NEW YORK CITY — The musical "Ragtime," directed by Lear deBessonet, is currently playing in a revival at the Beaumont Theater at Lincoln Center. The production has received 11 nominations for Tony Awards, including one for deBessonet.

Actors Brandon Uranowitz, Caissie Levy, and Joshua Henry star in the revival and are Tony Award nominees for their performances. Henry portrays Coalhouse Walker, a ragtime pianist. Levy plays Mother, a suburban matriarch, and Uranowitz plays Tateh, an immigrant from Eastern Europe. Uranowitz said, "There was just, like, a lot of change happening, and I think with any change comes conflict, and with conflict comes drama."

The musical is adapted from a novel by E.L. Doctorow. Playwright Terrence McNally wrote the book, and Lynn Ahrens wrote the lyrics, with Stephen Flaherty composing the music. Ahrens said, "It talks about the immigrant experience. It's very close to 'Ragtime' in theme in a weird way. It started preparing my heart to talk about those kinds of stories." The story is set around the year 1908, a time when J.P. Morgan built the Morgan Library in New York City.

The original Broadway production of "Ragtime" opened on January 18, 1998, at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts. That production won four Tony Awards and starred Brian Stokes Mitchell and Audra McDonald. The current revival has garnered positive critical reviews.

The song "Wheels of a Dream" is performed in the revival by Joshua Henry and Nichelle Lewis. Lewis plays the character Sarah. "We've worked together for so many years, and we've written so many shows. But this one, it's its third time on Broadway, and this one I think is the most emotional of all," she said. deBessonet said, "The show allows us to reconnect with our deepest feelings about the actual love that we have for this country, and how deeply we want it to achieve the promises that it set out to."