Brandon Uranowitz has Unfinished Business With RAGTIME

Ragtime has such a special place in the hearts of so many, but for Brandon Uranowitz, it runs deep. He appeared in the pre-Broadway Toronto production of the musical but didn’t continue with the show on its way to New York, so he has some unfinished business. 

This October, New York City Center will revive the seminal musical, just in time for Election Day. With an incredible score by Ahrens and Flaherty, Ragtime is sure to be a not-to-be-missed performance this fall. 

I recently caught up with Uranowitz to chat all things City Center, reuniting with Caissie Levy, and revisiting Falsettos. 

Our conversation has been edited for clarity and length. 

Theatrely: So I know you have a special history with Ragtime. Tell me all about it.

Uranowitz: I worked a little bit as a kid, and Ragtime was sort of my first big show. I did it up in Toronto with all of the OGs, you know: Stokes and Audra and Peter and Marin. It was amazing. And I really thought I was going to go to Broadway with it, which was a big deal for a kid. I grew up outside of New York City, so I grew up going to see Broadway shows whenever my parents could afford it and it was obviously a dream of mine. You know, I think any time a show is being transferred that the stakes are just very high for producers and they can get easily spooked. I had just turned 11 and my skin was kind of tan. They were bleaching my hair and my eyebrows every two weeks, to make me look WASP-y and in a show about cultural groups within the country, two of which are WASPs and Jewish immigrants, I think producers got a bit spooked that a my last name was Uranowitz and I hadn't changed it. They were trying really hard to change my appearance, and almost un-Jew me a little bit, if you will. Eventually they did not offer me the role on Broadway, they offered me the understudy. I think my parents, with a little bit of ego, but also protection of me, declined the offer which was very devastating for me. It was an incredible show to be a part of and I just wanted to keep doing it. I could have done it forever. So now I just sort of feel like I have unfinished business with it — in a role that feels very much more suited to who I am.

When you were performing it as a child, could you tell that this was a special piece?

Totally. You know, there were things about it that I obviously didn't really fully grasp with certain nuances and historical figures that I didn't fully understand the importance of. But just based on the epic nature of it and the way that the company felt about the show you could feel this collective purpose with the show that even as an 11 year old, I sort of could connect with and pick up on. I probably couldn't describe it in detail as a child, why it felt important; but it did feel monumental in a sense. I'll never forget seeing the show the first time, they had fireworks on that stage. I just remember feeling like it was an event. But beyond that, I think just like politically and culturally, it felt like a watershed event.

Speaking of your unfinished business, was the goal to always return to the show? How did this production come into your life?

Dignity aside, I had no idea that this was happening. I had no idea it was programmed at City Center. I have always wanted to return to the show. Tateh has always been on my list of roles that I need to play before I die. And as I was getting off the subway I got a text message from my agent. I can't remember what it said, but they had sent me an offer from City Center for Tateh and I opened the email and my knees kind of buckled, which is really a crazy thing to say, but I had to squat on the sidewalk because it just came completely out of the blue. I would have played the role anywhere in any situation because I feel so strongly about the show and my desire as an actor to step into that role. Like I would do it in a black box with, you know, a pared down orchestra. But the fact that it was City Center and I knew that it was going to be a massive orchestra and a big, realized ensemble, I just couldn't believe it. And I think I was also just excited for the opportunity to heal this wound.

I think, on some level, that has followed me since I was a kid. I didn't realize until sort of recently, I mean, I'm very privileged to say that this was like a traumatic experience for me because there's so many worse traumatic things to happen to a child, but I do I acknowledge that a lot of my anxieties and paranoia that have followed me through my career and in this business as an adult are like deep, are very much rooted in that experience. I think a big part of me has wanted to come back to the show to sort of shut that, you know, to heal after all these years. I'm just very excited to be able to do that.

Speaking of this past year, you've already done two productions on very quick timelines with Titanic and Tick…Tick…Boom!, both were fantastic. What excites you about these short rehearsal processes?

