Ragtime 15th Anniversary Concert

The 15th Anniversary Concert!!!

I am so mad I missed this concert last night. This one would have been so worth the cost over a quick flight to NYC & back. The original Broadway production of Ragtime was hands-down the best theatrical production I’ve ever seen (even though I can't believe it was 15 years ago). The cast featured Patina Miller as Sarah, Norm Lewis (from Side Show!) as Coalhouse, Lea Salonga as Mother, Howard McGillin as Father, Michael Arden as Mother's Younger Brother, Manoel Felciano as Tateh, Tyne Daly as Emma Goldman, Kerry Butler (from Bat Boy!) as Evelyn Nesbit, Matt Cavenaugh as Henry Ford, Jose Llana as Harry Houdini, & a chorus of over 100 singers from around the country.

On Lea Salonga as Mother:

First of all, no one will ever compare to the Marin Mazzie of the original Broadway cast: she acted with strength, femininity, & depth and sang with a voice equally comprised of beauty & belt. In the Broadway revival, they attempted to re-create Marin's magic with Christiane Noll, which was a fine choice physically, but she lacked the powerful presence that defined Ms. Mazzie. I love Lea Salonga, but this casting choice was too weird for me. Her voice kind of makes up for the fact that she was completely miscast. Her rendition of Back to Before was decent: she nailed the feminine lilting melodic sound that Ms. Mazzie had but lacked the same conviction. I get this was a concert & I get that Lea Salonga is a name that sells tickets. It just seems like they could have found a better fit for the role. 

See, I love Lea. Just not as Mother. 

Thank You, Ken Davenport.

My musical theatre upbringing was substantially influenced by a man named Ken Davenport. I was in 6th grade when I first got the clever idea to write letters to the Human Resources Departments of Broadway theatres to tell them I loved their shows & ask them to send me a playbill. RAGTIME opened the next year & is/was my favorite musical, so I promptly wrote a letter to the Ford Center for Performing Arts. Ken Davenport sent me a playbill, a business card, & a post-it that said he was happy a 13-year from Delaware loves theatre & that one of their production managers was also from Delaware. His business card had his email address; it was an AOL address. This was in the age where AOL was bright, fresh, & shiny; instant messaging was revolutionary. Obviously, I added his AOL name to my Buddy List & IM’d him the first time his name showed up. We chatted online regularly. As a junior high girl who had recently transferred from one school to a starkly different one (picture Bring It On, but worse), his friendship helped to salvage that awkward period. I sent him my first attempts at theatre criticism & he took them seriously. He was kind, smart, and maybe/hopefully saw some of his younger self in me. I wrote a review of the national tour of Show Boat, which he showed to the actual producer of the tour; he encouraged me by not discrediting my opinions despite my age. I remember sending him a cassette tape of the musical Wuthering Heights, which at the time I thought was amazing but has since disappeared into the musical theatre abyss. [I still think that random musical rules, SO CHECK OUT Heathcliff’s Lament, I Belong to the Earth, One Rules My Heart, or If Only]. Eventually, Ken made it possible for my sister & me to see RAGTIME from a perfect pair of front-row seats (which is still, HANDS-DOWN, the best production I have ever experienced). When we picked up the tickets at the box office, I met Ken for the first & only time in person with my parents & sister. He was kind, my parents were appreciative, & we could not be more excited.

Our happy, scrappy snap-shots from that evening:

P.S. RAGTIME IS STILL THE BEST MUSICAL EVER:

NOW, LET'S FAST FORWARD

Ken Davenport currently serves as one of the most important producers on Broadway.

His success is astounding but not surprising.

He produced the current Broadway revival of Godspell,

as well as Chinglish, Oleanna, Speed the Plow,You're Welcome America, Blithe Spirit,

Altar Boyz, The Awesome 80s Prom & My First Time.

He writes an exceptional & insightful blog entitled The Producer’s Perspective,

which addresses the tangible/business-oriented aspects of theatre, gives insight to the inner-workings

of the Broadway world, provides industry classifieds, & offers ticket discounts / giveaway opportunities.

He appeared in a 2008 iPhone commercial,

after creating the highly-successful TKTS iPhone app.

He is the perfect example of the recipe for success as a producer (or anyone in the arts):

work hard, work well, & invest recognition/interest/effort in the future talent.

Thank You, Kenny D. I wouldn’t be blogging without you :)