RAGTIME Returns To Broadway, Plays Neil Simon Theatre Beginning 10/23

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts recent all-new critically acclaimed production of Terrence McNally, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty's Tony Award® winning musical RAGTIME, based on the E.L. Doctorow novel featuring direction and choreography by Marcia Milgrom Dodge, will open on Broadway this fall.

RAGTIME will begin performances Friday, October 23 and officially open Sunday, November 15, 2009 at the Neil Simon Theatre (250 West 52 Street). Casting and ticketing information will be announced soon.

RAGTIME will be produced on Broadway by Kevin McCollum, Roy Furman, Roger Berlind, Max Cooper, Tom Kirdahy/Devlin Elliott, Jeffrey Sine, Scott Delman, Roy Miller, LAMS Productions, Inc., Wendy Federman, Emanuel Azenberg in association with The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

Marcia Milgrom Dodge's production debuted at the Kennedy Center's Eisenhower Theater on April 18 and played a sold out limited engagement through May 17, 2009. The award winning production team includes scenic design by Derek McLane, original costume design by Santo Loquasto, lighting design by Donald Holder, musical direction by James Moore and original orchestrations by William David Brohn.

Based on E.L. Doctorow's acclaimed epic novel, RAGTIME turns back the clock to the dawn of the 20th century - a time when anything was possible and ragtime music filled the air. New York City was the land of opportunity. A poor Jewish immigrant sells his "moving picture" books on the street. A wealthy Victorian couple welcomes a runaway into their home. A Harlem jazz pianist turns an issue of justice into a revolution. Their personal journeys come alive as historic figures offer guidance and diversion - among them escape artist Harry Houdini, auto tycoon Henry Ford, educator Booker T. Washington, and infamous entertainer Evelyn Nesbit. Together, their stories celebrate the struggle between tradition and independence all in pursuit of the American dream.

RAGTIME originally opened on Broadway on January 18, 1998 at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts. The musical garnered four Tony Awards® including Best Book, Original Score and Best Orchestrations. The beloved Ahrens and Flaherty score features some of the award winning team's best-known songs including the title song, "Make Them Hear You" and the anthem "The Wheels of a Dream."

Photo by Joan Marcus