Cabaret

The 1966 musical Cabaret tells the story of American writer Clifford Bradshaw during his stay in early 1930s Berlin. Cliff is introduced to the Kit Kat Klub, the sexy cabaret club, where he meets Sally Bowles. The two navigate their complicated relationship as the political climate of Germany changes around them. With moments of spectacle in the Kit Kat Klub musical numbers, Cabaret finds itself somewhere between riveting night at the cabaret and a political expose on the rise of the Third Reich. The musical is based on John Van Druten’s play I Am a Camera, which is an adaptation of Christopher Isherwood’s 1939 novel Goodbye to Berlin. With music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb respectively (Chicago, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Curtains), and book by Joe Masteroff (She Loves Me), the musical was a huge success, winning eight Tony Awards for the original Broadway production. There was a successful film adaptation in 1972 starring Liza Minnelli, many tours, and two Broadway revivals. 

 

In this production of Cabaret, my hope is to bring out the history of the story and to highlight the inherent queerness of the musical. I will encourage the cast, production team, and audience members alike to look past the spectacle and various stars that have studded the casts of the musical over the years. With the roots of the story in author Christopher Isherwood’s real experiences in Berlin at this time, witnessing the drastic changes in the government, there is real, important history to pay attention to in this musical. In addition, Isherwood is an important queer figure in the world of literature, and I hope to bring out the queerness in Cabaret that was initially purposefully removed. I also hope to steer Cabaret away from its past of villainizing sexual deviancy and embracing freedom of gender expression and sexuality. Can we truly keep history from repeating itself? And how can we focus on highlighting the queerness of the narrative and feature unique opportunities for queer performers?