Cultural appropriation?

BRATTLEBORO — The issue of cultural appropriation was raised when we were introducing Fiddler on the Roof, and that concern was surprising to me, especially because I had been vocal about partnering with local Jewish community leadership when discussing the possibility of doing this play.

Once the issue was raised, I began the process of doing some research online, speaking with adults in and out of the school community, and most critically, connecting with the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community — specifically, Rabbi Amita Jarmon, who put me in touch with Rabbi ⁽⁵⁾Avremy Raskin of the Chabad Jewish Center of Brattleboro.

It was important to me to go directly to Jewish community leadership for two reasons: first, to determine whether they felt non-Jewish actors portraying Jewish people was indeed cultural appropriation — if they had, we wouldn’t be having this conversation!

And second, I knew I would need the support of the local Jewish community to make sure we portrayed characters, customs, traditions, and ceremonies as accurately as possible within a theatrical context.

I also wanted to provide opportunities for my actors to learn about Judaism and why certain things are the way they are in the show.

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Both Rabbi Jarmon and Rabbi Raskin individually told me that this was the first time that anyone who was directing Fiddler had ever reached out to them about the show. This shocked me: ⁽⁶⁾I can’t imagine doing this show without involving the local Jewish community.

I’ve had wonderful, extensive conversations with both rabbis. They have been so generous with their time, sharing their knowledge with all of us, and answering any number of questions.

Once I had confirmed that both rabbis were interested in working with us, I invited them to attend our audition-information meeting at the start of the school year.

I hoped to allay concerns about cultural appropriation and the educational piece to this show by giving students an opportunity to speak directly with Rabbi Raskin and Rabbi Jarmon prior to deciding ⁽⁷⁾whether to audition.

Some of the students decided to audition after this meeting, and others expressed their curiosity and excitement about learning about Judaism through this show.

⁽⁸⁾Still others, even though they didn’t audition, decided to attend the rabbi-led “What is Judaism?” Diversity Day workshops we had in December, which was encouraging.

These statements and expressions of support from the rabbis did have a positive effect on some students’ thinking, which was marvelous.

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Both rabbis expressed their support for the show, their opinions that it isn’t cultural appropriation, and that they consider it a way for the community at large to see Jewish people portrayed in a positive way. So many stories focus solely on the hatred and persecution Jews have experienced for millennia. Fiddler shows more of the joy and more of the day-to-day lives of Jewish people.

I recognize that others may disagree, due to the variety and nuance of individual perspectives regarding cultural appropriation.

But while there are moments of pain and fear and suffering in the show, Fiddler does a wonderful job of telling the story of people.

That is what makes it special — and a favorite among many Jewish people.