On the afternoon of Wednesday, October 9th, 2024, I saw a performance of the John Kander and Fred Ebb musical "Cabaret" at the Kit Kat Club at the August Wilson Theatre in New York City. Before seeing this particular performance, I had never seen "Cabaret" on stage. I had only seen the movie, and that was several years ago. I had heard that this particular production lacked a lot of scenery. What I wasn't prepared for was how lavishly transformed the August Wilson Theatre was for this production. It was made to look like a permanent theatre-in-the-round configuration. I was seated in the mezzanine section, and it was only when I looked up that I noticed that our section was actually within the stage of the August Wilson's proscenium layout. When this production of "Cabaret" started to feel to immersive or unsettling, all I had to do was look up into the rafters. The transformation of the theatre, as well as the costume and scenic and costume design, were by Tom Scutt.
The current cast of "Cabaret" is phenomenal. At the performance I saw, it included Adam Lambert (Emcee), Auli'i Cravalho (Sally Bowles), Bebe Neuwirth (Fraulein Schneider), Calvin Leon Smith (Clifford Bradshaw), Steven Skybell (Herr Schultz), Henry Gottfried (Ernst Ludwig), Michelle Aravena (Fritzie/Kost), Kayla Jenerson (Frenchie), Chloé Nadon-Enriquez (Helga), Colin Cunliffe (Hans/Sailor #1/Gorilla), and Julian Ramos (Bobby/ Sailor #2). The cast list goes on and on, for it also includes those who were part of the pre-show entertainment. To be honest, I could have done without that part. That might be because I refused the shot of cherry schnapps everyone was offered upon entry. It seemed like the pre-show antics would have been more entertaining while inebriated. On the other hand, it was an interesting way to kill time before the show started.
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| Marquee of the Kit Kat Club at the August Wilson Theatre. I took this photo. |
"Cabaret" is about the rise of Naziism in Berlin during the 1930's told through performances at a cabaret club as well as through the relationships between the performers and the patrons. The Musical is based on the John Van Druten play "I am A Camera." Through watching clips of the Roundabout Theatre Production of the musical, I noticed the conclusion of that production was far more sinister. The conclusion of this production featured cut-up paper on the stage, and the cast dressed in gray suits while performing. I am not sure, but Naziism and generalized conformity may have been confused with one another during the developmental process of this production. The Emcee in the Roundabout Theatre Production ended up in a concentration camp. In this production, it wasn't too clear what the ending was about. I am not familiar with the intricacies of Druten's play, but maybe this revival of "Cabaret" stayed true to "I am a Camera."
While not all of the artistic choices of this production were easy to understand, this was still a great show, with great musical numbers. While I had never seen a stage production of "Cabaret" before this production, I was very familiar with the songs. It was neat to see how the scenes would lead into a particular musical number. My favorite musical numbers of the show remain "Wilkommem" and the title song. Though there are plenty of other songs in the show I've a newfound appreciation for.
While I loved Tom Scutt's transformative design of the Kit Kat Club, I have mixed feelings about the Emcee's costume. I think the costume made him look like a villain in a James Wan horror movie. Then again, the costume may have been true to the nightclub scene in 1929-1930's Berlin. There were other unique costumes in the show, but the Emcee's costume was probably the most remarkable. The next show I see appears to be "Titanique" with Kathryn (yay!). That is unless I win the ticket lottery for "Sunset Boulevard." I didn't expect to win the ticket lottery for "Cabaret." It was nearly impossible to win while Eddie Redmayne played the Emcee. Maybe I will be surprised and win the lottery for "Sunset." After all, to quote from "Cabaret," tomorrow belongs to me... OK, not really.
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