The 'Big Ragoo' Takes on Tevye for Huntington Hospital Fundraiser

Last Sunday night, more than 220 friends and supporters of Huntington Hospital attended a cocktail reception and performance of "Fiddler on the Roof" at the John W. Engeman Theater in Northport. The event benefitted the hospital's Women's Health Center.

Guests quickly filled the Green Room, the piano bar and lounge located in the theater's lobby, where the cocktail reception began at 5:30 p.m., an hour-and-a-half before showtime. Guests sampled passed hors d'oeuvres – a selection of sushi rolls and dumplings from Dao Fusion Restaurant in Huntington -- and sipped a variety of red and white wines, courtesy of Southern Wine & Spirits in Syosset.

The show starred Eddie Mekka, best-known for his role as Carmine (The Big Ragu) Ragusa in the TV series "Laverne & Shirley." Resumes of Mekka's two dozen or so castmates boasted numerous Broadway credits.

Set in Tsarist Russia in 1905, "Fiddler on the Roof" is centered around Tevye (played by Mekka), a nostalgic father of five girls who is trying to hold on to his family and its way of life despite mounting uncertainty in the world around them.

During intermission, attendees enjoyed coffee and petit-fours, courtesy of Copenhagen Bakery in Northport.  

The event raised $25,000 for the Women's Heatlh Center, which offers a wide range of personal health services, including digital mammography, ultrasound, breast MRI, stereotactic breast biopsy, bone density testing, antepartum testing, high-risk obstetrics and human reproduction services.