Theodore Bikel: In the Shoes of Sholom Aleichem

The stories of two beloved Jewish icons are woven together in this enchanting documentary: Sholem Aleichem, the great Jewish storyteller, and Theodore Bikel, troubadour, actor and one of the most popular stage interpreters of Aleichem’s work. The prose of Aleichem (1859–1916) portrays like no one else the true soul of the tragicomic Jewish shtetl life. Fiddler on the Roof, the Broadway and Hollywood musical adaptation of Aleichem’s Tevye the Milkman short stories, has immortalized him. Theodore Bikel, now 90, has portrayed Tevye on the American stage countless times. Vienna-born Bikel’s family escaped Austria after the Nazi occupation and migrated to Palestine before settling in the United States. He originated the role of Captain von Trapp in The Sound of Music, played Zoltan Karpathy in the film version of My Fair Lady, guest-starred in numerous TV series from The Twilight Zone to Law & Order and has served as the president of Actors’ Equity. Bikel has performed and recorded collections of folk songs in 23 languages, including Yiddish. The film’s highlights include interviews with Alan Alda, Fyvush Finkel and Sholem Aleichem’s 102-year-old granddaughter Bel Kaufman. This is an enchanting film filled with laughter, tears and tunes about Aleichem and one of his best Tevyes (Bikel). World Premiere