Recommendations based on Fiddler on the Roofby Joseph Stein

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. Steel Magnolias

    by Robert Harling
    A group of Southern women bond and support each other through life's joys and tragedies.

    Presents the script of a 1988 play about a group of women in Chinquapin, Louisiana, who learn to draw upon their underlying strength and love to meet the challenges of life. ... (Goodreads)

  2. Arsenic and Old Lace

    by Joseph Kesselring
    Dark comedic tale of two elderly sisters who commit murder out of kindness.

    The play is a farcical black comedy revolving around the Brewster family, descended from the, Mayflower, settlers but now composed of maniacs, most of them homicidal. The hero, Mortimer Brewster, is ... (Wikipedia)

  3. West Side Story

    by Irving Shulman
    A modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet set in 1950s New York City, exploring the rivalry between two street gangs and the love between their members.

    From the silver screen to the Great White Way—one of the greatest stories of all time.,They came together through love but violence threatened to tear them apart. Maria was young and innocent and had ... (Barnes & Noble)

  4. The Elephant Man

    by Bernard Pomerance
    The story of John Merrick, a severely deformed man in Victorian England, and his journey to find acceptance and dignity.

    The Elephant Man opens with Frederick Treves , an up-and-coming surgeon, meeting his new employer Francis Carr-Gomm, the administrator of the London Hospital. Ross, the manager of a freak show , ... (Wikipedia)

  5. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

    by Stephen Sondheim
    A vengeful barber and his accomplice bake their victims into pies in 19th century London.

    According to legend, Sweeney Todd had his barber shop at number 186 Fleet Street, next door to St. Dunstan's Church, just a few blocks away from the Royal Courts of Justice. On this site, they say, ... (Goodreads)

  6. A Streetcar Named Desire

    by Tennessee Williams
    A woman's struggle to come to terms with her past and present in a post-war New Orleans.

    After the loss of her family home to creditors, Blanche DuBois travels from the small town of Laurel, Mississippi , to the New Orleans French Quarter to live with her younger married sister, Stella , ... (Wikipedia)

  7. Noises Off

    by Michael Frayn
    A play within a play, following the chaotic and hilarious antics of a dysfunctional theater troupe.

    Each of the three acts of Noises Off contains a performance of the first act of a play within a play , a sex farce called Nothing On . The three acts of Noises Off are each named "Act One" on the ... (Wikipedia)

  8. Pygmalion / My Fair Lady

    by George Bernard Shaw
    A phonetics professor transforms a Cockney flower girl into a refined lady, but struggles with the consequences of his experiment.

    George Orwell claimed that "The central plot of Shaw's play, Pygmalion , is lifted out of Peregrine Pickle [by Tobias Smollett ], and I believe that no one has ever pointed this out in print, which ... (Wikipedia)

  9. Pygmalion

    by George Bernard Shaw
    The transformation of a poor flower girl into an elegant society lady.

    George Orwell claimed that "The central plot of Shaw's play, Pygmalion , is lifted out of Peregrine Pickle [by Tobias Smollett ], and I believe that no one has ever pointed this out in print, which ... (Wikipedia)

  10. Into the Woods

    by Stephen Sondheim
    A musical that intertwines classic fairy tales, exploring the consequences of wishes and the importance of responsibility and community.

    A Narrator introduces four characters: Cinderella , who wishes to attend the King's festival; Jack who wishes his cow, Milky White, would give milk; a Baker; and his Wife, both of whom wish to have a ... (Wikipedia)

  11. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

    by Tom Stoppard
    A humorous exploration of fate and free will, seen through the eyes of two minor characters in Shakespeare's "Hamlet".

    Hamlet told from the worm's-eye view of two minor characters, bewildered Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Echoes of Waiting for Godot resound, reality and illusion mix, and where fate leads heroes to a ... (Goodreads)

  12. The Odd Couple

    by Neil Simon
    Two mismatched roommates, one neat and one messy, struggle to coexist in a small New York City apartment.

    Comedy / 6m, 2f / Int. This classic comedy opens as a group of the guys assembled for cards in the apartment of divorced Oscar Madison. And if the mess is any indication, it's no wonder that his wife ... (Goodreads)

  13. An Ideal Husband

    by Oscar Wilde
    A play exploring the themes of blackmail, political corruption, and the nature of honor and integrity in Victorian society.

    The play opens during a dinner party at the home of Sir Robert Chiltern in London's fashionable Grosvenor Square . Sir Robert, an esteemed member of the House of Commons , and his wife, Lady ... (Wikipedia)

  14. Dances with Wolves

    by Michael Blake
    A Civil War soldier discovers a newfound respect and understanding for Native American culture.

    Ordered to hold an abandoned army post, John Dunbar found himself alone, beyond the edge of civilization. Thievery and survival soon forced him into the Indian camp, where he began a dangerous ... (Goodreads)

  15. Doubt, a Parable

    by John Patrick Shanley
    A priest's moral dilemma as he faces accusations of inappropriate behavior.

    The play is set in the fictional St. Nicholas Church School, in the Bronx , during the fall of 1964. It opens with a sermon by Father Flynn, a beloved and progressive parish priest, addressing the ... (Wikipedia)

  16. 'night, Mother

    by Marsha Norman
    A mother and daughter grapple with the consequences of a mother's impending suicide.

