playbill vip

One of my favorite films as a child was a little Don Bluth picture entitled, An American Tail which tells the harrowing story of a Russian mouse named Fivel, who with his family immigrated to the United States in 1885.  They travel with a veritable melting pot of other immigrants from all over Europe with dreams of a catless American and streets paved of cheese.  Little did I know that this poignant film would instill in me a love of history and in a profound way an appreciation of the story of Ragtime.  

This is a story of America and most importantly, the story of three families that have dreams of an American very different from the reality.  And like those mice of American Tail, the reality of America shatters their world, destroys their dreams and then picks them up with promise of tomorrow.  

It is important for us all to remember that America is an experiment; one that has to be readjusted and recalibrated in the face of changing times.  This seems to happen every 50-60 years.  The turmoil we see in our country is nothing new.  It is important that we recognize that.  The current social and political environment is just the result of variables that was not accounted for.  The beauty of the experiment is that it seems to adjust and fix itself eventually because ultimately the constitution preserves the voice of the people, allows for healing and ultimately brings unity.  We just have to put our faith in the system.  

It should be noted that this play is harsh in places.  But it is through that horror that the redemption and hope shines all the brighter!  It should bother us all that people lived the way they had to in 1906 and that people treated others the way it is depicted.  It reflects humanity as it was back then, and if we have any hope at redemption, we must be willing to look back at ourselves and analyze our mistakes in order to keep our future on track.  

Therein lies the great beauty of Ragtime and of America; the hope of the future!  That the future will be better.   In 1906, America had to find itself.  In 2014, America is finding itself again.  This can cause some growing pains.  But ultimately that promise that we will emerge as a society better than we were has never left us.  My hope is that leave the theatre tonight with that hope renewed and your American dreams revived.