City Center's 24-25 Season: Ragtime, Urinetown, LaChiusa's Wild Party, Love Life — Page 10

INTO THE WOODS and PARADE both had bankable names attached. I understand those transfers more than RAGTIME.

New York Times CRITICS PIX....congrats

Is it strong enough to be competitive with SUNSET for Best Revival? or is this just another production of Ragtime that’s incredibly well sung?


The season is becoming increasingly more exciting by the day!

What I don’t get is why the 2010 revival with Christiane Noll and Stephanie Umoh was not that successful? And that revival to me feels like it wasn’t that long ago although it is going on 15 years ago but it seems like there has been a cultural shift that people now appreciate the show a lot more than they did back then?!

bigbelterbaby said: "What I don’t get is why the 2010 revival with Christiane Noll and Stephanie Umoh was not that successful? And that revival to me feels like it wasn’t that long ago although it is goingon 15 years ago but it seems like there has been a cultural shift that people now appreciate the show a lot more than they did back then?!"

Because it was terrible. Stephanie …:shakes head:

starlightlocamotion said: "Is it strong enough to be competitive with SUNSET for Best Revival? or is this just another production of Ragtime that’s incredibly well sung?


The season is becoming increasingly more exciting by the day!"

+ GYPSY Tom Kirdahy producer along with RAGTIME

Updated On: 10/31/24 at 11:07 PM

Well, it may have a tough time selling with an open run, but Joshua Henry’s Coalhouse and Uranowitz’s Tateh deserve a Broadway run. Both men are giving gorgeous performances. One gives power to his performance every time he opens his mouth and the other infuses his character with so much life that he breaks and heals your heart at the same time. Decide for yourselves which is which.

Other standouts for me were Sarah, Brother, Emma, Booker T., and basically everyone in the ensemble. Levy was very good, but I wouldn’t call her exceptional. Donnell was fine. Styles just didn’t have enough to do as Nesbitt. She did what she could.

There’s not much to the set (of course) - a couple of staircases, a swing and a couple of benches. The orchestra on stage was beautiful and made the music even more haunting as it lingered behind them. Choreography was good. But that music…it’s all about the music.

Updated On: 11/3/24 at 07:11 PM

Scarywarhol said: "I'm curious if they've kept the revival's cuts. Like is the Houdini escape at the top of Act II in it/is the Henry Ford number even shorter?"

Saw the revival but don’t remember enough to give you solid feedback except to say there’s no Houdini escape at the beginning of act two.

I would love to hear some more thoughts on Nichelle Lewis and Ben Levi Ross. I found Bobby Steggert as 'Younger Brother' in the last revival to be one of the main standouts for me, especially in his confrontation with Father.

bwayphreak234 said: "FANtomFollies said: "I would love to hear some more thoughts on Nichelle Lewis and Ben Levi Ross. I found Bobby Steggert as 'Younger Brother' in the last revival to be one of the main standouts for me, especially in his confrontation with Father."

Happy to weigh in. I thought Nichelle Lewis was one the sole weak link the cast. She wasn't bad by any means, but I just thought all of the other performances were on a whole other level than hers. I thought Ben Levi Ross was absolutely terrific - a very strong performance."

It worked for me that her voice doesn’t have as much strength as someone like Audra’s. Her character is going through stuff and she’s fragile, so the voice being fragile made sense. Brother had strength and humor and you could feel his desire to find his place. I thought an added interesting layer to this was his longing gaze as Coalhouse plays the piano. Ross gave his character an extra layer of desperation to “find himself” because maybe he too was an outsider.

FANtomFollies said: "I would love to hear some more thoughts on Nichelle Lewis and Ben Levi Ross. I found Bobby Steggert as 'Younger Brother' in the last revival to be one of the main standouts for me, especially in his confrontation with Father."

Colin Donnell and Nichelle Lewis’s performances were competent in a sea of great-to-excellent performances. Maybe with more rehearsal time they could improve.

I think BLR is wonderful but the confrontation scene with father doesn’t work largely because of Donnell.

I have mixed thoughts overall after after seeing Ragtime last night. The biggest thought I had was that I think I really dislike what was happening in musical theatre in the 90s (seriously, go look at the list of Best Musical nominees from 1990-99; bleak). This is another very strange musical like Titanic or Parade (interestingly both tackled by Encores): it goes big and symphonic, and yet never feels genuinely stirring in any authentic way. At least, not consistently.

Bigger-than-expected quibbles aside, there were very bright spots in the performances of Joshua Henry and Brandon Uranowitz. They’re the reason for this production to transfer, if it does, and we’ll be all the luckier for them to have a more luxurious rehearsal period. Brandon brings an urgency to Tateh that feels like it has been brewing in him for decades. It’s a deeply felt and passionate performance we rarely get on the Encores stage. The same could be said for Joshua, who continues to prove himself one of the best vocalist actors in musical theatre today. Every time he opens his mouth to sing, it is stunningly powerful, more than I’ve ever heard him be before. When he lets those big “with you” notes soar in “New Music,” you can feel the audience collectively holding their breath. Remarkable performances, both.

Elsewhere, things are less exciting. Caissie Levy is good, and belts “Back to Before” with great clarity if not deep feeling. Nichelle Lewis is charming and powerfully tackles “Your Daddy’s Son,” but otherwise doesn’t really register amidst all the narrative chaos, making the impact of the end of act one a little blunted. The other performances are all fine and unremarkable.

Perhaps my lack of passion for Ragtime itself has me feeling a little ho-hum about it, but I really do think there’s a way to make this a more urgent piece of theatre outside of just the themes it’s expressing. It would probably involve trimming a LOT of the fat, but I think more rehearsal time or more conscious directorial decisions could go a long way. As a concert, it has two incredible lead performances and an ensemble of more than capable actor/singers respectably presenting the material. But not my favorite Encores staging by a long mile.

Updated On: 11/3/24 at 09:05 AM

NYT: ‘Ragtime’ Crushed Brandon Uranowitz’s Dream. Now It’s Healing His Wounds.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/29/theater/ragtime-brandon-uranowitz-city-center.html?unlocked_article_code=1.XU4.dD9B.EXJKCo7kMELQ