My Book of Broadway

Ragtime

So I recently just saw Ragtime at a university production near me and I really enjoyed it!

I'm not sure how many people are familiar with this show so I'll give a quick summary: The story follows three different groups of people and storylines that all come together as it goes along during the turn of the 20th century aka the Ragtime Era. There are also a variety of famous figures that are sort of used to counter or inspire the characters. So it follows a well off white American family, a group of black people who follow a man named Coalhouse who plays Ragtime, and a poor Jewish man, Tateh, and his daughter who have just immigrated from Latvia. The principal historical figures that are in it are Evelyn Nesbit, a vaudeville star, Harry Houdini, a famed magician and escape artist, Booker.T.Washington, an African American rights activist, J.P. Morgan, an American banker who became one of the richest men in America, Emma Goldman, a political anarchist and writer, and Henry Ford, inventor of Ford Motor Company and inventor of the mass production line. So without spoiling too much, the story begins when Father (the father of the white family) leaveing on a voyage to Antarctica and leaves his wife, Mother, and his son Edgar. One day while Mother was gardening she finds a baby buried in the garden. They learn soon that the baby belongs to a woman named Sarah, the lover of Coalhouse, and she buried the baby because she no longer wanted to be associated with Coalhouse and she felt guilty. So the musical follows that plot as well as others that as I said all become interconnected in someway. The themes focus mainly on justice and the American Dream and it's overall a great show! Definitely listen to it!

Sorry that was slightly lengthy but now I'll get to my actual review! Also there will be spoilers so don't read it if you want to be more surprised by the show! I won't give away anything major but there will be some

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Favorite Character: This is tough because I really like both Mother and Tateh but as far as favorites go I really have to say Tateh! He is so sweet!! He does everything for his daughter and even when things get really tough, he never gave up and he never gave in to the terrible things people asked him to do. Tateh comes to America based on the idea that he'll sell silhouette drawings or portraits but his business never really takes off and he's not successful. So he ends up working in a factory with terrible conditions, since this is the end of the Gilded Age working conditions are still pretty terrible, and he plans to leave New York City. Before he leaves though he ends up participating in a workers strike and the strikers are beaten and abused and he barely makes it to the train with his daughter. Understandably, his daughter is very shaken and upset so he draws her a book of moving images and a man overlooks it and asks him if he can buy it and Tateh begins a new successful business! And through that he becomes associated with the movie industry and becomes a successful director. But as he becomes rich he doesn't change! He stays the same humble father and gives his daughter anything she could ever desire which is all he ever wanted! He's so kind and so sweet and teaches his daughter how to succeed. He takes a bad situation and tries to make it better rather than rioting or starting something that inevitably hurts the cause like Coalhouse does or Emma Goldman or even Younger Brother. Also he is so kind to Mother and Edgar even when they are poor and Mother is very clearly more well off than they are. He is not bitter and he is not rude and I think that's amazing! Sorry I've rambled a lot but overall Tateh is such a sweet and kind character that he's hard not to love!

Least Favorite Character: I'm sure most people would say that Father is their least favorite character but to be honest I don't hate him at all! I think he's misunderstood but that's a different topic. By far my least favorite character is Emma Goldman! Maybe that's odd since she's also a real life person but I don't like her as a person! I think her political goals are terrible and the view that she had of the country was very -in my opinion- misguided and she seemed so blinded by her political agenda. She tried to manipulate Tateh into joining her cause even though he said multiple times that he wasn't interested in a political life and then once he does listen to her advice he gets beaten in front of his daughter. Also Emma Goldman uses him to manipulate her cause by mentioning him at a rally even though he said he wanted no part in her speech at Union Square. Also Tateh proves her entire cause to be faulty and unnecessary anyway! Also when Younger Brother walks into the rally he is first regarded with hatred and disapproval due to his wealth and only until he pleads allegiance to the cause would they accept him and I think that's so wrong! Just because someone is wealthier than you or a different status than you does not mean you can hate them or disregard them for a cause even if they believe in it! Also I disagree with her political opinions and actions but I won't get in to all of the history! Sorry I'm getting so ranty and rambling a lot!