    ',night, Mother, is a taut and fluid drama that addresses different emotions and special relations. By one of America's most talented playwrights, this play won the Dramatists Guild's prestigious ... (Goodreads)

  17. The Tale of Three Trees

    by Angela Elwell Hunt
    A parable of three trees' journey of faith and ultimate sacrifice.

    Featuring the wonderful illustrations of Tim Jonke, this best-selling children's book tells the Easter story from a new and unusual point of view. Three trees on a mountain dream of what they wanted ... (Barnes & Noble)

  18. Inherit the Wind

    by Jerome Lawrence
    A courtroom drama about a teacher accused of violating a law against teaching evolution.

    A meaningful play based on the Scopes Monkey Trial of 1925, in which a Tennessee teacher was tried for teaching evolution. The accused was a slight, frightened man who'd deliberately broken the law. ... (Goodreads)

  19. The Oresteia: Agamemnon, The Libation Bearers, The Eumenides

    by Aeschylus
    Tragedy of a cursed family and their struggle to find the truth and justice.

    Alternate cover edition can be found, here,, here,, here,, here, In the Oresteia—the only trilogy in Greek drama which survives from antiquity—Aeschylus took as his subject the bloody chain of murder ... (Goodreads)

  20. Our Town

    by Thornton Wilder
    A story of life in a small town, exploring the beauty and brevity of ordinary moments.

    Our Town was first produced and published in 1938 to wide acclaim. This Pulitzer Prize-winning drama of life in the small village of Grover's Corners, an allegorical representation of all life, has ... (Goodreads)

  21. Wit

    by Margaret Edson
    A professor's journey of self-discovery as she faces her own mortality.

    Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the New York Drama Critics Circle Award, the Drama Desk Award, the Outer Critics Circle Award, the Lucille Lortel Award, and the Oppenheimer Award,Margaret Edson’s ... (Goodreads)

  22. QB VII

    by Leon Uris
    A courtroom drama that explores the aftermath of a libel suit brought by a Polish doctor against an American author.

    A famous author, Abraham Cady, stands trial for libel. In his book The Holocaust , he named eminent surgeon Sir Adam Kelno as one of the Jadwiga concentration camp 's most sadistic inmate/doctors. ... (Wikipedia)

  23. Chicken Soup with Rice: A Book of Months

    by Maurice Sendak
    A rhythmic journey through the months of the year, celebrating the joys of childhood.

    For over fifty years, children have discovered that, whether it’s June or December, every month is perfect for Chicken Soup with Rice ! Now in a larger, 5 x 7 trim size,, Chicken Soup with Rice, is a ... (Barnes & Noble)

  24. The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman

    by Ernest J. Gaines
    The life story of a former slave, Jane Pittman, who lived through the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement.

    Miss Jane Pittman. She is one of the most unforgettable heroines in American fiction, a woman whose life has come to symbolize the struggle for freedom, dignity, and justice. Ernest J. Gaines’s ... (Goodreads)

  25. The Black Stallion

    by Walter Farley
    A young boy's friendship with a wild horse, overcoming challenges and finding courage.

    Published originally in 1941, this book is about a young boy, Alec Ramsay who finds a wild black stallion at a small Arabian port on the Red Sea. Between the black stallion and young boy, a strange ... (Goodreads)

  26. Calling on Dragons

    by Patricia C. Wrede
    An adventurous girl's mission to save an enchanted kingdom from the dangers of dark magic.

    This novel is the third in the Enchanted Forest series, told from the witch Morwen's perspective. Morwen, a witch who lives in the Enchanted Forest, is having trouble with people who believe that ... (Wikipedia)

  27. Gorky Park

    by Martin Cruz Smith
    A thrilling murder mystery, set in the Soviet Union, uncovering secrets and conspiracies.

    The story follows Arkady Renko , a chief investigator for the Moscow militsiya , who is assigned to a case involving three corpses found in Gorky Park , an amusement park in Moscow. The victims - two ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Legally Blonde

    by Amanda Brown
    A sorority girl follows her ex-boyfriend to Harvard Law School and discovers her own legal talents.

    Elle Woods , a blonde University of Southern California sorority president and homecoming queen, is deeply in love with her college sweetheart, Warner Huntington III. When Warner enrolls in Stanford ... (Wikipedia)

  29. Pinocchio

    by Eugene Bradley Coco
    A wooden puppet yearns to become a real boy and embarks on a journey of self-discovery, learning valuable lessons along the way.

    "The only thing left to do now," said Geppetto to the puppet, "is to give you a name. Let's see... I shall call you Pinocchio!" Geppetto is a lonely woodcarver who makes a boy puppet and wishes, with ... (Goodreads)

  30. The Last Time I Saw You

    by Liv Constantine
    A suspenseful thriller about a woman who returns to her hometown for her high school reunion, only to be confronted with dark secrets from her past.

    The internationally bestselling author of The Last Mrs. Parrish follows that success with an addictive thriller filled with shocking twists about the aftermath of a brutal high-society murder. In a ... (Barnes & Noble)