so revisiting the show has been a thrill. >> reporter: even at 92 years old, lyricist sheldon harnick been directly involved in this revival, helping choose the director and attending rehearsals. we spoke with him at sardi's restaurant, famous for its caricatures of broadway stars; amongst them, harnick's own likeness. harnick says the inspiration f"" fiddler" came when he received a book by humorist sholem aleichem. >> the stories were riveting. and what was astonishing about them was that some of them were actually tragic, and yet there was a great deal of humor in them. and by the time you got to the end of the story, you might be crying, but you were laughing along the way. so i sent it to jerry bock, and i said, "this is our next musical." >> reporter: composer jerry bock and harnick had already written hit musicals like "she loves me," also a current broadway revival, and "fiorello", about new york city mayor laguardia. but "fiddler" would become their most successful collaboration and produced their best known song, based on aleichem's prose. ♪ if i were a rich man all day long