Photos: Julie Benko, Judy Kuhn And More in RAGS BENEFIT Concert

Classic Stage Company presented the first of two benefit concert performances of Rags, featuring a book by Joseph Stein, music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and revised book by David Thompson. See photos!

The complete cast of Rags features Jill Abramovitz as Anna Blumberg, Nicholas Barasch as Ben Levitowitz, Julie Benko as Rebecca Hershkowitz, Reece Boyle as David Hershkowitz, Rodd Cyrus as Sal Russo, Adam Heller as Jack Blumberg, Judy Kuhn as Rachel Brodsky, Michael McCorry Rose as Max Bronfman, Jenna Lea Rosen as Bella Cohen, and Steven Skybell as Avram Cohen, with ensemble members Erik Altemus, Daniel Beeman, Rebecca E. Covington, Sara Jean Ford, Andrew Kober, Madison Mosley, and Matthew Stocke.

Rags will have one more performance, this evening (September 29) at 7pm at CSC’s Lynn F. Angelson Theater. Rags is directed by Leigh Silverman, with music direction by Mary Mitchell Campbell, and casting by Alldaffer & Donadio Casting.

Step into the Lower East Side of New York in 1910, a time when America worried it was being overwhelmed by a flood of immigrants. Rags, in a revised version of the 1986 Broadway musical, follows the struggles and triumphs of Jewish immigrants striving for the American Dream. After fleeing Russian pogroms, Rebecca and her young son arrive at Ellis Island, entering a world of sweatshops, pushcarts, and the birth of both the American labor movement and American popular song. Featuring music by Charles Strouse (Annie), lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Wicked), a book by Joseph Stein (Fiddler on the Roof), and a revised book by David Thompson (The Scottsboro Boys), this legendary musical hasn’t been seen in New York in decades. Now, fresh off the heels of the sold-out, acclaimed revival of The Baker’s Wife, CSC reunites with Schwartz and Stein to bring this soaring epic back to the NY stage for two nights only!

Photo Credit: Allison Stock