The Ragtime revival is extraordinary. I saw the third preview Saturday night, and I was emotionally overwhelmed in the opening number. The show is one of my favorites, though I missed the original Broadway production (I saw the Papermill production a few summers ago as well as a local production up in Boston), so I know it very well. This production, however, makes the material feel entirely new. Every moment is so engaging that the show flies by--it doesn't feel anywhere near its 2 hours and 45ish minutes.
The biggest change from the original, judging from the cast album (and from the other productions I've seen, which seemed similar in tone), is how much more relaxed this Ragtime is. The show on the cast album feels very heightened and a little self-important. There's a sense of "This is an Important American Drama!"that makes me feel a little more removed from the characters than I'd like.
This revival is completely the opposite . All the characters feel approachable, and they embrace the humorous and awkward moments in the show--of which there are more than a few. Ron Bohmer as Father is a perfect example of this. I always thought Father was kind of pompous and rigid, but Ron's Father is so caring and sincere. It's evident that Father isn't a bigot, but a man unable to keep up with the changes around him. Christiane Noll also brings out the awkward beautifully as Mother, especially in her exasperation with Edgar.
Speaking of Christiane Noll, her determination for Mother to be more than who she was centers the character for me. The lines "What of the people whose boundaries chafe/Who marry so bravely and end up so safe?" tell you everything you need to know about Mother, and I found that idea at the heart of Christiane's portrayal. This Mother doesn't come to realize she needs her independence; she realizes she needs it back. That made the character much more real for me. I was also really surprised to discover how much Mother has in common with one of my characters in my thesis musical. They actually go on the same kind of journey, even though I hadn't thought about Mother (or Ragtime, really) at all while writing.
This Ragtime is awkward, but it's also intense. Bobby Steggert is an eerily intense Younger Brother, which I love, and Quentin Earl Darrington and Stephanie Umoh are both pretty crazy as Coalhouse and Sarah. Their almost wild passion--for life in general, not just for each other--drives their storyline, which is heartbreaking. Quentin makes Coalhouse--one of my favorite characters--menancing and scary, particularly towards the end. That was the first time I'd gotten chills at the sight of Coalhouse and his men holed up in the library.
One of the most painful (in the best way!) moments for me was "Your Daddy's Son." It's a beautiful song beause of its ugliness. I can't fathom writing a song that accomplishes what that one does: it has to introduce us to Sarah and make us relate to her while explaining why she buried her newborn child alive. Stephanie Umoh never once makes Sarah a bitch or a victim, nor does she ask for pity. There's anger in her performance, certainly, particularly when singing that Coalhouse "had other tunes to play." But that song is really Sarah asking forgiveness in the most emotionally honest, straightforward way imaginable. "God wants no excuses," she admits to her infant,
"I had only one:
You had your daddy's hands.
Forgive me.
You were your daddy's son."
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