'Ragtime' returns to Broadway with undeniable urgency and uncomfortable truths

by Matthew Wexler

Ragtime, one of the great musical theater scores of the late 20th century, steps up to bat on Broadway in its third major production. And if some of its design elements feel sparse in Lincoln Center Theater’s 1,050-seat Vivian Beaumont, its glorious cast of 34 and “the music of something beginning” land with a visceral impact that marks a uniquely American art form.

Based on E.L. Doctorow’s sprawling novel of the same name, Ragtime follows three intersecting storylines: a privileged white family in New Rochelle discovering that money alone can’t buy happiness, a widowed Jewish immigrant and his young daughter striving for a new life in America, and a Black couple navigating the birth of their out-of-wedlock child.

The original creative team, including the late playwright Terrance McNally (book), Stephen Flaherty (music), and Lynn Ahrens (lyrics), deftly weaves these narratives together with historical figures. Automotive empresario Henry Ford, activist Emma Goldman, and author Booker T. Washington are among the many real-life figures that provide a broader cultural and historical context.

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Joshua Henry and the cast of "Ragtime." — Joshua Henry and the cast of “Ragtime.” Photo by Matthew Murphy.

But it’s the central characters, particularly Joshua Henry as Coalhouse Walker, Jr., the Black ragtime pianist swept into a racially charged firestorm after his new Ford Model T is vandalized, that deliver Ragtime’s message of social justice with gut-punching resonance. Caissie Levy as Mother, a privileged wife who discovers an abandoned baby in her garden, Nichelle Lewis as Sarah, the boy’s distraught mother, and Brandon Uranowitz as Tateh, a newly arrived immigrant with little but a dream in his well-worn pocket, are all equally captivating.

They anchor an acting company that has plenty of room to move around amid David Korins’ minimalist but uninspired scenic design. Thankfully, Adam Honoré’s focused lighting brings it to life, creating both intimacy and breathtaking tableaus on the Beaumont’s sprawling stage.

The cast of "Ragtime." — The cast of “Ragtime.” Photo by Matthew Murphy.

In its final moments, Ragtime projects an interracial and intercultural America. Still, the lives lost to get there can’t be forgotten, which makes its impact that much more poignant and heart-wrenching.