CABARET at the Kit Kat Club (2024) Opening Night Critics' Reviews- Page 7

[Impeach2017]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:38am

Green has slammed every Holocaust-themed show in recent memory.  Apparently, he feels that they have not properly nuanced the theme, or overly played the hand in a clumsy way.  There is also the attitude in America of wishing to kill the messenger and the message at this time.

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:44am

BJR said: "I think these points they make are stronger:

"But I think there’s something more artistically significant going on here. Frecknall’s vision, influenced more by continental theatrical trends, interprets the material quite clearly through a class lens – the rise of fascism is tied to the acquiescence of the middle classes (the company all don greige suits as the show comes to a close, desaturating the earlier extravagance).

Nazi Ernst Ludwig is only able to continue his hate-fuelled work because those like cash-strapped writer Cliff Bradshaw are willing to take on lucrative jobs without looking too closely at unpleasant realities. The interpretations of numbers like “I Don’t Care Much” and “Cabaret” act as central tenets to the overall vision. Class discourse, invariably, feels more pronounced in the UK than the US."

All very fair points."

Agreed. That was the best part of the article, and a much more interesting and insightful critique than the usual "People just can't see past the Mendes version" accusation that's usually thrown around in defense of this production.

[Kad]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:49am

A production with an average ticket price of $231 and whose marketing involves doing things like hosting parties for Anna Wintour is certainly saying something about class.

[Kad]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:51am

Impeach2017 said: "Greenhas slammed every Holocaust-themed show in recent memory. Apparently, he feels that they have not properly nuanced the theme, or overly played the hand in a clumsy way. There is also the attitude in America of wishing to kill the messenger and the message at this time."

Huh? He lavished praise on Leopoldstadt and his review of Prayer for the French Republic was mixed but hardly a slam.

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 11:51 AM

[CreatureKitchen]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:54am

BJR said: "sinister teashop said: "Owen22 said: "A London theatre website tries to make sense of it all:

https://www.whatsonstage.com/news/what-is-going-on-with-the-cabaret-reviews_1594068/"

"But I think there’s something more artistically significant going on here. Frecknall’s vision, influenced more by continental theatrical trends, interprets the material quite clearly through a class lens – the rise of fascism is tied to the acquiescence of the middle classes (the company all don greige suits as the show comes to a close, desaturating the earlier extravagance).”

I do think this is a really interesting point, but I don’t totally agree with it. I think the way this production deals with class is actually somewhat confused. Perhaps the Emcee, as the ringmaster and potentially part-owner of the club, would be solidly middle class. But the fact they lean so hard into Sally being a second-rate performer and how visibly queer much of the ensemble is makes the club feel quite underground and seedy. I can’t imagine that many of performers at this club are well-off, and they seem like a bunch of societal outcasts.

Thus, having them all end up in conformist, fascist-y suits doesn’t track for me. Yes, some closeted, ”respectable” queer people did conform and sublimate themselves to the Nazis. But visibly queer, gender non-conforming, non-white (etc. etc.) individuals did not have the luxury to blend in and became victims. Whether it intends to or not, this production seems to suggest that all these people could and DID assimilate. It also, as a result, places a fair amount of blame on them. To me, this muddles the message of the production.

 

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:57am

Kad said: "A production with an average ticket price of $231 and whose marketing involves doing things like hosting parties for Anna Wintour is certainly saying something about class."

I was reading it as an acknowledgement that Brits and Americans view class differently, which may be one reason the audiences are reacting differently to the same production that's saying the same thing. 

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 11:57 AM

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 11:59am

Owen22 said: "It is also weird that Adam Feldman does not seem to understand the concept of color blindcasting..."

But is it colorblind? I think every actor who has played Cliff in Frecknall's production has been an actor of color. It feels like color-intentional casting. 

[yahyahyah]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:08pm

double post

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 12:08 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:11pm

MemorableUserName said: "Kad said: "A production with an average ticket price of $231 and whose marketing involves doing things like hosting parties for Anna Wintour is certainly saying something about class."

I was reading it as an acknowledgement that Brits and Americans view class differently, which may be one reason the audiences are reacting differently to the same production that's saying the same thing. "

That may be true- and the writer of that piece doesn’t really go much into depth- but complacency, denial, and self-interest  of average people are what Cabaret is explicitly about. It’s not even subtext. 

[KarenValentine'sheadband]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:13pm

Not surprised at all.

[yahyahyah]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:16pm

SonofRobbieJ said: "Owen22 said: "It is also weird that Adam Feldman does not seem to understand the concept of color blindcasting..."

But is it colorblind? I think every actor who has played Cliff in Frecknall's production has been an actor of color. It feels like color-intentional casting."

They only saw actors of color for Cliff. It is an intentional choice by the director. All the Cliffs in London have been actors of color as well. 

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:19pm

Impeach2017 said: "Green has slammed every Holocaust-themed show in recent memory. Apparently, he feels that they have not properly nuanced the theme, or overly played the hand in a clumsy way. There is also the attitude in America of wishing to kill the messenger and the message at this time."

This is disconnected from reality, in every respect. But the Green part is particularly and demonstrably false. 

