Cabaret

A little recap about getting to Cabaret.

We get off the bus at 1:35. The show starts at 2. The theater is 27 blocks from where the bus dropped us off. We get to the theater with about 5 minutes to spare. Thankfully they didn’t start exactly at 2.

The seating area was set up like a cabaret! It was very neat. We were in the back bar area. Essentially the last row. We had bar seats which means we had more room to stretch out. That was really nice after the long bus ride. Also the extra room meant it was easier to recover from our sprint up to the theater.

There were small lamps at each of the tables and there were lamps along the bar in front of us. When they were performing in the cabaret this lights would light up. When they were not at the cabaret they would slowly dim out. It was such a cool effect and a great way to delineate the cabaret from the other sets.

Here’s a little from the USA Today review:

But even if you saw it last time, you are strongly advised — no, urged — to return. The reasons to do so include both a familiar face in the cast and a few new ones. Alan Cumming, whose indelibly naughty, biting performance redefined the role of the Klub’s Emcee, revisits the character with renewed senses of mischief and urgency that will leave you riveted, from the moment he introduces a deliciously bawdy Willkommen to his final, chilling adieu.

The Scottish Cumming is joined by two of today’s finest American stage actors, Linda Emond and Danny Burstein, who lend fresh insights to the key parts of Fraulein Schneider, a down-on-her-luck spinster running a boarding house where Sally briefly holes up, and Herr Schultz, the Jewish fruit vendor who wishes to marry her. Their doomed romance is more than a subplot; it underlines the horrors that lurk in Germany as Hitler takes his first steps toward assuming power.

The start of the second act Cumming picked two people out of the audience to dance with. One woman and one man. With the man he said well you’ve done this before. The implication was dancing with another man. It was funny the audience laughed and so did the guy.

Another interesting thing was the band:

Played by a 19-piece brass-heavy band whose members double as Kit Kat performers, the superlative score -- there’s not a weak number in the show -- has rarely sounded better. Credit goes to Patrick Vaccariello’s music direction and Michael Gibson’s punchy orchestrations. Just hearing the entr’acte instrumental of “Cabaret” performed with such verve by the disreputable-looking bunch, crammed into designer Brill’s crooked frame, is a joy.

The end of the show is very symbolic. Cumming appears on stage in a large trench coat. One that Hitler could have worn. The other members of the cast are far upstage. You can't see there faces because there is bright light coming from behind them. Cumming then takes off the coat revealing a concentration camp uniform with the Jewish Star of David and the pink triangle noting what he was in the camp for. Essentially everyone in the show would have died in the camp except for Cliff who went back to America. It is a very sad reminder of what was about to happen.

This is Evan D. Siegel he plays Rudy and is part of the band where he plays alto and tenor sax

Danny Burstein who plays Herr Schultz

Alan Cumming as the Emcee

Bill Heck is Cliff Bradshaw

Michelle Williams plays Sally Bowles