The Night That Goldman Spoke At Union Square/Gliding

Emma Goldman is a much less major character in the musical than she is in the novel. In fact, her entire story is practically condensed into a single song, "The Night That Goldman Spoke At Union Square." In this song, we have Emma talking about Lawrence, affecting Tateh and his Little Girl, as well as her interaction with Younger Brother. 

Evelyn and Emma don't have the same interaction that they have in the novel. It's only slightly hinted at with the line Emma sings towards Younger Brother, "Masturbates for a vaudeville tart, what a waste of a fiery heart, dear!" In the subsequent lines, we have everything that Emma stands for and everything that she says to people, from Evelyn to Younger Brother to crowds at different meetings. 

"Poor young bourgeois! There are things that you've never thought. Come to Emma and you'll be taught, here...People feathered and tarred, my friend. Unions broken, and why for? Children laboring, women still enslaved! Leave your little backyard, my friend. There are causes to die for!"

Emma, as well as some of her friends, refer to Younger Brother as "bourgeois" when he comes to one of her meetings, and Emma gives him words of inspiration. The line "people feathered and tarred, my friend," refers to Ben Reitman's story in one quick measure, and the line "women still enslaved" condenses Emma's whole argument about marriage being bondage into three little words. Lots of things from the novel are alluded to in this song, but never fully fleshed out.

This bridge in the song quickly leads to Younger Brother being inspired, which leads to his later involvement with Coalhouse, and Emma seeing something in him with the line, "I've been waiting for you," which probably alludes to the line in the novel, "Goldman said, 'He reminded me of Czolgosz.'" Chapters about Emma Goldman are condensed into this song, and she becomes less of a character in her own right, but more of a symbol and the catalyst for Younger Brother's later actions.

From Union Square, we move to Lawrence where Tateh is sending his Little Girl off on the train so she can live in safety, avoiding the strike. However, a riot breaks out, and as Tateh curses America, we hear the Little Girl screaming at him, "Tateh, Tateh!" just as she does in the novel. As the music escalates, in time with the train gaining speed, Tateh runs after the train, jumps, and manages to catch on to the railing, which he uses to pull himself over onto the platform with his Little Girl. The Little Girl is crying, and Tateh consoles her with his flip book, the later "movie book" that he created.

As the Little Girl "glides" in the silhouette book, she and Tateh "glide" on and on, from train to train, getting as far away from the pain and trouble as they can. This is interesting, especially considering the part of the song where Tateh sings about his wife, something he very rarely does in musical and novel. The line, "When I am afraid, I imagine your mother. She skates just ahead! Can you see her? She's here!" seems very contrary to the Tateh I know in both media. Tateh is supposed to never speak of his wife, she is dead to him, and yet here he is singing about her in a positive light. Tateh uses his wife as a way to make his Little Girl feel better, and seems to suggest that he still yearns for her, seeing as how she "skates just ahead." It's interesting to note that as Tateh and his Little Girl are "gliding" away from the past, with a vow that they'll "never look back" they are "gliding" towards Tateh's wife. I've never quite known what to make of this part of the song, and still really have no idea. 

Instead of Tateh going off and selling his "movie book" to the Franklin Novelty Company, which actually gives the item its name, for twenty-five dollars, Tateh is inspired to sell his creation to the train conducter conductor, who shows interest in it, and he sells it for only one dollar (later two dollars) with a name that he comes up with on the spot. This way, it almost seems like Tateh eases his way into capitilism capitalism almost by accident, whereas in the novel, it's very clear that he's purposefully abandoning socialism. The whole reason for his change is because Tateh cares so deeply for his daughter and wants only the best for her. It's why he is called "Tateh." He is a father, his main purpose in life is to be a father to his Little Girl. She is at the front of his mind when he moves into capitalist society, because he knows that that is the only way they can truly survive and succeed, which has been Tateh's goal all along (there's a song that the novel doesn't cover called "Success" which details Tateh and his Little Girl first coming to America. Tateh's initial hopes and dreams of success, and their fall into poverty on the Lower East Side). They must move on from socialism, and "glide" into capitalism. With this change in idealism, purely for the sake of his daughter, Tateh vows to "never look back", that is to never return to what he and his Little Girl once were: poor, socialist immigrants. And with that, a couple notes from the song "A Shetl Iz Amereke", the song Tateh and his Little Girl sang about how America is their home when they first immigrated, play, enforcing the idea that their days as poor immigrants are done.

