RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks — Page 2

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#26

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 9:53pm

BarnabyTucker said: "quizking101 said: "Personal Note: Them grabbing the Revival trophy and running off into the sunset really sticks in my craw."

Being a fan of Cats is great.

Wanting Cats to win Best Revival is great.

Having a weird grudge against a non-profit enjoying its well deserved success is not so great."

Well deserved political* success. Everyone who is anyone in the industry knows why Ragtime won. It was a posthumous win for what didn’t happen in 1998. Which is why Lear didn’t win, because it wasn’t the actual best. It was a way to honor Terrence McNally’s legacy of a highly adored classic.

I’m glad it did well at the box office and gave career awards to the deserving actors, but this win is simply business politics. It was a way for people to pat themselves on the back for what never happened - not because what’s happening at LCT is provocative or exciting for the industry. It’s the same show, with great performances and questionable directorial choices.

#27

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 9:56pm

Dolly80 said: "Why isn’t this extending? Even with some new cast members."

I'm shocked they're not attempting a longer extension with a new cast. Whatever is going into this theater for the Fall can't be worth closing RAGTIME.

A Chorus Line revival played its final Broadway performance on August 17, 2008. The tour played its final performance on August 21, 2011. A new non-equity tour started in October 2012 played its final performance on March 23, 2013. Another non-equity tour launched on January 20, 2018. The tour ended its US run in Kansas City and then toured throughout Japan August & September 2018.

#28

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 10:18pm

ACL2006 said: "Dolly80 said: "Why isn’t this extending? Even with some new cast members."

I'm shocked they're not attempting a longer extension with a new cast. Whatever is going into this theater for the Fall can't be worth closing RAGTIME."

From what I’ve heard it’s a revival of A FEW GOOD MEN starring Bradley Whitford and then Lear’s directing another musical revival, that hasn’t been seen in ages, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s THE SOUND OF MUSIC starring Jasmine Amy Rogers as Maria

Updated On: 6/9/26 at 10:18 PM

#29

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 10:50pm

I'm with an earlier poster in that it'd be lovely (if perhaps unlikely, since the production will have a hopefully strong + successful tour) for there either to be a Proshot or a "Great Performances" capture.

#30

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 10:58pm

malcs98 said: "ACL2006 said: "Dolly80 said: "Why isn’t this extending? Even with some new cast members."

I'm shocked they're not attempting a longer extension with a new cast. Whatever is going into this theater for the Fall can't be worth closing RAGTIME."

From what I’ve heard it’s a revival of A FEW GOOD MEN starring Bradley Whitford and then Lear’s directing another musical revival, that hasn’t been seen in ages, Rodgersand Hammerstein’s THE SOUND OF MUSICstarring Jasmine Amy Rogers as Maria"

Marie being black makes 0 sense dramaturgically. But neither did any of the casting in Cabaret, I guess.

#31

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 11:11pm

Nobody cares about that anymore, Jasmine is a star and will pair incredibly well with Patrick Wilson.

*Maria

Updated On: 6/9/26 at 11:11 PM

#32

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 11:21pm

Voter said: "malcs98 said: "ACL2006 said: "Dolly80 said: "Why isn’t this extending? Even with some new cast members."

I'm shocked they're not attempting a longer extension with a new cast. Whatever is going into this theater for the Fall can't be worth closing RAGTIME."

From what I’ve heard it’s a revival of A FEW GOOD MEN starring Bradley Whitford and then Lear’s directing another musical revival, that hasn’t been seen in ages, Rodgersand Hammerstein’s THE SOUND OF MUSICstarring Jasmine Amy Rogers as Maria"

Marie being black makes 0 sense dramaturgically. But neither did any of the casting in Cabaret, I guess."

Cassie Levy is a Jewish woman playing a wasp. Should she be confined to the immigrant narrative only? You sound very silly. Please choose silence. These kinda of questions typically only surround Black actors and it’s exhausting.

#33

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 11:23pm

Ensemble1698878795 said: "Whichis why Lear didn’t win, because it wasn’t the actual best."

My pick, for both "should win" and "will win," was Cats The Jellicle Ball," but your reasoning makes no sense. The director and production awards are separate judgments; otherwise, they shouldn't even have separate categories to begin with. There is no contradiction whatsoever when a show wins a best production award and loses best director.

#34

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/9/26 at 11:25pm

Voter said: "Marie being black makes 0 sense dramaturgically. But neither did any of the casting in Cabaret, I guess."

