Yentl/Trivia

Dawson Casting: Barbra Streisand was 40 at the time of filming. In the original short story by I.B. Singer, Yentl seems to be younger than 20, although Streisand made the character 28 years old in the movie. Interesting in that the plot revolves around the main character disguising herself as a boy to study in a yeshiva, which when done by a 40-year-old woman stretches the imagination a bit. Then again, so does Streisand's Brooklyn accent in a movie set in Poland around the turn of the century. Well, Streisand does have some difficult singing to do; you couldn't really expect her to do it in a Polish accent.
What Could Have Been: Mandy Patinkin has said that in initial talks about the film, his character was originally going to sing as well, but then they decided to keep all the songs as Yentl's Inner Monologue.