A Fruity Role
Fiddler on The Roof opens in Melbourne this week and actor Mark Mitchell took time out from rehearsals to talk to Coral Drouyn
When Fiddler On The Roof officially opens tomorrow night (Jan 5th) in Melbourne, there will be more than one icon taking to the stage. Anthony Warlow is perhaps our greatest musical theatre star of the past three decades, and fans will flock to see him take on the role of Tevye in the classic musical. Opposite him, playing Golda, will be Sigrid Thornton, a genuine icon of both the big and small screen, though she is no stranger to musical theatre. Neither one of these stars is easily identified with the characters of a Russian Jewish farmer and his wife. It’s not typecasting in anyone’s book. So when I tell you that the third icon is Con The Fruiterer – or, to be precise, his alter ego, actor Mark Mitchell – you might be quite dizzy at the eclectic casting.
There can’t be anyone who saw any television during the eighties and nineties who wouldn’t instantly recognise Con, the epitome of the Greek migrant, whom Mark created in the mid eighties.
“Yes, Con did become a star, but in his own right, with very little to do with me,” Mark explains. “There were two Greek greengrocers at The Glenferrie Markets, where I used to buy my fruit and vegies, they were funny and endearing and I realised there were barely any ethnic characters on television, and we were planning The Comedy Company at the time. The rest is history. Of course, it would all be very politically incorrect these days.” Con The Fruiterer created catch phrases that became part our language and culture, and went on to spearhead campaigns on healthy eating. Mark’s career diversified into roles that distanced himself from his creation – though Con still makes appearances from time to time at corporate gigs and openings.
“I’ve never considered myself a comedian who acts,” he explains, “but rather as an actor who does comedy. I like to diversify, and so I do all different kinds of work, from feature films to voice overs, as long as it interests me.”
And so to Fiddler On The Roof.
“At least I’m still in retail,” Mark quips, when we talk during a rehearsal break. Mark plays Lazar Wolf, the Butcher, a suitor for one of Tevye’s daughters, in the show, but it’s not his first foray into musicals. “I love Musical Theatre,” he says. “I had the chance to play Mr Bumble, the BeaDle, in Oliver! about 12 years ago and it was just marvellous. That was my first major musical and I was hooked.”
But does he sing, I ask?
“Well my ancestors are all Welsh,” he tells me, “have you ever met a Welshman who can’t sing? Unfortunately I am LOUD…too loud for most people. I tend to drown people out. That can be embarrassing in church – especially at funeral services. I usually get an elbow in the ribs from my wife to turn the volume down. I don’t do it to draw attention; I just love to sing.”
He’s loving rehearsals, and is full of praise for Anthony Warlow. “You know, it’s true what they say about real stars,” he says. “The bigger they are, the nicer they are. We’re having an absolute ball in rehearsals, laughing a lot and enjoying the work.”
The two have one song together, the joyous “L’chaim” (To Life); is Mark worried he might drown out the golden tones of Mister Warlow? Mark laughs, then lets Con have the final words “Doesn Madda…it’ll be Bewdiful.”
Photographer: Jim Lee.
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