Crime of the Century

Evelyn Nesbit. Evelyn Nesbit. Coming from the musical, I never would have expected to like her in the novel, or to even feel sympathy for her. But I do. It's strange since because of the musical background I had towards Ragtime, I assumed that Evelyn Nesbit would be just like her stage counterpart:flighty, and only interested in fortune and fame. Instead, I came across a young, vulnerable woman, who had been taken advantage by not only the men in her life, but all the men of America. Evelyn Nesbit was a sex symbol, a picture in profile asking an "eternal question" and nothing more. Men gaped at her beauty. The press savored her testimonies in court. Evelyn no longer was herself, instead she had become this ideal, this trademark beauty, ruined by lust and madness. I never saw this in the musical, and the song "Crime of the Century" obviously shows why.

The entire song is a farce. It takes place as a vaudeville number, complete with dancing girls and yes, Evelyn Nesbit on a velvet swing. You can tell right away the difference in tone and character the musical takes by hearing Evelyn's "Wheee!" It's silly, airy, and of little to no substance. The entire song is! It tells the story of Evelyn Nesbit, Stanford White, and Harry K. Thaw(and also shows Younger Brother's care for Evelyn but in a much cleaner fashion), but in such a way that it doesn't seem serious at all. This was a murder, people! Not a vaudeville number! But that's what the musical makes it out to be, and that's how the musical Evelyn acts. Look at some of the things she sings, "Harry's in trouble and Stanny's in Heaven and Evelyn is in vaudeville/gets publicity!" Does this remind you at all of the woman touched by Tateh and his Little Girl? No, I didn't think so. This Evelyn would never venture near the tenements on the Lower East Side, nor would she associate with Emma Goldman. All the Evelyn in the musical "Ragtime" cares about is publicity, fortune, and fame, and she relishes every waking moment of it.

Evelyn in the novel does not seem to enjoy her participation in the trial at all. Perhaps it's just the detached narration, but I get the feeling that Evelyn does not wish for the fame the trial is bringing her at all. If anything, she wants to get away from Harry and their relationship and all. Testifying for him in court is definitely not getting her away from him. I just, I really feel like Evelyn in the novel is a much more sympathetic character, mainly because her situation is not presented in a farcical vaudeville number, but instead in plain narration (detached or not) that makes Evelyn not a symbol for the press, but instead a woman. A young woman affected by circumstance, but who still cares and indeed cares for things above and beyond fortune and fame. In the novel, we see a woman who can, and in fact does, love. I don't see that in the musical Evelyn. Maybe that's the main difference between the two. Love. Compassion.

I see two completely different Evelyns here, the novel one and the musical one, and who can say which one is more accurate? The actual historical Evelyn Nesbit probably falls somewhere in between the two! But we may never know. We have Evelyn on the swing, and Evelyn with Emma Goldman, and these two Evelyns are so different from each other, and yet they are still the same person.

Creative interpretation is a wonderful phenomenon.

What Kind of Woman

(Apologies for the ending of the video. The last note leads directly into the next song.)

"What Kind of Woman" is the song Mother sings when she finds the newborn child in her garden. The musical takes the passages from the novel, and expands them, giving us more of an insight into Mother's thoughts during the whole ordeal. Indeed, in some ways the musical seems to tie up loose ends, finish sentences, and give explanations for certain actions that aren't quite explained or followed through in the novel.

In the novel, we have the line "She felt keenly her husband's absence and condemned herself for so readily endorsing his travels." However, in the musical, there are several lines expanded on this feeling that Mother has. She sings, "Why in God's name is my husband not here? I'm such a fool! Why did I say he was free to go, what am I to do, where are you instructions my dear?' It's a glimpse into Mother and Father's relationship, seeing that he leaves her lists on how to take care of the house while she's gone, a fact I don't recall in the novel.

