Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Thursday, November 14, 2024
Ragtime in light of the election
New York Theater: So much in “Ragtime” played out differently for me because I saw it a week into its twelve-day run at New York City Center — after, rather than before, the results of the 2024 Presidential election.
One thing that I love about theatre is how much staying power its messages can have. A novel written in 1975 and turned into a show in 1998 still has incredible commentary that applies now. This highlights the brilliance of the novel and the show that it can be applied to any era of significant change and still hold weight for the audience. While I haven’t seen a production of Ragtime, hearing about what it’s messsge is within the context of the election has a profound impact on me just thinking about experiencing it live. In a broader scope, theatre is not just a creative outlet, it’s also a political platform, a place for societal commentary, and where people come together in times of need and struggle. Theatre has existed since the ancient Greeks and has always been for the people to express anger, pain, joy, and love. Theatre is a powerful art form that can change the world, something that is very needed right now.
Ragtime is one of those cultural icons whose themes unfortunately still has not died in today's america. This article articulates how ragtime is relevant today and the connections to the state of the world extremely well. But what I think is a unique connection to today's world and the 1920’s is that the people in power identified America as white and Ragtime articulates this theme beautifully. But with the dichotomy of watching individuals of color try and achieve the American dream. Shows us struggles that anyone could deeply identify with. It shows that the American dream and experience is not white. But multicultural. It tells the audience through ways of showing that everyone is doing what they can but until we see some real change in how we address these problems; they will continue to detract from our environment and communities as a whole. Ragtime also shows us that people are people and that we are limiting our potential experience by being afraid of people because they look different.
2 comments:
One thing that I love about theatre is how much staying power its messages can have. A novel written in 1975 and turned into a show in 1998 still has incredible commentary that applies now. This highlights the brilliance of the novel and the show that it can be applied to any era of significant change and still hold weight for the audience. While I haven’t seen a production of Ragtime, hearing about what it’s messsge is within the context of the election has a profound impact on me just thinking about experiencing it live. In a broader scope, theatre is not just a creative outlet, it’s also a political platform, a place for societal commentary, and where people come together in times of need and struggle. Theatre has existed since the ancient Greeks and has always been for the people to express anger, pain, joy, and love. Theatre is a powerful art form that can change the world, something that is very needed right now.
Ragtime is one of those cultural icons whose themes unfortunately still has not died in today's america. This article articulates how ragtime is relevant today and the connections to the state of the world extremely well. But what I think is a unique connection to today's world and the 1920’s is that the people in power identified America as white and Ragtime articulates this theme beautifully. But with the dichotomy of watching individuals of color try and achieve the American dream. Shows us struggles that anyone could deeply identify with. It shows that the American dream and experience is not white. But multicultural. It tells the audience through ways of showing that everyone is doing what they can but until we see some real change in how we address these problems; they will continue to detract from our environment and communities as a whole. Ragtime also shows us that people are people and that we are limiting our potential experience by being afraid of people because they look different.
Post a Comment