Ragtime

He's been up, and he's been down. And though now might seem like one of those down times, that's not the way Garth Drabinsky sees it. For nearly a decade, the 48-year-old Toronto theatrical producer has been chairman and chief executive officer of Livent Inc., the only publicly owned theater-producing company in North America, and one whose prestigious Broadway productions include "Ragtime," which opens its national tour at Washington's National Theatre on...

In the early years of the 20th century, a new style of music bubbled up in America - an optimistic, syncopated music created by African-American pianists and known as ragtime. Looking back to that period, a novel by E.L. Doctorow showed how the beliefs and attitudes of America's Anglo-Saxon society were being challenged by the growing influence of minority groups. Doctorow named his book Ragtime. A musical version of Ragtime is the current attraction at Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia.

NEW YORK - For weeks before a new Broadway production of "Ragtime" began previews, Christopher Cox and Sarah Rosenthal kept coming up with creative excuses to sneak a peek inside the Neil Simon Theatre in Manhattan. Even though Chris and Sarah are child actors in the show, they weren't allowed inside the building while the set was being constructed. But quite often, the backstage door was left open, and Chris could catch glimpses of boxes of props and lighting equipment being hauled inside.

The musical "Ragtime" has been called a pageant and a tapestry, and it is both these things. But it is also something at once smaller and more grand.It is a show about family -- and all the struggles, joys, sacrifices, rewards and heartbreaks a family entails.Based on E.L. Doctorow's 1975 novel, this majestic, sweeping musical (book by Terrence McNally, score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens) is launching its tour at Washington's National Theatre.In the grand metaphorical sense, "Ragtime" is about the family that is America, a family that is often divisive, even dysfunctional, but ultimately an amalgam of the best qualities of its disparate members.

"It was the music Of something beginning, An era exploding, A century spinning" -- Lyric from the title song of "Ragtime" The musical "Ragtime" may take place at the turn of the 20th century, but at the turn of the 21st it offers a glimpse of our own lives on stage. "Ragtime" -- which opens at the Mechanic Theatre Tuesday -- not only boasts a powerful score, plot, characters and staging, it is a rare, transcendent example of a Broadway musical whose underlying themes are equally powerful.

He was known to the world as Eubie Blake, the ragtime pianist and composer who was the son of former slaves and went from playing in East Baltimore bawdy houses and saloons to the footlights of Broadway.He was the co-author of "Shuffle Along," the first black musical comedy to be performed on the Great White Way in 1921.Born James Hubert Blake in 1883, the son of a stevedore and a laundress, he was reared in a house at 319 Forrest St.He was 6 years old when he wandered away from his mother on South Broadway and stepped into a music shop, where he became fascinated with a pump organ.

Although the musical "Ragtime" starts out as the story of three families, it is ultimately the story of one vast family - the family that is America. This epic subject is captured in soaring melodies and characterizations in the musical adaptation of E.L. Doctorow's 1975 novel. True, the scenically lean touring production at the Mechanic Theatre at times veers toward oratorio. But the gripping performances of several key members of the large, accomplished cast and the intricately crafted script - adapted by Terrence McNally - keep the action involving.

When the lights come up on the current production of Ragtime at Toby's Dinner Theatre in Columbia, the boy playing the part of Edgar stands on a platform high above the set, illuminated by a spotlight, and delivers the first lines of the show. That role and the part of the little immigrant girl offer two substantial opportunities for four local pre-teen actors to match their stage and singing skills with seasoned professionals. The children, who are paid for their work, divide the performances, each doing four shows a week.

Period concert -- Musica Antiqua of Maryland will perform its annual concert at 2 p.m. today at Liriodendron Mansion, 502 W. Gordon St., Bel Air. The concert will feature performers in period costumes using period instruments to play light classics, show tunes, ragtime, Irving Berlin, traditional Irish and Scottish music, and a Yo-Yo Ma piece, Gabriel's Oboe. Free. 410-529-0791.

The last line of an article on the Tony Awards was inadvertently omitted in yesterday's Arts & Society section. The final paragraph should have read:Twenty years from now, when your neighborhood dinner theater, community theater or high school stages "Ragtime," it will still be a great musical. But when -- or if -- they stage "The Lion King," it will still be a cartoon.The Sun regrets the errors.Pub Date: 6/08/98