You know, it's so funny. I always get such anxiety right before we start. During the rehearsal period I feel like I'm going to die, it is so crazy. But I will say there's also something to be said for not having a chance to overthink things. To this day, my experiences at City Center and Encores! have been some of the most gratifying creative experiences that I've had. And I think it's because you just have to trust the process. And there's no time to not trust it. This is a process that sort of embraces that. And I think it just makes for a really exciting sort of electric theater because you haven't really had time to finesse every little thing and there's like a messiness to it, even if it looks clean and sparkly.

Ragtime is one of those pieces in the canon that everyone just loves. Do you feel pressure knowing you are about to put on a show that is so beloved by so many?

Yeah, of course. Of course there is. But what's great about City Center and specifically with Ragtime, is the material is so solid. It is just such, to me, it's a flawless show. And I think that coupled with the understanding that it's City Center and there is now a universal knowing about the process. Yeah, the pressure is there, obviously, but I also think that that helps with the process.

What do you hope that young audience members take away when they come and see this revival?

So I've actually been thinking a lot about this, especially because the election is happening the second week of our run. I think right now, understandably and justifiably, the division in our country has sort of bred a lot of cynicism and there's a lot of hopelessness and I understand why Gen Z feels that way. The systems in place in this country are not sustainable and do not include everybody. But my hope with Ragtime and the journey it takes its audience on is that it will somehow revitalize this hope for democracy. I hope audiences will be galvanized to fight for this thing rather than being cynical about its failures.

I want to take a moment and circle back to Leopoldstadt for a minute. When you reflect back on your Tony win, however often that is, what comes to mind when you think about that night? 

I mean, you know, again. This sort of comes back to how I felt about Ragtime as a kid and the thing that I picked up on. Leopoldstadt was like the most purposeful I've ever felt as an actor. My hope any time I do anything is that when I step up on stage and we do a performance that it changes someone in some way, it helps someone in some way, it heals someone in some way. I felt that during Falsettos, too. I just feel really incredibly lucky that I was able to be a part of that, especially as a Jewish actor with Holocaust survivors in my family and immigrants in my family from that part of the world. And just hearing the audience's response every night, talking to people outside the stage door and how much it affected them. I think the Tony win was just validation for the purpose that I felt as an actor.

I often struggle with the moments in my life when I'm not really working. It's something that I'm constantly trying to navigate and figure out how I can feel that sense of purpose when I'm not part of something. And that whole experience culminating in the Tony win is always something I come back to when I'm feeling lost or without purpose because it was in that moment that I was like: no matter how hard it gets, no matter how bleak it feels, you are meant to be doing this. This is something that you should continue to do. And so I always sort of come back to that.

So in the spirit of revisiting past roles, I wonder if you could revisit a different role in any of your previous shows. Is there any role that you would be interested in tackling at some point in your career?

I would love to play Marvin in Falsettos. That was such an interesting experience for me as a gay actor playing the straight guy in a show about gay relationships and queer families. I still get messages and mail and things from young queer kids about how much that show impacts them and continues to affect them. And I would love to step into a role that is a little more aligned with who I am, not that Mendel wasn't. I mean, I had such a blast playing that part and I loved it so much. But I would love to, especially now that I'm a little bit older, sort of sink my teeth into Marvin at some point.

In typical City Center fashion, the company of Ragtime is pretty crazy great. Have you spoken to any of your cast members?

Caissie is like my family. After I got the offer, I think she was like one of the first people I texted being like, call your agents now. I didn't know if there were other offers out, but I told her we had to do it together. But yeah I've touched base with everyone, I can't wait to get started.

What’s one show you can’t wait to see this fall here in New York?

Simple. Gypsy! 

Ragtime begins performances October 30, 2024 at New York City Center. For tickets and more information, visit here. 

Theatrely’s 2024 Fall Preview is sponsored by The Broadway Cruise 3, setting sail to Cozumel, Mexico this March. To learn more, visit here.