Based on E.L Doctorow’s award-winning book, “Ragtime,” the musical, has once again captivated us with its timeless intrigue. Playing from Jan. 28 to Feb. 22 at the Miracle Theater in Coral Gables, this musical portrays the powerful tale of the lives of an upper-class Caucasian family, an African American couple and European immigrants in the early 20th century. I had the pleasure of speaking with Sarah Nicole Batts, who plays the role of Sarah. Here’s what Batts had to say about this award-winning musical and her career.
What is “Ragtime” about?
“From the perspective of my character, Sarah is a young lady who lives in Harlem, New York, and she falls in love with Coalhouse Walker Jr., who’s basically the main character of the musical. It’s the time of the century when the Harlem Renaissance and ragtime music were all black people in America had. Coalhouse and Sarah end up together, and they have a baby, but Coalhouse is a bit of a rolling stone. He’s into his music and his women, so they break up. He finds her again, and he actually settles down and decides that he wants to dedicate his life to making a better life for his child, the American dream. That’s where all the conflict comes in because he’s a black man, and there are race problems and class problems. There are basically three sets of people; there are the upper-class white people, in New Rochelle, there are the immigrants who’ve come from Ellis Island, and then there are the black people in Harlem who are basically starting new lives after being slaves for years. It’s a really cool story. It’s actually very similar to the kind of things that are going on now.”
Have you learned a lot about race relations playing the role of Sarah?
“Yes and no. My heritage is not American. I was born in Jamaica, so it’s a little bit of different histories, West Indian History and American history. But the root similarities are very much the same. I don’t have ancestors who were a part of the Harlem Renaissance. I grew up here, so I know about it, and I know what it did for this country. So it’s a little bit yes and no. I’m a black woman in America right now, so I’m pretty aware of the racial tensions that around us. But it’s not like I can say this story could have word for word happened to someone in my family. It could have, but it would have been in Jamaica. It hasn’t made me more aware. I was already aware, but it’s made me more passionate about bringing all of these issues to the forefront of people’s minds.”
Are you able to relate with your character?
“Definitely. I have not had a child, so I can’t relate that way. But I do have a goddaughter and a little brother, so I know what it is to love someone like that. I’ve definitely been in love, so her relationship with Coalhouse, I definitely get. Her character is a little hard to swallow. She buries her child alive, but when you realize why she did it and are aware of all of the things that were going on during the time that she was living, you begin to have empathy for her, not really understand her, but you can say ‘OK, that must have been really tough for a single black mom in the 1900s. You don’t have any money. You’re a washer woman. You probably thought the child would be better off dead.’”
How long have you been singing and performing?
“All my life. I started singing in a children’s choir when I was maybe 8 or 9, then I went to a magnet middle school, New World High School and a conservatory for undergrad. I got my undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, so I’ve been singing for a while.”
Does anyone in your family sing?
“My grandmother used to sing. Her actual profession is nursing, so she didn’t really do it as a profession. But my family is pretty musical; my brother has a degree in percussion, and my dad used to play in a well-known band in Jamaica. My mom is the only one who is not very musical.”
How do you train your voice to sing for so long during performances?
“I guess it’s just as you grow and train your [voice] muscle because the voice is a muscle. So as you train it over time, it adapts to gain the stamina that it needs to be able to sustain a musical or opera or whatever. You have to take care of it and warm it up, just as you would if you were a ballet dancer.”
Do you ever get nervous performing? If so, what do you do to calm yourself down?
“Definitely. I haven’t really found anything that works. You just kind of know that that’s what happens. Once you get on the stage, it goes away. It’s a part of the job, at least for me. I know some people who don’t get nervous, but I have awful nerves.”
What else would you like people to know about your character?
“I would like people to know that Sarah could be anyone of the people in the audience. She doesn’t have the best of luck in the show, but the things that happen to her could happen to anyone. Also, I think she’s a pretty resilient character; except for her relationship with Coalhouse, she’s pretty tough.”
Photo Credits: George Schiavone
