| «A fiddler on the roof. |
| Sounds crazy, no? |
| But in our little village of Anatevka,
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| you might say every one of us is a fiddler on the roof, trying to scratch out
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| a pleasant, simple tune without breaking his neck. |
| It isn’t easy.
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| You may ask, why do we stay up there if it’s so dangerous? |
| We stay because
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| Anatevka is our home… And how do we keep our balance? |
| That I can tell you
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| in one word… Tradition.»
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| (Chorus)
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| Tradition, tradition… tradition
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| Tradition, tradition… tradition
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| (Tevye)
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| «Because of our traditions, we’ve kept our balance for many, many years.
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| Here in Anatevka we have traditions for everything… how to eat, how to sleep,
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| even, how to wear clothes. |
| For instance, we always keep our heads covered and
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| always wear a little prayer shawl… This shows our constant devotion to God.
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| You may ask, how did this tradition start? |
| I’ll tell you — I don’t know.
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| But it’s a tradition… Because of our traditions, everyone knows who he is and what God expects him to do.»
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| (Tevye & Papas)
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| Who day and night
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| Must scramble for a living
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| Feed the wife and children
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| Say his daily prayers
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| And who has the right
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| As master of the house
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| To have the final word at home?
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| (All)
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| The papa, the papas… tradition
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| The papa, the papas… tradition
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| (Golde & Mamas)
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| Who must know the way to make a proper home
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| A quiet home, a kosher home
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| Who must raise a family and run the home
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| So papa’s free to read the holy book?
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| (All)
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| The mama, the mama… tradition
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| The mama, the mama… tradition
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| (Sons)
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| At three I started Hebrew school
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| At ten I learned a trade
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| I hear they picked a bride for me I hope… she’s pretty
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| (All)
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| The sons, the sons… tradition
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| The sons, the sons… tradition
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| (Daughters)
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| And who does mama teach
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| To mend and tend and fix
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| Preparing me to marry
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| Whoever papa picks?
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| (All)
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| The daughters, the daughters… tradition
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| (Tevye)
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| «I have five daughters!»
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| (All)
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| The daughters, the daughters… tradition
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| (Repeat as round)
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| (Papas)
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| The papas
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| (Mamas)
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| The mamas
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| (Sons)
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| The sons
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| (Daughters)
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| The daughters
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| (All)
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| Tradition
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| (Papas)
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| The papas
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| (Mamas)
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| The mamas
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| (Sons)
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| The sons
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| (Daughters)
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| The daughters
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| (All)
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| Tradition
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| (Tevye)
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| «And in the circle of our little village, we have always had our special types.
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| For instance, Yente, the matchmaker…»
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| (Yente)
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| «Avram, I have a perfect match for your son. |
| A wonderful girl.»
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| (Avram)
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| «Who is it?»
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| (Yente)
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| «Ruchel, the shoemaker’s daughter.»
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| (Avram)
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| «Ruchel? |
| But she can hardly see. |
| She’s almost blind.»
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| (Yente)
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| «Tell the truth, Avram, is your son so much to look at? |
| The way she sees and
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| the way he looks, it’s a perfect match.»
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| (Tevye)
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| «And Nahum, the beggar…»
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| (Beggar)
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| «Alms for the poor, alms for the poor…»
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| (Lazar)
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| «Here, Reb Nahum, is one kopek.»
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| (Beggar)
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| «One kopek? |
| Last week you geve me two kopeks.»
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| (Lazar)
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| «I had a bad week.»
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| (Beggar)
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| «So, if you had a bad week, why should I suffer?»
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| (Tevye)
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| «And most important, our beloved Rabbi…»
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| (Mendel)
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| «Rabbi, may I ask you a question?»
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| (Rabbi)
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| «Certainly, my son.»
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| (Mendel)
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| «Is there a proper blessing for the Tsar?»
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| (Rabbi)
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| «A blessing for the tsar? |
| Of course. |
| May God bless and keep the Tsar…
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| far away from us!»
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| (Tevye)
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| «And among ourselves, we get along perfectly well. |
| Of course, there was the
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| time when he sold him a horse, but delivered a mule, but that’s all settled now.
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| Now we live in simple peace and harmony and…»
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| (1st Man)
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| «It was a horse.»
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| (2nd Man)
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| «It was a mule.»
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| (Chorus)
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| Horse!
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| Mule!
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| Horse!
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| Mule!
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| Tradition, tradition… tradition
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| Tradition, tradition… tradition
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| (Tevye)
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| «Tradition. |
| Without our traditions, our lives would be as shaky as…
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| as a fiddler on the roof!» |