John Waters has joined the Australian cast of Fiddler on the Roof, stepping into the role of Lazar Wolf when the musical opens at Theatre Royal Sydney on July 31.
The production reunites Waters with Sigrid Thornton, with whom he appeared in the 1983 television miniseries All the Rivers Run. Thornton will play village matchmaker Yente, marking her first leading musical theatre role in more than a decade.
Waters’ extensive stage credits include The Sound of Music, Oliver!, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Rocky Horror Show and The Addams Family. He is also widely known for his work across Australian film and television, including Breaker Morant, Offspring, All Saints, Rush and Play School.
Australian and West End performer Troy Sussman leads the cast as Tevye, the Jewish milkman attempting to uphold his family’s traditions as his five daughters begin to challenge the expectations placed upon them. Alexis Fishman plays Golde, with Freya Boltman as Tzeitel, Ellen Ebbs as Hodel and Caity Plummer as Chava. Violinist Ben Adler appears as the Fiddler.
The Australian season follows sold-out engagements in London and across the United Kingdom. First staged at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, the revival later transferred to the Barbican, where it became the venue’s best-selling musical. It received the Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival and the Critics’ Circle Theatre Award for Best Musical.
Director Jordan Fein’s production approaches the familiar story through a contemporary lens, while retaining the musical’s celebrated score, including “Tradition”, “Matchmaker”, “If I Were a Rich Man” and “Sunrise, Sunset”.
The creative team includes designer Tom Scutt and choreographer Julia Cheng, who previously collaborated on the West End and Broadway revival of Cabaret. The production has been praised for balancing theatrical innovation with the story’s emotional and cultural foundations.
Set in the village of Anatevka in 1905, Fiddler on the Roof follows Tevye as changing social conditions and his daughters’ choices force him to reconsider the traditions that have shaped his life. Its questions of family, displacement, faith and belonging continue to give the musical particular resonance more than six decades after its Broadway premiere.
Following Sydney, the production will play Brisbane’s Glasshouse Theatre at QPAC from October 9 and Her Majesty’s Theatre, Melbourne, from October 31. A newly announced Perth season will open at His Majesty’s Theatre in January 2027