{Tateh (Leif Norby) and his daughter (Anna Bishop) arrive in America in Ragtime. Photo by Owen Carey.}
We’re delighted to have Ragtime open and garnering rave reviews- from the press and from our own audience!
First, the audience weighs in…on our website, on Facebook, and on Twitter:
On Our Site
“Ragtime is one of my three favorite musicals, so I was apprehensive when PCS announced it for their season. I had seen the original production (breathtaking!), a touring show in Seattle (still good though on a smaller scale), and a really scaled down version in Portland at the Keller (only OK). Now for yours: Brilliant!!! The singing was extraordinary, the story came more into focus, I loved the use of chairs and the screens. And to top it all was Susannah Mars. Mother finally came into focus where she should have been in all previous showings. Thank you. I plan to see it at PCS many more times.” – Jerry Lesch
Read more audience reviews. (And write your own!)
{Mother (Susannah Mars) decides to keep a baby found abandoned in her garden (and transforms her whole life in the process) in Ragtime. Photo by Owen Carey}
@MiracleInsider: “Saw RAGTIME last night at PCS – a huge success – wonderful vocals – Musical Director Rick Lewis really triumphs – will be big hit.”
@toddmintz: “Ragtime rocked the F’ing house yesterday…awesome performance!”
@misconstrue: “Enjoyed the heck out of Portland Center Stage’s Ragtime last night. First rate voices, acting, and stagecraft. Kudos.”
{Coalhouse (Gavin Gregory) gets a new car and a whole new slice of the American Dream in Ragtime. Photo by Owen Carey.}
“The show was fantastic! A good refresher of American history and of how our nation got it’s start from “wheels of a dream”. Change begins with dreams and the journey of change begins with the support of family & friends working tog…ether to endure the obstacles of life. After seeing this show, and watching the decline of the industrial revolution in our country with hard working people loosing their jobs to cheaper overseas labor, it seems History is repeating its self. HATS off (yep…puns intended) to PCS and the Ragtime cast for instilling the importance of keeping dreams in America!” – Laura Henderson Kennedy
“Ragtime was amazing! A classy production. Beautiful sights and sounds. Entertaining and educational. It kept making me cry but I laughed as well. What a show.” – Katherine Fitch
“Just saw Ragtime tonight (thanks, Kelsey!) This is one of the most amazing and powerful productions I’ve ever seen at PCS. And I’ve seen some great ones. The cast is superb. I was blown away by the vocals and orchestra, the beautiful costumes and the profound story. Thank you for a brilliant show.” – Michael Todd Pozycki
“I was “bowled” over by the amazingly talented cast of Ragtime last night. The ensemble singing was so beautiful, as was the directing and scenery. Bravo, Chris!” – Carole Penner
“Loved, loved, loved the show last night. The cast was absolutely incredible and the singing was fantastic. And that was only the first preview night. Can’t wait to see where it goes from here.” – Heather Adams
Friend us on Facebook (and tell us what you thought!)
{What a Game! The men of Ragtime celebrate the profundities (and profanities) of a baseball game. Photo by Owen Carey.}
And what did the press think so far? Here’s a brief excerpt of Michael McGregor’s review for the Oregonian:
Distilled by Terrence McNally from E.L. Doctorow’s wide-ranging novel and pulsed by Stephen Flaherty’s lean but luscious rag-based score, Ragtime highlights three versions of the American Dream at the end of the Gilded Age …
Coleman’s unexpectedly apt less-is-more approach places in the foreground not only Ragtime’s Tony-winning book and score but also the powerful voices he’s found for both major and minor roles. Chief among these are local favorites Susannah Mars as a wealthy white woman discovering abilities and desires beyond being a wife and Leif Norby as a Latvian Jewish immigrant transformed from poor street artist to privileged filmmaker.”
And here’s a bit from Barry Johnson’s Arts Watch commentary:
The orchestra, led by Rick Lewis, had the musical goods and so did the cast, which was jam-packed with good singers — most notably the two locals in the cast, Susannah Mars and Leif Norby, along with Gavin Gregory as Coalhouse Walker…
Yes, it’s far easier to keep the door closed to the human misery at your doorstep, in Mother’s case the arrival of Sarah and her infant son (the child of Coalhouse Walker). But when it’s a specific misery, sometimes we find it within ourselves to do something about it, if we can. Mars, who sings beautifully throughout, is particularly poignant here, and as the play progresses, Father is right: She is always carrying the symbol of that pain, the infant son of Coalhouse and Sarah. Mother’s caring doesn’t matter to the vast social forces in movement outside of her home in New Rochelle, of course; it matters at a strictly local level, though, and at a personal level, too. Mars’ ability to suggest this is one of the prime achievements of this production.
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