When the musical “Ragtime” first debuted on Broadway in 1998, it was a lavishly designed, stunningly crafted flop.
The musical, based on the 1975 novel of the same name by E.L. Doctorow, explores racial and class tensions in turn-of-the-century America, and features a stunning score from Stephen Flaherty (lyrics by Lynn Ahrens). In the New York Times review from the time, Ben Brantley praised the wonderful cast and spectacular look of the musical. With a reported budget of $10 million dollars, the production design of “Ragtime” included fireworks onstage and a real, working Model T car. The original cast included such talents as Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, and Marin Mazzie. By all accounts, “Ragtime” is a musical that should have worked.
And yet, it was far from a financial success. Reading further into that Brantley review, you get the sense that, despite its beautiful package, there wasn’t much at the musical’s center, its social aims at odds with its capitalist means. “The skills and virtues of ‘Ragtime,’ … are many and undeniable,” writes Brantley. “But a distinctive human personality is not among them.”
In short, “Ragtime” is a challenge of a musical, one that the City Springs Theatre Company has decided to take on this season. The production that will be running at the Byers Theatre until March 30 struggles with many of the challenges that the original Broadway production did – namely, an over-simplified book. But even with all the challenges inherent in the text of “Ragtime,” City Springs capitalizes on the musical’s strengths and delivers a strong rendition of a flawed show.
“Ragtime” focuses on three demographics in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century: African Americans, primarily represented by the couple of Coalhouse Walker Jr. (Jonathan Christopher) and Sarah (Kyla Bolling); the white upper class, represented by a family living in New Rochelle, led by Mother (Kristine Reese) and Father (Maxim Gukhman); and immigrants, represented by Tateh (Jordan Sam Rich), a Jewish man from Latvia who has come to America with his daughter (Haley Byrd). The show explores how the different demographics interact with each other, and also includes historical figures like the magician Harry Houdini (Steven Mooney) and chorus girl Evelyn Nesbit (Grace Arnold Hogan) sprinkled throughout.
The design of City Springs’ “Ragtime” certainly takes a lot from the aesthetic of the original Broadway production, but it cuts out the overly technical complications. A lot of that is probably due to necessity – it would be shocking, and probably distracting, if a working, full-size Model T rolled across the Byers Theatre stage. But having fewer moving pieces to work with also allows the audience more leeway to focus on the performances and the story at hand. And just because some of the more impressive technical spectacle is missing doesn’t mean the set isn’t a force to be reckoned with in its own right. A looming construction of beams and platforms, the set almost feels like a metaphor for America at that time – impressive, but not fully formed, somehow. Still under construction.
But the book problems still linger for the City Springs Theatre Company’s rendition of “Ragtime.” From the opening number, which features an introduction of each character and their respective groups, the musical often feels like a glorified history lesson, almost purposefully like a “Hall of Presidents” style mix of entertainment and education.
Other story issues also linger: Tateh and his daughter’s storyline still feels thematically separate from the rest of the intermingling plots, and the attempt at a connection between him and Mother is awkward and forced. Sarah is still a painfully underdeveloped character (although played beautifully by Bolling). The additions of real life figures like Harry Houdini and Evelyn Nesbit still feel like leftover bits from “Forrest Gump.” And, for some reason, there’s still a semi-clairvoyant child.
But despite “Ragtime’s” flaws, what unravels during its second act, while messy at times, is powerful and poignant enough to spark conversation as you leave the theater. And, while many of the issues are out of City Springs Theatre Company’s hands, what they can control they make sure to deliver on. When the ensemble sings those gorgeous songs, the power behind their voices forms a beautiful brick wall of harmony. The main cast all stand out in their own way, but as Coalhouse, Christopher is electrifying. While he might not have quite as much stagetime as a character like Mother, or Tateh, Coalhouse is the force that holds “Ragtime” together.
The songs of “Ragtime” are its best selling point. Songs like “New Music,” which deftly interrogates the melancholy of feeling left behind by those you love the most; songs like “Back to Before,” which ruminates on the strength and sadness of the one who does the leaving; or songs like “Wheels of a Dream,” which carries so much hope and optimism in its notes, it’s impossible to not be swept away; these songs, despite any flaws that “Ragtime” might have, are forever part of the musical theater canon in a way that few projects achieve.
The very idea behind a musical is that when feelings become too much to express with mere words, there is nothing left to do but sing. You could argue that the disparity between the rich introspective quality of “Ragtime’s” songs and the relative flatness of some of its spoken moments might take that idea past its logical conclusion. But by that same token, when someone is singing in “Ragtime” – and people, thankfully, are usually singing in “Ragtime” – it’s hard to deny its power.
“Ragtime” will play at the Byers Theatre in Sandy Springs through March 30. Tickets are available online.
