Review: 'Rags' at Goodspeed Musicals

“Meet an Italian” Sean MacLaughlin as Sal with Christian Michael Camporin and Mitch Greenberg (seated), Samantha Massell and Adam Heller in Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10. Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

East Haddam, CT - I had seen a snippet of the musical ‘Rags’ at the 2016 Connecticut High School Musical Theater Awards gala; I remember being impressed with the scene presented by the students from St. Paul Catholic. At the time I wrote “The pieces of St. Paul Catholic's 'Rags' made me wish I could have seen the full production of this seldom produced musical.” My wish was granted to a degree when I attended the press opening of Goodspeed Musicals completely reworked version of ‘Rags’

‘Rags’ is the 1986 musical that closed on Broadway after only four performances and 18 previews. Despite that track record, it earned a good deal of attention during the awards season, even receiving a Tony Award nomination for Best Musical. In 1991, a studio recording of the score was released, and the show has since been reworked two times.

“In the beginning, there’s always the story.” - Joseph Stein

This current production is the work of writer David Thompson, who was asked by Goodspeed’s Executive Director Michael Gennaro to rework the countless drafts of Joseph Stein’s libretto. In fact, lyricist Stephen Schwartz made it a condition that Goodspeed could produce the show only if they really pulled it apart and re-visited everything. Mr. Thompson, who wrote ‘Prince of Broadway’ and ‘Steel Pier,’ would collaborate posthumously with one of his heroes, for Mr. Stein had passed away in 2010. The brand new book by Mr. Thompson is colored with several new songs with lyrics by the one and only Mr. Schwartz (‘Wicked,’ ‘Pippin’ and ‘Godspell’) and music by Charles Strouse (‘Bye Bye Birdie’ and ‘Annie.’) This brand book is an extensive revisal of the musical that I longed to see, with a new plot and new characters.

Mr. Thompson shares the desire of the original librettist to write a story about the Jewish immigrant experience in the early part of the last century. He writes about how he believes that in the years since the initial treatment, the story has become even more important and more needed, in light of the recent headlines about the experience of immigrant families. He wisely chose to focus on the powerful theme of cultural assimilation, a conflict that is at the core of Mr. Stein’s ‘Fiddler on the Roof.’ The writer also chose to reduce the size of this story, focusing on a single “melting pot” family living in a tenement on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. He tells the story of the lives they lead, the dreams they attempt to pursue and the contribution that they made to their new homeland of America.

Rob Ruggiero directed this new adaptation of ‘Rags,’ his tenth production at the Opera House because he felt it was an opportunity for extraordinary collaboration in this re-examination of the piece. He reports that songs have been repurposed or cut, lyrics have been changed, new scenes written. The bold refocusing of the story is now centered on the character “Rebecca’s journey as she struggles to build a new life in America.” She is now “a strong woman with aspiration, courage and a great capacity to dream.”

Goodspeed Musicals’ Rags, with Nathan Salstone, Emily Zacharias, Samantha Massell and Sara Kapner, now playing at The Goodspeed through December 10. Photo Credit © Photo by Diane Sobolewski

This new and intimate story of Rebecca seemed to fit the show like a custom-made frock. The young widow, a talented seamstress, and her young son are fresh from Ellis Island and live in a “sweatshop” tenement apartment where the resident workers do garment piecework for a pittance. Set designer Michael Schweikardt constructed an apartment that rotates with a gentle glide and truly becomes a minor character in the plot. The clothes designed by the fabulous Linda Cho could not be more period and religiously appropriate and some also become important to the fabric of this story. Beautiful projections by Luke Hegel-Cantarella were of museum quality and reminded us of those many immigrants and John Lasiter was up to the challenge of lighting it all. Choreography by Parker Esse were in synch with the glorious orchestrations by Dan DeLange.

There was a single sheet inserted into press night programs with a synopsis of scenes and list of musical numbers that proved that some of the numbers had been changed since the program went to print. I could confirm that there are several new songs, many that were eliminated from the original, and much rearranging. I thought that the first act closer, the title song, might have been stronger. Distracting for me was the recurring musical pattern of the three chords for the lyrics “One small girl” in the song of the same name from the musical ‘Once on This Island,’ but I was probably the only one that noticed. My favorite pieces were the beautifully religious “Shabbos/Latin Mass,” for I am a sucker for church music, and “Children of the Wind.”

Samantha Massell, who recently played Hodel in the Broadway revival of ‘Fiddler,’ was luminous in the role of the plucky Rebecca Hershkowitz; she sang well and captured the strength of this determined immigrant. Her young son David was brought to life by Connecticut native Christian Michael Camporin, who was in the original Broadway production of the glorious ‘Finding Neverland’ and played Eric in ‘Matilda.’ The Italian Sal Russo was played with conviction by Sean MacLaughlin and the teenaged Bella Cohen was well-played by Sara Kapner.

Bella’s father Avram was brought to life by Adam Heller, who was Tevye in the glorious 2014 production of ‘Fiddler’ at Goodspeed. Mr. Heller’s Tevye was so memorable that I couldn’t help but make some connections to the beloved story of the milkman in Anatevka. In fact, Mr. Thompson notes that the original incarnation of ‘Rags’ was a screenplay that explored what might have happened to the Jewish families that had come to America from Anatevka, not necessarily Tevya and his daughters, but others whose lives were uprooted by the Russian pogroms.

Mitch Greenberg (‘Fiddler’ and ‘It Had to Be You’ on Broadway) played Jack Blumberg and Anna Blumberg was played by Emily Zacharias. Lori Wilner, who I remembered as Golde in Goodspeed’s ‘Fiddler,’ was endearing as the seasoned Rachel Brodsky. Ms. Wilner also had the great role of Grandma Tzeitel on Broadway. David Harris performed the role of Max Bronfman and Ben Levitowitz played by Carnegie Mellon graduate Nathan Salstone.

The members of the quintet that appear at various points of the action included JD Day, Ellie Fishman, Danny Lindgren, Sarah Solie, and Jeff Williams. I appreciated that these five got to enter and exit through the audience and perform in front of the pit and in the balcony, as we got to hear their glorious singing voices and see their turn of the century costumes up close. Wig and hair design by Mark Adam Rampmeyer was flawless.

I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was witnessing a rebirth of a musical that just might go further than Connecticut. I wondered if this was how the patrons who had the good fortune to catch “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder’ at Hartford Stage must have felt. On the rainy press night, Stephen Schwartz was dropped off at the entrance, entered the lobby immediately before I did, and sat in the audience on opposite side of the theater. Needless to say, that fact was the lead on my Facebook page. ‘Rags’ continues at Goodspeed Musicals through December 10.

Nancy Sasso Janis has been writing theatre reviews since 2012 as a way to support local theatre venues and she posts reviews of well over 100 productions each year. In 2016, she became a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle. She continues to contribute theatre news, previews, and audition notices to local Patch sites. Reviews of all levels of theatrical productions are posted on Naugatuck Patch and the Patch sites closest to the venue. Follow the reviewer on her Facebook pages Nancy Sasso Janis: Theatre Reviewer and Connecticut Theater Previews and on Twitter @nancysjanis417