2008 Woodie Awards
Production of Cabaret lights up Marist stage
John Norton
Issue date: 2/22/07 Section: News
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Entering the Nelly Goletti Theatre this past weekend, for the Marist Theatre production of Kander and Ebb's Cabaret, which ran Feb. 15 to Feb. 18, was an interesting experience right from the start. All one needed to do was glance at the program to see that it was very different than any other show the theatre department has produced. First and foremost, it was being directed by Peter Westerhoff, a visiting professor from Oklahoma State University and at his reins was a somewhat different cast than one often sees in shows here. Produced by Professor Matt Andrews, one of the mainstays of Marist's theatre program, the nearly sold-out house eagerly anticipated what they were to see on the other side of that curtain. What they got was an entertaining, albeit long performance, with a fascinating and very diverse cast. However, the production as a whole could not seem to shake giving off the impression that something was missing and ended up coming off as generally, a little underwhelming.
Cabaret tells the story of the Kit Kat Klub, a seedy Berlin nightclub set in 1929-1930 as the rise of the Third Reich becomes a vivid reality. The club is occupied by its main attraction, the Kit Kat Girls, the flamboyant Emcee who serves as their Master of Ceremonies, and English singer Sally Bowles. Arriving on the scene is Clifford Bradshaw, an American writer looking for some material for a novel he is writing. What he finds is a dream-like world in the club and Berlin as a whole; as he and Bowles begin to develop a relationship with one another and the winds of change begin to fiercely blow around them and the people they care about, both politically and socially. So much so that it soon becomes clear that this care-free world one is greeted with upon entering the club is becoming nothing more than an artificial smile from someone struggling to ignore the world around them.
As the Cabaret sign lit up and the drums kicked into action, the show began as the Emcee, Kurtis McManus, came through the stage-left curtain to begin Willkommen, the show's first number. What was immediately noticeable was something that soon became clear was a common theme throughout the show. Westerhoff seemed to take more than a nod from the most recent Broadway revival. Right down to the very manner in which the Emcee made his appearance, with his index finger inviting the audience in, all the way to how he was dressed. He wore a black leather trench coat that, once removed, revealed multiple sets of white suspenders, intermingled with long black shorts, the exact outfit the Emcee wore on Broadway. This replication was a very unfortunate theme that bore its head more than a few other times throughout the show. Although it is true that Cabaret has been revived professionally many times, with each incarnation being very different from the other, that it is important to make clear which version is being done, there is a very fine line between keeping to a certain area of design and being unoriginal. This production unfortunately seemed to favor the latter.
Cabaret tells the story of the Kit Kat Klub, a seedy Berlin nightclub set in 1929-1930 as the rise of the Third Reich becomes a vivid reality. The club is occupied by its main attraction, the Kit Kat Girls, the flamboyant Emcee who serves as their Master of Ceremonies, and English singer Sally Bowles. Arriving on the scene is Clifford Bradshaw, an American writer looking for some material for a novel he is writing. What he finds is a dream-like world in the club and Berlin as a whole; as he and Bowles begin to develop a relationship with one another and the winds of change begin to fiercely blow around them and the people they care about, both politically and socially. So much so that it soon becomes clear that this care-free world one is greeted with upon entering the club is becoming nothing more than an artificial smile from someone struggling to ignore the world around them.
As the Cabaret sign lit up and the drums kicked into action, the show began as the Emcee, Kurtis McManus, came through the stage-left curtain to begin Willkommen, the show's first number. What was immediately noticeable was something that soon became clear was a common theme throughout the show. Westerhoff seemed to take more than a nod from the most recent Broadway revival. Right down to the very manner in which the Emcee made his appearance, with his index finger inviting the audience in, all the way to how he was dressed. He wore a black leather trench coat that, once removed, revealed multiple sets of white suspenders, intermingled with long black shorts, the exact outfit the Emcee wore on Broadway. This replication was a very unfortunate theme that bore its head more than a few other times throughout the show. Although it is true that Cabaret has been revived professionally many times, with each incarnation being very different from the other, that it is important to make clear which version is being done, there is a very fine line between keeping to a certain area of design and being unoriginal. This production unfortunately seemed to favor the latter.
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