This lecture will present Yiddish literature's most famous character, Tevye the Dairyman, as he makes his way from Sholem Aleichem's original stories to dramatic adaptations - to a 1939 Yiddish film adaptation and, most famously, the 1964 Broadway and 1971 film versions of Fiddler on the Roof. Each of these adaptations enables us to see both the evolution of Jewish culture over the past century, as well as the enduring complexity and originality of Sholem Aleichem's original vision.