Are you saying that only white people should be in this production?

#35

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 12:32am

Oh yes, it's totally wrong to say that it doesn't make sense for Maria Von Trapp to be a POC. Even totally ignoring that she was a real person who was white, the story is about the rise of Nazis in 1938 Austria, a time and place where black people were severely ostracized and excluded from society. The characters benefit from social acceptance due to their white privilege. Some shows race is incidental to the plot, I'm all for diverging from original castings, but color conscious casting and color blind casting are different and it makes no sense here.

#36

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 1:40am

Voter said: "Oh yes, it's totally wrong to say that it doesn't make sense for Maria Von Trappto be a POC. Even totally ignoring that she was a real person who was white, the story is about the rise of Nazis in 1938 Austria, a time and place whereblack peoplewere severely ostracized and excluded fromsociety. The characters benefit from social acceptance due to their white privilege. Some shows race is incidental to the plot, I'm all for diverging from original castings, but color conscious casting and color blind casting are different and it makes no sense here."

Let's just go back to the rumors of Rachel Zelger starring, then - she's Polish!

Seriously, though... it's a musical, and story-wise its barely accurate to the true story already. For that matter, we just had Audra McDonald in Gypsy (and Audra herself played Mother Superior in the live SOM broadcast).

And if you really want to dig into the sociological implications - Captain Von Trapp had privilege. Maria did not. Maria very pointedly has nothing but her vibrant spirit. It's also a major plot point that she doesn't fit in at the convent and at the Trapp family estate she's not well liked by the Captain's Nazi-adjacent fiancé. Casting a Black woman in the role could add additional layers to the character, should they choose to direct it that way. Even if they don't, Jasmine Amy Rogers has the talent, voice, and personality to make a wonderful Maria all on her own.

It'll be fine.

#37

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 1:43am

KevinKlawitter said: "Casting a Black woman in the role could add additional layers to the character, should they choose to direct it that way."

Yes, because Lear Debessonet's direction is full of layers.

#38

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 1:57am

kdogg36 said: "Ensemble1698878795 said: "Whichis why Lear didn’t win, because it wasn’t the actual best."

My pick, for both "should win" and "will win," wasCats The Jellicle Ball," but your reasoning makes no sense. The director and production awards are separate judgments; otherwise, they shouldn't even have separate categories to begin with. There is no contradiction whatsoever when a show wins a best production award and loses best director."

Did you read my paragraph on why Ragtime won? It had nothing to do with the quality of the overall production. People are fans of this production bc they love Ragtime on paper. People hate Cats on paper and for the most part love this production.

#39

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 5:58am

I really hope these LCT doing Sound of Music rumors aren’t true. It’s not a good show at all, there’s little appetite to revisit this, the tour sold incredibly poorly, and I think it would be a pretty big disaster for them. Let’s hope they use this time to do a new play or perhaps a classic musical that’s actually good. But it’s frustrating to me that Ragtime probably has another year left in it and they’re closing it prematurely. All we talk about is how everything flops and loses money, and yet here we are closing a hit show.

#40

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 7:14am

The two leads who just won Tonys want to move on. Would Ragtime really continue to sell if they re-cast? They would run into the same issue that Sunset Boulevard had. The audience drops off once the star is gone. People are seeing this because they've heard Joshua Henry is fantastic.

...

#41

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 8:47am

Beyoncé is not an ally. Actions speak louder than words, Mrs. Carter. #Dubai #$$$

#42

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 9:09am

I don't need to see SOM again. Vancouver's one professional rep house produced a lavish production in 2019 that they remounted after Covid in 2022. The second run featured a talented Indigenous actress Maria. This casting caused the remount to surpass the success if the original run due to this actresses overwhelming charm and incredible voice.

Charm & voice are the ONLY considerations anyone casting Maria in Sound of Music need consider.

I am more curious about Bradley Whitford in A Few Good Men. To me it only makes sense for him to play the Colonel - it's a showy role, but not the lead. Who plays the JAG lawyer? In the original '89 cast this was Tom Hulce - which for Broadway in '89 feels like the ☆chef's kiss☆. And of course Tom Cruise took the role in the film adaptation. Whoever is cast in this role will make or break the success of a revival.

...

