History's Heartstrings in Ragtime at ZAO

Lizz Reeves Fidler
photo courtesy Zao Theatre

by Jennifer Haaland

Aside from an unforgettable score, the musical Ragtime currently at Zao Theatre depicts American history with a brilliance few dramas can boast. Rather than flesh out historical celebrities, Ragtime becomes a heart-string history with uncanny emotional strains by rendering unnoticed stories of the nameless people affected by history. Playing Mother in Apache Junction's production, Liz Reeves Fidler is a leading voice in that historical melody.

"The old adage of people who forget history are doomed to repeat it? I think especially right now, it's important to say, 'Okay.  You know what?  This happened. We need to remember.  We don't want it to happen again," Reeves Fidler said about the devastation and change that 'regular' Americans needed to reckon at the turn of the 20th century. "I don't think many people realize how current, how important this show is.  We're still dealing with immigration today, we're still dealing with racism, we're still dealing with relationships, how people basically tear each other down." 

Set in the decade surrounding 1902 New York and Atlantic City,  Ragtime runs concurrent stories of a widowed immigrant's family, a black American ragtime musician's family and Mother's wealthy, genteel family.  Famous 'minor characters' like Henry Ford, Emma Goldman, Booker T Washington and J.P. Morgan figure into their stories, too. The three families blend with one another in unlikely and emotional ways as memorable number after number unfold the plot.

"Mother goes through a lot of changes, while Father seems stuck in the previous century," said Reeves Fidler, thinking about her character's privileged societal seat. "Mother is very progressive.  She's learning that life isn't as rosy as she thought it was. Trying to balance her levels of emotion over the years without it affecting me personally, is quite a challenge. You know, he is off gallivanting and she's stuck at home with his lists.  She's running his business.  She's running the household. AND she's dealing with Sarah and the baby." 

Reeves Fidler, who has been on Valley stages, both professional and community since 2001, noted how unusual her character's strength is for the time period. She discussed how her show family's life intersects with the immigrant widower and the ragtime musician, despite her husband's disagreement.

"My common ground with Mother, I believe, is women's rights. You know, equal pay for equal jobs, equal voice... Of course,  in those times that didn't exist, but Mother is fighting for it.  She stands up to Father and tells him things he doesn't want to hear," Reeves Fidler said. "It's amazing to me that she dares say those things.  In that aspect, she is like me.  I believe those things need to be said and there needs to be common respect in a marriage.  And I don't think he respects her.  I think he thinks of her as property."  

For those who have, or will have after Zao's production, the timeless numbers tucked in their hearts, Reeves Fidler got down to specifics about a couple of the show's truest moments.  It's impossible to hear this rendition of 'Til We Reach that Day' without goose bumps. She described how, as a funeral number it "says so much about injustice" and is "probably one the most poignant" scenes. 

Her progressive character, though bound by convention to honor her marriage, "realizes her relationship with Father is no more" during 'New Music' when "she sings the lyric, 'breaking my heart, opening the door."

The wonder of Ragtime is that for every heart broken, multitudes more are opened, including the people's in the house seats.  The Zao cast, as the song goes, makes "them hear you." Open and listening-- through the stories of real, average humans--history has locked onto their heart strings.

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which runs through November 11th