Ragtime, Signature Theatre, Arlington, VA

 

The cast of Ragtime in the opening scene at Signature Theatre. Photo credit: Christopher Mueller.

The MAX theatre space at Arlington’s Signature Theatre is a place where magic happens on a regular basis. Having seen probably more than 20 productions at Signature, I have mostly been rapturously moved and completely involved in the performance. 

My last trip to the MAX was for The Bridges of Madison County, a charming, lushly scored, romantic drama played out by a cast of seven in what seemed like a most intimate space. The current occupant of the MAX is the epic Ragtime, a huge, sweeping musical that captures moments in the early part of the 20^th century, adapted from a novel by E. L. Doctorow. Where Bridges was intimate and personal, Ragtime is fictional history or historical fiction – based on real circumstances but with fictional characters and enough “real-life” personalities and events that it almost seems like a documentary, or a docu-musical.

Doctorow provided Ragtime’s original creative team (playwright Terrence McNally, composer Stephen Flaherty, and lyricist Lynn Ahrens) with a framework of three inter-connected groups: an upper-class White family in New Rochelle, a poor Latvian immigrant and his daughter, and a prosperous African American piano player and his love. Add to this mix historical characters like inventor/entrepreneur Henry Ford, businessman J. P. Morgan (then the richest man in America), educator Booker T. Washington, illusionist Harry Houdini, scandal-plagued performer Evelyn Nesbit, explorer Matthew Peary and his history-making co-explorer Matthew Henson, and socialist activist/revolutionary Emma Goldman, and the fictitious characters become just as real.

It is to the creators’ credit that the three threads of the story carry close-to-equivalent weight. The early years of the 20^th century demonstrate changing societal norms that challenge the status quo and demonstrate parallels to contemporary America. Mother realizes that she is capable of handling more than the day-to-day running of a household while Father is away on an Arctic expedition. She takes in an African American baby and his mother Sarah, a laundress who has tried to “lose” the child. In one of the climactic songs of the show, Mother declares “We can never go back to before.” These changes in societal norms will not be surrendered.

Jake Loewenthal (Mother's Younger Brother), Bill English (Father), Matthew Lamb (the Little Boy), Teal Wicks (Mother), and Lawrence Redmond (Grandfather) in Ragtime. Photo credit: Christopher Mueller.

Tateh, the Latvian immigrant, an over-protective, widowed father of a young daughter, has a talent for creating silhouette portraits. He discovers that there is a market for his creations, a series of silhouette portraits in a book that appear to move when he turns through the pages, which leads him into becoming a film director and achieving his version of the American dream.

The father of Sarah’s baby is Coalhouse Walker Jr., a “ragtime” pianist. Coalhouse is financially successful in ways that few African Americans were: he is the proud owner of a Model T Ford. At first unaware that Sarah has had his child, he persistently attempts to win her over. He ingratiates himself to Sarah but also to Mother and the Little Boy (during Father’s absence while on his Arctic expedition). The racist local fire chief and his cohorts challenge Coalhouse and destroy his beloved car. He vows that he will not marry Sarah until his car has been restored to him and the racist fire chief duly punished.

Nkrumah Gatling as Coalhouse Walker and Awa Sal Secka as Sara with Coalhouse's Model T in Ragtime. Photo credit: Daniel Rader.

Premiering on Broadway in 1996, McNally’s Tony-winning book, perhaps one of the strongest of the 1990s, ensures that our sympathies as an audience are always with the progressive societal changes. Of course, Mother will shelter Sarah and her baby; of course, we want Coalhouse’s attempts to gain justice for what has been done to him to succeed; of course, Tateh’s persistence will pay off with success.

Flaherty’s and Ahrens’s Tony-winning songs make use of the ragtime motif throughout, but are not limited by it. Perhaps the most memorable song, “Wheels of a Dream,” is an anthem of optimism about the future sung by Coalhouse and Sarah, envisioning a world (an America) in which they can take their son across the country in their Model T. Similarly, Coalhouse’s “last stand” number, “Make Them Hear You,” encourages future action toward justice, while recognizing that his current attempts may fall short of that goal. “Henry Ford” is a deeper number than it may first appear, contrasting the wonder of the assembly line with the de-humanizing work it requires (thanks in no small part to its staging).

Matthew Gardiner, Signature’s artistic director, directs with a sure hand, making maximum use of the limited stage space. He is ably abetted by Ashleigh King, who choreographs every number with recognizable characters executing movement, not just “dancers dancing.” Music director Jon Kalbfleisch has a cast of actors with outstanding voices and draws the best from them, as well as directing a 16-person orchestra (several of whom play more than one instrument). I had been thinking that the Signature orchestra deserved to be seen, as they are in this production – all the better to appreciate their versatility.

One of these days I am going to request a tour of the backstage area of the MAX because (obviously) everything that comes out onto the stage must have a “resting” place backstage – including the Model T replica that appears several times. Lee Savage continues his string of memorable scene designs (including Bridges, Into the Woods, She Loves Me, and Passion) with this production, creating a two-level space in which many different settings are created, making maximum use of an on-stage turntable. Erik Teague’s costume designs are entirely within character and period. Lighting designer Tyler Micoleau, sound designer Eric Norris, wig designer Anne Nesmith, and fight director Casey Kaleba each make significant contributions to the look and sound of the production.

And the cast – what a cast! Teal Wicks as Mother is an independent woman with backbone and courage, not to mention a commanding soprano. Nkrumah Gatling is by turns charming and challenging as a full-throated Coalhouse, who is well-matched with Awa Sal Secka as Sarah: their “Wheels of a Dream” is the emotional highlight of the show. Jake Loewenthal commits fully to his role as Mother’s Younger Brother, a role that could easily be forgotten if performed by a less committed actor. Signature regular Bobby Smith, as usual, fully embodies immigrant Tateh, who demonstrates the character’s fierce protectiveness as well as a sense of whimsy. The always-delightful Maria Rizzo makes more of the role of Evelyn Nesbit than I have seen in previous productions, well-matched by Edward L. Simon as Harry Houdini.

The immigrants of Ragtime, with Bobby Smith (third from left) as Tateh and Emerson Holt Lacayo (front) as the Little Girl. Photo credit: Daniel Rader.

Those patrons whose first exposure to Signature might have been Bridges are sure to be astonished at the different experience that Ragtime provides. Chalk it up to the magic of the MAX theatre space and the many magicians who work there. Even if you have seen Ragtime before, there are new undertones to be discovered in this outstanding production. Ragtime continues through January 7.