Review of "Ragtime"

The musical Ragtime, when first presented on the Broadway stage, was a heavily layered show, boasting a large cast and production values to match.  What the marvelous staging of the show at the modest Music Theatre of Connecticut (MTC) confines demonstrates is that creativity can overcome potentially insurmountable odds in producing the musical in a very small performing space.

Ragtime is based on the bestseller by E.L. Doctorow.  Set at the dawn of the 1900’s, the show focuses on three groups making their way through this era.  There is the high society family, the Jewish immigrants, and an assemblage of African-Americans.  Their stories intersect and collide with far-reaching ramifications, providing tragic, but also hopeful, results.  Included within the plot are such notable historic personalities of the time as Booker T. Washington, Harry Houdini, Emma Goldman, and Evelyn Nesbitt.

The score by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty (Once on this Island, Seussical, Lucky Stiff) is their finest and most fulfilling.  There are soaring ballads, fiery anthems, and a number of comedic tunes.  They beautifully evoke the times of the early 20^th century.  Two outstanding pianists, David Wolfson and Mark Ceppetelli, provide all the musical accompaniment, giving the production a Scott Joplin type feel.

Director Kevin Connors has adroitly woven together the respective plot lines to form a well-crafted, at times, emotionally, highly charged production.  He skillfully guides the large cast around the small stage.  Occasionally, the sizeable group of actors can overwhelm the MTC space but, for the most part, Connors steers the performers through seamless scene changes that propels the story forward to its gripping conclusion.

The acting troupe is superb, with many performers playing multiple roles.  Four standouts are Juliet Lambert Pratt as Mother, the matriarch of the New Rochelle high society family.  She is prim and proper and, initially, stoic in her interactions with her husband and child.  However, the actress imbues her performance with astute, almost subtle, growth throughout the production so by the end of the show she has transformed into a very different woman.  Ezekiel Andrew is impressive as the embattled, principled Coalhouse Walker, Jr.  The actor has a noble presence and powerful singing voice that captures his dreams and anguish.  Frank Mastrone, as the immigrant father, Tateh, deftly brings the sorrow, struggle, and ultimate joy to his character.  Mia Scarpa, in her limited time on stage as the political activist Emma Goldman, gives an intense, passionate performance.

Jessie Lizotte’s multi-platformed set helps with the stratification and societal barriers of the three groups portrayed in the musical.  Diane Vanderkroef’s costumes are indicative of the time period.  They cover a diverse range of characters from the thread bare schmattas of the Jewish immigrants to the more regal dress of the upper-class family to the fastidiously outfitted garments of the African-American citizens.

Ragtime, playing at the Music Theatre of Connecticut through October 13^th.