Ragtime Review: I never heard no music quite like yours...

Tonight I finally had the opportunity to see Ragtime at the Lyric Theatre.

First Impression: It was deeply satisfying to hear some of my favorite melodies being played out on stage.

General Review:
There are so many pretty moments in this show. From tiny little instrumental details to beautiful backdrops. I would love to see it again, especially later in their run. They seemed to be having sound issues tonight that should work themselves out as the show progresses.

The show has an interesting set up - its narrated throughout by the characters themselves, so there is a lot of breaking the fourth wall going on. But I personally never felt like it detracted from the show - there's so many minor characters and instances where it really helps serve to move along the story.

The one thing I really was unsatisfied with was in the character of Sarah, who is the female counterpart to Coalhouse Walker. Coalhouse is incredibly strong willed and therefore Sarah has to be as well - otherwise there's nothing to push against and the relationship falters and feels onesided. Which means that when she runs to the President it feels like you're watching some ditzy dame screaming mindlessly at the President - not that its a desperate woman with the guts to try to reach him since he's her last chance.
And in this production - for some bizarre reason that I can't quite figure out - Sarah was weepy. And whimpy. In fact, she was sobbing a bit too theatrically during "Your Daddy's Son" which, is an incredibly sad and moving song...but not weepy. You could liken it to "Pity the Child" from Chess - sad song, but with such a strength of anger and hurt and fierceness that you don't cry through it. Then you lose the power behind it. Silly.

The music itself, though, is lovely as ever. I soaked it all in, hearing some of my favorite theatrical songs sung live and finally able to put some of the mysterious voices into context. Listening to "Sarah Brown Eyes" sung by two strong voices was wonderful and I have to admit - it's just one of my favorite songs from musical theatre. That's all there is to it.

"Now she is haunting me, just like a melody, the only song I seem to know is Sarah Brown Eyes...."

(Okay, so that's technically from "His Name is Coalhouse Walker" but its the same melody and I love that line.)

And "Back to Before" was just outstanding. I don't remember who was playing Mother, but wow she really sold that song. It was so well done. And the lead up to it was handled beautifully as well. That was a great scene.

The tough part about this show (at least, in terms of watching it) is obvious - its central themes deal heavily with race in the early 1900's and that can be really rough to watch and to listen to. So should you ever see this show be aware of that going in. While there is some cursing, its mostly some of language used at the time that will make you wince.

Speaking of the time period, I'm really curious about it. I assume most of what occured really fell in that time slot, I just simply haven't done the research on it to confirm it. Did I mention I would love to dramaturg this show? It would be insane and overwhelming, but I suspect oh so rewarding at the same time.

Final Thoughts:
Should you go see this show, I recommend you borrowing the cast recording first. You'll be able to follow it without knowing what's going on, but you'll have a much clearer understanding. There is a ton of ensemble music in the show and like tonight if you have a rough sound system then it's going to be even harder to understand some of the lyrics. Also, there's about four storylines going on throughout and you'll have a much better sense of what's going on. Ragtime won't be for everyone (another reason to check out the cast recording first) but if you're looking for more a classically styled musical with some beautiful melodies and harmonies and lots of opportunities for character building then definitely give it a look. Now that I can finally say I've seen it in production, it remains one of my favorites.