[Free Lance-Star] Chasing the American dream: 'Ragtime the Musical' rolls into Riverside Center
JESSE SCOTT For the Free Lance-Star
What has a nice ring to it? Twenty-five years after opening on Broadway, “Ragtime the Musical” will hit the Riverside Center for the Performing Arts stage during the theater’s very own 25th anniversary year.
The show — full of raw emotion and commanding tunes — débuted at Riverside yesterday and runs through May 7.
“This is a piece that’s timely ... showing the history of different cultures and what they’ve gone through ... as well as what so many people still go through today,” said Patrick A’Hearn, director of the show and producing artistic director at Riverside. “And this is a show that is very much about family, love and redemption, too — all things that so many people can relate to.”
“Ragtime” follows three totally different cultures in the early 20th century: the upper crest of New Rochelle, N.Y., determined immigrants from Eastern Europe and Black Americans, helmed by a young Harlem musician. The through line is they all believe in a better tomorrow and, together, tackle the parallels of American society and how to persevere. Along the way, historical figures like Booker T. Washington, J.P. Morgan and Harry Houdini are woven in, too.
The Riverside company includes 23 adults and three children, along with an eight-piece orchestra. Together, the cast delivers powerhouse performances of “Ragtime” tearjerkers and classics like “Wheels of a Dream,” “Make Them Hear You,” “Your Daddy’s Son” and “Look What You’ve Done.” At the musical helm is Riverside regular and music director Carson Eubank.
“This is a show I’ve been looking forward to working on for a number of years,” said Eubank. “And we really bring all of the worlds together, though they each very much have their own flavor. This show is an overlap of sounds with everything from clarinets to piano, trumpets and trombone.”
Visually, the staging mimics a replica of a museum at Ellis Island, evoking feelings of coming to America. The set is two levels and, throughout, count on splashes of the Statue of Liberty, projections conveying Americana and scenery changes aplenty. Plus, according to A’Hearn, there is a 16-foot turntable making it that much more dynamic.
“Well, I don’t think this show has ever been done with a turntable,” A’Hearn said with a chuckle. Adding to the ambiance, A’Hearn really brings out the emotion as director.
“I’m an emotional guy and I like tapping into people’s intelligence and psyche, so that is really brought forward in this,” said A’Hearn. “I also think this show is just so perfectly casted. Everyone in this show has experienced things to bring to this production. When people walk out of this one, they will believe every minute of it. We want to inspire and change minds.”
Leading the cast are Adrianne Hick as Mother, Nicole Vanessa Ortiz as Sarah and Jacquez Linder–Long as Coalhouse Walker Jr. For Hick, this marks her first show at Riverside since starring in the bluegrass musical “Bright Star” in 2021.
Reflecting on playing Mother, she said, “she’s used to being an upper-class white woman in a very cloistered community, without a voice. At that time, many women were still without a voice and, as a society, we thought for a while that it was OK. But she does have a voice.” She added, “here we are 100 years from the time the show was depicted and 25 years after its Broadway début. We still need to keep pushing forward ... and things have not changed as much as perhaps they should have. Many of these turn-of-the-century themes are still very relevant today.”
In chats with Hick, Eubank and A’Hearn, the consensus was that Linder–Long delivers a must-see, showstopping vocal performance as Coalhouse Walker Jr. The actor, who splits time between Florida and New York, is appearing in his first production at Riverside.
“This has been a dream role for me and to experience it at Riverside, where everyone is treating everyone with such respect, has been something,” said Linder–Long. “I’m hoping anyone that walks away from this show sees we’re a human race trying to survive and we’re a country that does have opportunity. I’d also like to see it be open and fair to each culture.”
With so much multifaceted power — spanning music to message — this is shaping up to be a see-to-believe experience. In the words of A’Hearn, “this is one of those shows at Riverside, if you miss it, you are missing something that is truly groundbreaking.”
If You Go
“Ragtime the Musical,” Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, 95 Riverside Pkwy., Fredericksburg. Wednesdays–Sundays through May 7. $75 for adult dinner and show (discounts available for seniors 65+, children ages 3-12 and show-only). 540/370-4300; riversidedt.com
