A Tony Award-winning musical set in the turbulent turn of the 20th century is given a unique treatment in Highland Park Players’ “Ragtime in Concert” April 5-7 at McGrath Family Center for Performing Arts in Wilmette.
Performances are 7:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday.
Even though the production doesn’t use sets or costumes, audiences will get the full experience of the powerful show.
“We’re really excited to be able to perform the full original Broadway orchestration with a 28-piece orchestra,” said director Connor Giles. “We also have a 36-person choir as well as a 45-actor company performing the full staging of the show.”
Aaron Kaplan conducts his JAM Orchestra and is also choir director for the show.
When the Highland Park Players decided to do a concert version of a show, they were convinced that “Ragtime” would be a great choice.
“The score of ‘Ragtime,’ written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, is one of the best of our time. It’s absolutely lush and gorgeous — one of those epic scores of the late ‘90s, early 2000’s,” Giles said. In addition, “The show explores a variety of themes that are so very present today, including racial conflict, immigration, and classism.”
The show focuses on three distinct groups, Giles said, “the privileged upper class, the marginalized African Americans, and the wave of immigrants coming into the country.”
Wesly Clerge plays the pivotal role of Coalhouse, the African American pianist whose dreams are thwarted by racism. He was the perfect pick for the part according to the director.
“The second Wesly walked into the room and opened his mouth, he immediately had the role,” Giles revealed. “His voice is truly one of the best voices that I’ve ever heard in the Chicago theater scene. And he has this great ability of still honoring the drama and the high stakes nature of the story while also staying grounded in the moment.”
Clerge said he was excited to learn that the company was staging a concert version of “Ragtime.”
“I really wanted to showcase the power and the beauty of the music,” Clerge said. He noted that sometimes gets lost when audience members are focusing on the set pieces and props.
In terms of his character, Clerge noted that “Coalhouse is a man that believes in the idea of America. He, with his whole heart, believes that we, not only as a people but as a nation, can do better.”
Clerge indicated that his experiences as a black man in America makes him find Coalhouse very relatable. He noted that he comes from an immigrant family from Haiti.
This show is still relevant today, Clerge declared, because “When we are so divided as a people, a community, a country, this is something that unifies all of us in our humanistic nature.”
Hannah Rose plays Mother, the matriarch of the wealthy white family in the show.
“Mother goes on this beautiful journey from someone who is rather uptight, whose circle is very closed, and she journeys through these different experiences — meeting Coalhouse and Sarah and taking care of their baby,” Rose said.
“One of the things that I find magical about this part is how clear her character arc is. Every part of her journey is marked by this very clear mile-marker in terms of the people that she meets and when she meets them, and how the interaction between her and her own family shifts during that period.”
“At the end of the day,” Giles said, “‘Ragtime’ is more than just a musical. I believe that it is a powerful reflection of the American experience. And it serves as a poignant reminder of the ongoing search for equality, and understanding, and social justice.”
Myrna Petlicki is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
‘Ragtime in Concert’
When: April 5-7
Where: McGrath Family Center for Performing Arts, 1100 Laramie Ave., Wilmette
Tickets: $33-$48
Information: 224-212-0477; highlandparkplayers.org
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