Fourteen years is quite a while to wait for a show to open in your hometown, but that's how long it's been since I saw the original Broadway run of Ragtime. At the time, the Lynn Ahrens-Stephen Flaherty musicalization of E.L. Doctorow's panoramic novel seemed an ideal fit for Zachary Scott Theatre Center Artistic Director Dave Steakley and his regular crew of show-stopping African-American and Anglo musical theatre performers. Not such a good fit, though, for Zach's Kleberg Stage, which would have been hard pressed to accommodate the show's expansive cast and technical demands. But this fall, Zach opens a new theatre, the Topfer, with seating for 420, an orchestra pit, and a stage – named in memory of longtime Zach diva Karen Kuykendall – big enough for a cast of 50 and a Model T. Steakley felt Ragtime was the perfect show for showing off the new venue, and we couldn't agree more. – Robert Faires