Racial and class tensions, strikes and revolution, music, technology, love, loss and pure gossipy scandal are the components for the moving turn-of-the-20th century tale 'Ragtime' being offered by the Gilbert & Sullivan Society at this year's Bermuda Festival.

The closing show definitely sweeps the six weeks of cultural treats to rousing end.

With the musical, Gilbert & Sullivan has hit all the rights notes for success: the singing is excellent, the costumes are wonderful, the action is fast-paced and the main actors consistently impressive.

Based on E.L. Doctorow's 1975 novel of the same name, 'Ragtime' tells the intermeshing stories of three very different families in 1906 — the prosperous white family of New Rochelle; the struggling black family of musician Coalhouse Walker, his love Sarah and newborn son; and that of Latvian immigrant Tateh and his daughter. Woven into the action are real historical characters — firebrands of their time without a doubt — such as Booker T. Washington, Harry Houdini, Emma Goldman, Henry Ford and JP Morgan and the showgirl Evelyn Nesbit, more infamously known as the "Girl in the Swing".

The entire company is swept into the opening number to introduce the audience to these separate yet connected groups and the inevitable tensions that will grow between them and rip some of them apart. The cast is smartly clad in period costumes complete with elaborate hats which infuse a sense of the optimism of the time.

The sets of 'Ragtime' have been kept to a minimum, probably in no small part due to this opening number and the need to use the entire cast in a well choreographed symphony of bodies staking their claims in the new century. Given the small confines of the City Hall stage, this was aptly pulled of by the company with the guidance of choreographer Barbara Frith and stage manager David Curl.

The show uses narrative from the character central to the scene to drive the action forward and expound on the happenings between musical numbers. The plot is complicated and those not familiar will the novel or the history of the time might struggle to follow some of the action.

With the conflicting musical styles of the opening numbers helping to delineate the social groupings, the audience meets the nameless New Rochelle clan — explorer Father, kind-hearted Mother, Little Boy and wayward Younger Brother — singing of their happy lives where there "were no Negroes, there were no immigrants". There can be little doubt tension will follow.

Meanwhile Coalhouse Walker and Sarah are in a Harlem musical hall where the musician delights patrons with his trademark sound — ragtime jazz. The Coalhouse character is said to be loosely based on Scott Joplin. Joplin said of the ragtime, that it should be "played slowly till you catch the swing". And swing this performance does!

Standout performances from Marvin Ford and Khalilah Smith as Coalhouse and Sarah give this production its dramatic heart. Coalhouse's booming and smooth voice is delightfully complimented by Sarah's sweet tones and their tragic love story brought tears to this review's eyes.

Tateh and his little girl arrive in America filled with hope for a better life, but Tateh soon learns that life in the tenements and working for a pittance in slum factories is the grim reality in what they believed was the land of opportunity. Anarchist Emma Goldman enters the action meeting Tateh as she encourages the workers to strike against the appalling conditions and rages against capitalism.

After Father sets out on another adventure, Mother soon finds herself in a quandary when she discovers a newborn, black baby buried in the family's garden, the baby is unearthed alive and Police bring in a bedraggled-looking Sarah saying she is responsible.

Faced with the prospect of jail for Sarah and an orphanage for the newborn, Mother offers to take both into their home. She wonders aloud about what drives a woman to such an act and how much she really knows about the lives of her household staff in 'What Kind of Woman'. Jenn Osmond does a fantastic job humanizing Mother's character with her clear, soothing voice which makes her latter narrative journey more believable.

When Coalhouse learns of Sarah's location, he sets off to win back his love in my favourite number of the production, the bouncing, jiggling, swinging 'Getting Ready Rag'. Preparations to woo include the proud purchase of a Model T from Henry Ford himself and the donning of a colourful suit, but when he arrives, he finds Sarah refuses to see him.

Little Boy, however, who possesses an eerie clairvoyance — seen in prophetic warnings to Houdini that he should "warn the Duke" (referring to the Archduke of Yugoslavia whose murder was one of the catalysts for the start of the First World War) — and also an youthful brashness, quickly introduces Coalhouse to his newborn son. In his first performance, 11-year-old ginger haired Daniel Maguire perfectly captures Little Boy and displays a stage presence and professionalism which belie his age.

Infused with a desire to shore Infused with a desire to shore up his family, Coalhouse returns to the Family's house Sunday after Sunday, playing ragtime on their piano and winning the trust of Mother and Younger Brother and even some begrudging interest from Grandfather. Finally Sarah relents and reunites with Coalhouse. The family sets off on a picnic to hopefully plan their new life. But their joy is short-lived as redneck firemen have other plans for them. They harass Coalhouse with racial slurs, refuse to let him pass and destroy his treasured Model T. Coalhouse and supporters approach Police and authority after authority to no avail in their search for 'Justice'. Coalhouse's once joyous character slowly starts to be driven to rage. He calls off the wedding until Willie Conklin, the racist firemen's leader apologises and the Model T is restores. Tragically, Sarah attempts to help by pleading his case to the President at a rally, but is mistaken as a threat and beaten to death by Policemen as the story turns increasingly dark. Act 1 closes with the powerful hymn 'Till We Reach that Day' as Sarah is mourned. In the meantime, Little Brother has turned radical after having been spurned by the showgirl Evelyn Nesbit, falling in with Emma Goldman, and Tateh finds himself ever struggling to feed and care for his daughter. He leaves the factory and tries to make do selling silhouette portraits, which will eventually lead to a turning of his fortune as he creates a moving pictures book for his daughter which inspires him into the movie business. Off-Broadway and television veteran Burton Mazzone plays Tateh's manner measured to great effect. A chance meeting with Mother leads the Little Boy to predict they will soon all know each other very well. As Act 2 progresses, Coalhouse's rage grows. He forms a band of armed vigilantes which is joined by Little Brother and begins terrorising New Rochelle, killing firemen and demanding that Willie Conklin be handed over to them. Booker T. Washington tries to reason with Coalhouse, spreading his message of tolerance and non-violence. He sways Coalhouse with an argument on what his violent actions have already done to his young son. It's too late for Coalhouse, however, while his gang and Young Brother make their escape, Coalhouse is shot down.While Coalhouse and Sarah come to tragic ends, the show wraps up with a little epilogue for the other characters Mother for example, waits a year after Father's death on the Lusitania before marrying Tateh now reincarnated as a "Baron" and movie director in Hollywood where the pair raise Little Boy, Little Girl and the baby Coalhouse. The fates of Ford, Morgan, Goldman are also revealed and well as that Little Brother heads south to join Zapata and Mexico's peasant revolution.G&S 'Ragtime' is a bold and ambitious rendering of this musical, which first hit Broadway in 1998 and went on to win Tony awards for Best Book (by Terrence McNally) and Best Score (music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Aherns). Director Vivienne Elborne has scaled down the production for Bermuda, removing a seven of the musical numbers but worry not, 'Ragtime' is packed with enough marches, gospel and ragtime numbers to satisfy and the eliminations have probably resulted in a much more digestible running time.The entire cast, orchestra and crew are to be commended on what was a near flawless opening night performance last Friday night. Gilbert & Sullivan can chalk up another festival triumph.[AT]EDITRULE:[AT]bodyfrank: 'Ragtime' runs nightly through Saturday at City Hall with an 8 p.m. start. Performances are sold out every night but Wednesday, for which there were three tickets left at press time.