The line from the novel, "every morning these washwomen came up the hill from the trolley lie on North Avenue and fanned into the houses," is, in a sense, finished in the song.  The line in the novel is a description, whereas in the musical, Mother finishes the thought by saying, "I never stopped to think they might have lives beyond our lives." It shows how her opinion of the situation changes. At first, she can't believe that a woman could do such a thing, but then again, Mother realizes, she has no idea what other women do besides lend themselves to making her life and her family's lives better.

Now, we get the arrival of Sarah. The conversation between Mother and the policemen is almost identical to the one in the book. The only real difference is that we are told that the woman's name is Sarah right off the bat, and there's more concern over the baby.

Once Sarah has been taken care of, Mother stops to think again, this time about herself. She can't believe that she had "carried into the house a sense of misfortune, of chaos," and imagines what her husband would have done if he had been the one to deal with Sarah instead of Mother. But that still leaves Mother wondering, "What kind of woman would that have made me?"

Ragtime: From Page to Stage

"Ragtime" is one of my favorite musicals ever, so when I learned I was going to be reading the novel Ragtime, which the show is based on, I became ecstatic. I love going back to the original, seeing how the playwrights and lyricists incorporated things from the musical's origin into the musical. Like the "Angry Dance" in "Billy Elliot" or placing a Time Dragon above the stage for "Wicked." A couple years ago, when I played Oliver in a CUTC performance of "Oliver," I read Oliver Twist, and compared the novel I was reading to the play I was performing. I think that's exactly what I'm going to do with Ragtime here on this blog. Every time I find a part of the book that I know relates to a corresponding song in "Ragtime," I will post the song and discuss how it is the same, different, or a mixture of both to the book; kind of a comparison. I will be seeing how it is that someone was able to take words on a page and make them sing on a stage. One thing to note in advance about the musical is that time passes differently than in the novel. Events occur at the same time, instead of being years apart. In some cases, time pass in several seconds during a song. In a sense, the musical floats outside of time.

To start with, we have the opening number. Here's a video of part of the opening being performed on the Tony Awards by the original Broadway cast, and yes that is a young Lea Michele playing Tateh's daughter. I will also include a video of the entire song, just so you can get the full effect and you can be introduced into every single character, even some who haven't appeared in the book yet! (I keep reading, waiting for them to appear, anticipating their entrance.)

To begin with, the show starts off the same way the novel does, "In 1902 Father built a house at the crest of the Broadview avenue hill in New Rochelle, New York...and it seemed for some years thereafter that all their days would be warm and fair," only the show has the Little Boy, who is given the name Edgar, introduce us to the world of "Ragtime."

We're then introduced to the, well, "white" chorus; the middle class inhabitants of New Rochelle singing about how easy life is. In the full song, we're introduced to all the specific characters. We have Father speaking about his fireworks factory and how he is "something of an amateur explorer." You'll notice that these descriptions of the characters are less racy than they are in the book. Mother's description of herself is very light, very simple, and Younger Brother hardly mentions Evelyn!

Grandfather just cracks me up. "He was thoroughly irritated by everything."

Throughout the song, we have great allusions to the novel, from taking complete sentences to phrases, such as the mention of "ladies with parasols, fellows with tennis balls," and the line "there were gazebos and there were no Negroes." The actual line from the novel comes later.

And as soon as the Negroes are alluded to, they appear on the stage with a passion and a fire that you don't see in the stiff middle-class people of New Rochelle dressed all in white. Right away, we're introduced to Coalhouse Walker Jr., and to Sarah. Their relationship is much more prominent and explored in the musical. Here's where the line, "There were no Negroes [and] there were no immigrants" comes in, and with it, the immigrants.

Now, what's interesting to note is that Tateh's wife does not appear in the musical at all. Later in the show, Tateh asks his daughter what to tell people if they ask where her mother is. She is to respond, "Dead." In the book, it goes into an explanation concerning what Tateh's wife has to do to survive and make money in America, but the musical never touches on that. She is dead before Tateh and his Little Girl even reach the shores of America.

