YOUNG Peter McGovern has achieved his ambition to reach the top in musical theatre, thanks Darlington Operatic Society's current production of Fiddler on the Roof.

Peter, 16, of Langholm Crescent, a Carmel College A-level student, auditioned successfully to be the mysterious musical sprite who plays the fiddle 20 feet above the Civic Theatre stage.

The show is directed by Eunice Cockburn, who retired as Sedgefield Community College head of drama in 1998.

Mrs Cockburn, now a freelance director and workshop organiser, has introduced a revolving set to bring to life the bustling Russian village of Anatevka where the tale of Tevye and his family unfolds.

Dairyman Tevye - who sings If I Were A Rich Man - is a Jew battling to preserve family traditions in a changing world. He is played by Teessider Ken Horsley, who is one of the many men in the cast to have grown a beard at Mrs Cockburn's insistence.

She said: "I have always been dead set against the idea of stick-on beards and whiskers."

She added: "The hardest part has been to stop the cast speaking Jewish with an American accent because so many of them have watched the film version."

The show runs from now until November 2 from 7.15pm each night except Sunday, with an extra matinee at 2pm this Saturday. For tickets, contact the ticket secretary on (01325) 467017 or the box office on (01325) 486555.