“Fiddler on the Roof” lead the 1965 Tony Award nominations with 10 out of 20 possible nominations.

At the award show, the production won 9 out of 10 categories it was nominated in.

The nine Tonys won by the cast and crew of the production are listed below.

– Best Musical
– Best Performance by Leading Actor in a Musical-Zero Mostel
– Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical-Maria Karnilova
– Best Direction of a Musical- Jerome Robbins
– Best Author of a Musical-Joseph Stein
– Best Choreography- Jerome Robbins
– Best Costume Design (Play or Musical)-Patricia Zipprodt
– Best Composer and Lyricist- Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick
– Best Producer of a Musical-Harold Prince

“Fiddler on the Roof” also won the 1965 Drama Desk Award for “Best Musical” and Mostel earned the Outer Critics Circle Award for “Outstanding Performance”.

Below is Zero Mostel performing “If I Were a Rich Man” at the 1965 Tony Awards.

A year and a half after “Fiddler on the Roof” opened, Joseph Stein, author of the musical book “Fiddler on the Roof”, wrote about difficulties he faced while creating “Fiddler on the Roof”,an adaptation of Aleichem’s “Tevye the Milkman”.

He stated in a Los Angeles Times article he was often asked how similar it was to the original story.

Stein explained when writing the production, he had issues with creating a story accurate to Aleichem’s work “and transmute it for the contemporary audience”

“In addition to the difference in form between the short story and the musical, Sholom Aleichem wrote in a different language, for a different audience, an audience quite familiar with the traditions and customs of the Anatevka community, so that he never needed to discuss or describe them,” he explained.

The musical stopped in San Diego, Los Angeles, and San Francisco during its tour in 1966. It was produced in Europe shortly after.

-Emily Stewart