#43

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 9:42am

inception said: "I don't need to see SOM again. Vancouver's one professional rep house produced a lavish production in 2019 that they remounted after Covid in 2022. The second run featured a talented Indigenous actress Maria. This casting caused theremount to surpass the success if the original run due to this actresses overwhelming charm and incredible voice.

Charm & voice are the ONLY considerations anyone casting Maria in Sound of Music need consider.

I am more curious about Bradley Whitford in A Few Good Men. To me it only makes sense forhim to play the Colonel - it's a showy role, but not the lead. Who plays the JAG lawyer? In the original '89 cast this was Tom Hulce - which for Broadway in '89 feels like the ☆chef's kiss☆. And of course Tom Cruise took the role in the film adaptation. Whoever is cast in this role will make or break the success of a revival."

Alden Ehrenreich?

#44

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 10:07am

The Sound of Music has been touring for awhile now. A revival with Jasmine and Patrick Wilson really won't move the needle much to sell tickets.

#45

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 11:18am

Jay Lerner-Z said: "Voter said: "Oh yes, it's totally wrong to say that it doesn't make sense for Maria Von Trappto be a POC. Even totally ignoring that she was a real person who was white, the story is about the rise of Nazis in 1938 Austria, a time and place whereblack peoplewere severely ostracized and excluded fromsociety. The characters benefit from social acceptance due to their white privilege. Some shows race is incidental to the plot, I'm all for diverging from original castings, but color conscious casting and color blind casting are different and it makes no sense here."

The actor being Black doesn’t necessarily mean that the character they are playing is Black. Just like Judi Dench isn't a real cat."

Your point makes absolutely no sense. Of course if the actor is black the character is now black. It isn't about Cats, there isn't some abstraction on the piece like Great Comet or Hamilton.

#46

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 12:22pm

Not really a big surprise that there will be cast changes. It was always scheduled for a limited run, and I'm sure those actors who are departing, are moving on to other projects, or can't commit to an extension - for whatever reason. It's not some big snub or anything like that. Why try to make something out of nothing?

#47

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 1:24pm

There’s no question that Ragtime is successful, but once it concluded its initially contracted run and entered into extensions, it also converted from being a nonprofit production to a commercial one and lost its financial advantages like lower salaries. Its costs have shot up substantially. (To say nothing of the fact that LCT has only one Broadway space and it is its main selling point).

"...everyone finally shut up, and the audience could enjoy the beginning of the Anatevka Pogram in peace."

Updated On: 6/10/26 at 01:24 PM

#48

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 1:51pm

Bradley as Colonel Jessup is an interesting out-of-the-box choice that I can't QUITE wrap my mind around. Jessup is a larger-than-life, testosterone-fueled presence. Jack Nicholson was good at projecting that sort of energy; Burke Moses was even better in the regional production I saw. The charm and menace of toxic masculinity and machismo embodied.

Bradley Whitford has never been that kind of performer, physically or affect-wise. He's like the thinking man of taste's Matthew Broderick: a little small, a little fey, a little snarky, balancing warmth and coldness. It's hard to picture him playing a character who is symbolically the walking, talking phallus of the Armed Forces.

#49

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 2:05pm

KevinKlawitter said: "inception said: "I don't need to see SOM again. Vancouver's one professional rep house produced a lavish production in 2019 that they remounted after Covid in 2022. The second run featured a talented Indigenous actress Maria. This casting caused theremount to surpass the success if the original run due to this actresses overwhelming charm and incredible voice.

Charm & voice are the ONLY considerations anyone casting Maria in Sound of Music need consider.

I am more curious about Bradley Whitford in A Few Good Men. To me it only makes sense forhim to play the Colonel - it's a showy role, but not the lead. Who plays the JAG lawyer? In the original '89 cast this was Tom Hulce - which for Broadway in '89 feels like the ☆chef's kiss☆. And of course Tom Cruise took the role in the film adaptation. Whoever is cast in this role will make or break the success of a revival."

Alden Ehrenreich?"

Ok that would be SOOOO good, I mean fresh off of his Tony win, it only makes sense

#50

RAGTIME closing August 16th; Cast Changes in Final Weeks

Posted: 6/10/26 at 7:08pm

Voter said "Your point makes absolutely no sense"

"Colorblind” casting means just that, blind to color. It's not so hard to understand. “Suspension of disbelief" is another common phrase.

Acting means pretending to be something you're not. Again, not hard.

Beyoncé is not an ally. Actions speak louder than words, Mrs. Carter. #Dubai #$$$

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