentations of Fiddler music — at summer 
camp, in high school and across many 

Renowned conductor Andy Einhorn to lead concert version of Jewish classic.

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

58 | FEBRUARY 10 • 2022 

A New Way 
to Experience 

ARTS&LIFE
THEATER

Fiddler on the Roof

Andy 
Einhorn