These following introductions aren't shown in the video from the Tony Awards, however you can see the characters standing around the stage, and I will point them out. Now here comes Houdini! Complete with his own theme, "Harry Houdini, master escapist, master of getting free!" With his appearance, we have an allusion to the moment where Houdini runs into the family, and especially the Little Boy. The Little Boy and Houdini have more of a connected relationship in the musical. After all, it is the Little Boy who tells Houdini to "warn the Duke."

Now the line, "Certain men make a country great. They can't help it," and the reference to the "American pyramid" and how J.P Morgan and Henry Ford were "like Pharoahs reincarnate," makes much more sense to me. It's a very clever nudge at J.P. Morgan and Henry Ford's belief in reincarnation. I had never caught that before. And of course, once you have great men like these introduced, who else could come next but the "radical anarchist Emma Goldman." Her role in the musical is smaller than it is in the novel. From one great woman to the next, we're then introduced to Evelyn Nesbit. Now, Evelyn Nesbit is a very different character in the musical. She's much flightier, much more self-centered. Everything is about her. The whole trial is like a vaudeville show for her. In the musical, she loves it because it gives her publicity. I just see two completely different Evelyns here. But I'll go more into that later, when I post Evelyn's song, "Crime of the Century."

Ok. One of my favorite moments ever. "Her husband the eccentric millionare Harry K. Thaw....WAS A VIOLENT MAN!!!!" Followed by one of my favorite lines in the entire show, that I was happy to see in the novel, "And though the newspapers called the shooting the Crime of the Century, Goldman knew it was only 1906, and there were ninety-four years to go!"

Now, it's at this point in the video of the performance that the three separate groups, the whites, the Negroes, and the immigrants all come together. They're interspersed among one another, dancing and singing to the joyous tune of their time. But you can see, it doesn't last for very long. Once they notice where they are and who they're by, everyone quickly scurries about, trying to get back to their own group. I love the moment at 2:31 in the performance video where Mother, Tateh and his Little Girl, and Coalhouse Walker all meet, with the Little Boy just sitting there watching. You can see how they are all going to end up meeting and interacting, though at the beginning it's a frightening, and almost wrong, notion. Very interesting. As each person is led back to their respective groups, we have an excellent moment in choreography where the groups walk around the stage together as one, glaring at the other two groups, and recoiling when they run into one another. And the Little Boy just sits and watches it, taking it all in. (In some ways, the musical is about how the story of "Ragtime" impacts the Little Boy.) It's really wonderful and very well done. Really sets the scene of how "Ragtime" begins.

At 3:19 in the performance video, you can see J.P. Morgan standing between Evelyn Nesbit and Booker T. Washington, and then at 3:24 you can plainly see Emma Goldman, and I believe she's standing by Henry Ford, but I'm not quite sure. It's interesting to see the physical descriptions come to life. I especially like the way J.P. Morgan and Emma Goldman are costumed. I think it fits both their personalities, characters, and descriptions very well.

This ending is just gorgeous and brilliantly sets up for the rest of the show. I mean, it is a prologue, after all. It is supposed to introduce the show, and I think it does an excellent job of getting across the novel's main points as well right from the start. You have introductions of everybody, the three different groups, the main characters meeting, but not quite interacting, and dramatic and foreboding lyrics like, "It was the music of something beginning, an era exploding, a century spinning! In riches and rags and in rythem and rhyme, the people called it ragtime," set to dramatic music that builds. Now this is an important line to keep in mind, because it will follow us throughout the play, and especially to Coalhouse Walker.

I honestly don't think there could be a better introduction to the show. It's just done so beautifully, and I love seeing all the connections back towards the novel. I mean, what a way to start out. I've had this song running through my head as we've been reading, and especially when I first started the book. I could just hear the Little Boy speaking, "In 1902 Father built a house..." I'm hoping through my blog I'll be able to share with you the music I'm hearing behind the literature, and all the wonderful and interesting things and feelings I learn and feel from it.

This is "Ragtime," from page to stage.