Favorite Song: Honestly it's probably Ragtime both the prologue and the epilogue. It's so catchy and fun and I love hearing about all of the characters! It's so much fun! I also really like 'Crime of the Century', 'Gliding', and 'Sarah's Brown Eyes'.

Least Favorite Song: The Night that Goldman Spoke at Union Square. Considering I don't like Emma Goldman or her beliefs it speaks for itself why I don't really like this song. Also the song isn't all that interesting anyway!

Politics: So usually I'm not a fan of musicals that are this political. Considering the time period the show takes place in, it makes perfect sense as to why this show is so political. However, though the musical aims to bring up the political and social issues of the time, I think the musical has been popularized recently due to the fact that some still find it's politics to hold true today. I will not comment on whether or not I agree with that or not but I will say that though this musical is political I did that the writers did an excellent job at showing all sides and not being offensive to any one group of people! The musical pinpoints many problems but does not do so in a resentful or attacking manner and I think that's pretty awesome! The musical simply accurately describes the era and that's one thing I really respect and love about this show!

Plot Holes/Randomness: Okay so I do really like this show but there were some things that I wasn't a fan of. Firstly, the show is very long. It's a little over 3 hours and though I'm no stranger to long shows, Phantom, Les Mis, and Newsies are all around the 3 hour mark, this show is unnecessarily long. There are so many absolutely pointless songs and honestly some pointless characters as well. I find both Henry Ford and Harry Houdini to be slightly trivial in the grand scheme of the show. Henry Ford is only relevant in the song Henry Ford and the song is so unnecessary. It's sort of a fun song but it's really not anything that has any point. Not that all songs need to have a major purpose, many are just for entertainment but it's not a big dance number or anything and most people probably don't care about the mass production line so I feel like it isn't necessary. Also Henry Ford as a character does nothing for the musical. He doesn't offer any sort of inspiration or insight to the characters or the time period really but I mean whatever! I don't mind the song! Also with Harry Houdini I understand that he is present in the musical to reflect and inspire the other immigrant characters but then they add his whole philosophy against the supernatural and Edgar tells him to 'warn the Duke' and then at the end of the musical it is revealed to us that Houdini was doing a trick in Times Square when he heard that the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria was assassinated (this was the event that started WWI) and he claims that this was the only mystical experience that he's had in his life. But I cannot figure out why they included this on the musical? I also didn't understand it but then I did some research and it turns out in Houdini's actual life he supposedly spoke to many psychics so he could debunk their efforts but he did meet a psychic named Edgar Cayce who predicted the assassination of the Duke and Houdini claimed this to be the only mystical experience of his life before he died. Now, that's a very fun fact; however, it doesn't make a lot of sense in terms of the musical because it's such a specific fact. Maybe I'm just dumb but I didn't know all of that about Houdini so adding the 'warn the Duke' line with Edgar doesn't make a lot of sense and it's kind of confusing when you're watching the musical because it's never really explained. I'm not saying the musical is bad because of these very nitpicky things I'm just saying it was confusing and unnecessary.

Overall though this musical has a lot of heart and touches on some really amazing themes! It's also one of the most shocking musicals I've seen in a very long time! The most unexpected things happen! If you guys have a chance to listen to it I highly suggest doing so!

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If you've made it this far thank you so much for reading as always! I appreciate you all so so much and I'm always happy to see your comments and such!

I'm so sorry that this was so long! I'm such a hypocrite for complaining that the musical was so long and the writing a near 2000 word review...

Also as always these are just my opinions and are not meant to be offensive in anyway and if they come across the way I truly do not mean it!

I hope you are all well and if there is anything you'd like me to comment on in this book please let me know!!! I'm always open to requests!