←Recommendations of The Sugar Ridge Rag

A refreshing take on family, military service, and identity that doesn't rely on trauma or toxicity to make it's point that existing as an other of any sort (queer, conscientious objector, or otherwise) is an uphill battle. Williams shows that even with a full family's support, there is a greater societal adjustment that clashes with internal beliefs in traditions, despite the love you may have for someone. It's such a thrill to watch this family hit ideological walls in their belief systems and grapple with them in intimate and surprising ways. So glad this is getting the production it deserves!

Just read Sugar Ridge Rag. I really liked how Philip handled such a complex and very personal story with grace, deft charm, and eloquence--and a good dose of humor. A lot of writers would have included a lot of sturm und drang between the brothers, or between Pete and his parents. But to his credit, he didn't. You could feel the love all the characters had for each other, and that's damn hard to do. It should play well in production.

Ohhhhh my! You think you know the story...you don't. You think you can anticipate the characters...you won't. You think you can put it down half way through...but don't even think about it. The Sugar Ridge Rag by Philip Middleton Williams is a moving, heartfelt snap shot in to a by-gone era. It was a time of war, a time of preconceived notions a time to remember and Philip takes you there and lands you softly. You think you can predict how the story ends...but you won't. It's a story you DON'T want to end...

Touching, engaging - this play reaches deep, and drags us into the world of these twins, so alike and so different - syncopated, like the Ragtime music than runs through the play as a theme. This is a beautifully written play - with the added bonus of several monologues that would serve well for audition pieces.

For me, a good play is one you can see, even when reading it. From the first few pages I could see the Granger's and the events in their lives unfold. I found all four characters very relatable from the back and forth between brothers to the disagreements between the older and younger generation. The bond I felt to the characters continued through the piece as you see more of their life events unfold. You go through a spectrum of emotions and by the end you know you've experienced a wonderful, sad, funny, complex and brilliantly entertaining play!

I grew up near Bowling Green. A different one, one in Kentucky, but as someone in love with music and with a twin of my own (only, she was born 1.5 years too early), does the different time and place matter, or can this still qualify as a show somehow... written about me? I don't know. Maybe it's because of that, or maybe it's because of the gorgeous writing and dynamic characters, or maybe the hard hitting monologues, but all I can really say in my recommendation here is... Music paints time. This play is music.

What is unique is this piece is that it is not a Vietnam era tragedy in which the father is a bellicose, authoritarian bigot or the mother a homophobic shrew. They are accepting, if not immediately, then easily. Their love of their children is more important than societal pressure or their own generational impulses. No, the conflict is between the brothers and their separation. This play is a picture of how this war, which tore apart a nation, failed to tear apart one family, which is an uplifting tale to hear, and I highly recommend it.

A lovely, poignant piece that manages to intricately explore the unique relationship of twin brothers as well as larger themes of war and anti-war moral and ethical beliefs, small-town life, and identity. It examines all of these things with equal and impressive nuance and clarity. I also appreciated that Williams eschews fireworks and melodrama and trauma connected to sexuality and LGBTQ identity and simply (and effortlessly) integrates it into the fabric of this family's existence.

Simultaneously sweeping and intimate, Williams' play dives deep into the bonds of siblings, parents, and children. He examines these often complicated and messy relationships and has created a story that shines a piercing light on the individual Granger family while also making it feel universal and about all families.

The act of making history come alive is an art in and of itself. Williams possess the rare skill of reincarnating history (and a decisive time period at that) and drop his audience into the moral heart of the conflict. In addition to that wonderfulness, Williams skillfully illustrates the interpersonal and how any war can simultaneously both fracture and strengthen the bonds of family. This play is absolutely and contoured both the spirits of Tennessee Williams and Arthur Miller while managing to be a truly unique and independent piece of art.