[MrsSallyAdams]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:24pm

It sounds like there's some audience confusion as to how "literally" to take the Emcee and Kit Kat Chorus. Hal Prince saw them as metaphors. Bob Fosse as sex workers and pimps. Sam Mendes as queer artists who were victimized. This production seems to be going back to the "metaphor for Berlin." If a chorus person dresses flamboyantly in act one and then conservatively in act two, it's not saying Fritzi the showgirl suddenly embraced fascism on her day off.

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 12:24 PM

[verywellthensigh]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:35pm

PipingHotPiccolo said: "Owen22 said: "It is also weird that Adam Feldman does not seem to understand the concept of color blindcasting..."

"he doesnt get it" is a convenient way to brush off criticism you dont actually want to engage with.

colorblind casting is great but gets tricky, and downright silly, when you have subject matter that centers on race, and you address racial issues, but then ask the audience to ignore the racial makeup of the people playing some (but not all) parts. Suffs is exceedingly guilty of this, as was the West Side Story revival."

I'm somewhat inclined to agree.  A lot of casting like this seems to come from "I don't see color" self-admiration.  Historical accuracy sometimes matters.  "Oh, but the actor's race deepens the meanings of the character!" directors tell themselves.  Not always, no. 

[yyys]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 12:57pm

Yep, including understudies.

SonofRobbieJ said: "Owen22 said: "It is also weird that Adam Feldman does not seem to understand the concept of color blindcasting..."

But is it colorblind? I think every actor who has played Cliff in Frecknall's production has been an actor of color. It feels like color-intentional casting."

 

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 1:06pm

MrsSallyAdams said: "It sounds like there's some audience confusion as to how "literally" to take the Emcee and Kit Kat Chorus. Hal Prince saw them as metaphors. Bob Fosse as sex workers and pimps. Sam Mendes as queer artists who were victimized. This production seems to be going back to the "metaphor for Berlin." If a chorus person dresses flamboyantly in act one and then conservatively in act two, it's not saying Fritzi the showgirl suddenly embraced fascism on her day off."

Agreed. I saw them very metaphorically. It's not that the specific dancers have joined the Nazis, it's that Berlin itself has had it's color and character drained by them. 

[CreatureKitchen]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 1:08pm

MrsSallyAdams said: "It sounds like there's some audience confusion as to how "literally" to take the Emcee and Kit Kat Chorus. Hal Prince saw them as metaphors. Bob Fosse as sex workers and pimps. Sam Mendes as queer artists who were victimized. This production seems to be going back to the "metaphor for Berlin." If a chorus person dresses flamboyantly in act one and then conservatively in act two, it's not saying Fritzi the showgirl suddenly embraced fascism on her day off."

 

Intellectually I understand that, but emotionally it didn’t hit me quite right. I think it’s that the transition in what the club performers represent happens so abruptly in this revival. We spend nearly the whole show with them as these extremely counter-culture queer performers, and suddenly they’re Aryan poster children. It’s supposed to feel like a gut punch, but to me it just feels disconnected. Not to beat the dead horse of comparing this to the Mendes production, but the transition between “degenerate” artist to concentration camp victim just reads much clearer to me.

 

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 1:09pm

The critics saw right through the smoke and mirrors of this production. It's trying to be "cool and edgy". It is neither. I'm glad Neuwirth and Skybell escaped the mess unscathed. 

Auf Wiedersehen, Cabaret. 

This show needs a serious rest. 

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 1:19pm

The Heart of Rock and Roll getting better reviews than Cabaret will be hilarious.

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 01:19 PM

[Jay Lerner-Z]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 1:55pm

What class is Sally Bowles?

Obviously struggling financially in Berlin, but she sounds as if she was raised with wealth. A Kensington/Chelsea/Belgravia accent is the usual, like Natasha Richardson or Jessie Buckley. I assume Gayle does the same?

Why does she need to be “posh”? I think it’s important, because if she was an Eliza Doolittle type working class woman, she would have been beaten down by the upper society and not been able to flit off to Germany to start with. Her privileged upbringing has shaped her personality. Perhaps she had been cut off from family funds because of her non-conservative nature.
 

Updated On: 4/22/24 at 01:55 PM

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:05pm

Sally Bowles is based out of Jean Ross, who Charles Isherwood met when he moved to Berlin. Jean was educated and you'll find her upbringing details on wikipedia. 

From reading all the reviews, most mention that the doors open 75 minutes before curtain. Does that mean these actors and ushers at the Kit Kat Club all get overtime? If so, I can see how this production weekly nut would be quite high.

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:18pm

Believe the bad reviews. This is easily the worst production of CABARET I have ever seen. The pre-show is a joke. Why are they playing modern trance music in a club that is supposed to be in 1930 Berlin? Zero chemistry between Sally and Cliff. Eddie is ridiculously over the top. The spinning in the round stage is fun for about 5 minutes until you realize this is the only trick they have. And am I crazy, but aren’t we supposed to find out that Sally had an abortion BEFORE she screeches the title song and not after? So we know why she is so unhinged while singing it? And speaking of unhinged, if you saw the footage from the London actress singing Cabaret, apparently Gayle decided that was not crazy enough and she would add another hundred doses of crazy to it. It’s all just awful, overhyped nonsense. 

[Kad]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:23pm

Wick3 said: "Sally Bowles is based out of Jean Ross, who Charles Isherwood met when he moved to Berlin. Jean was educated and you'll find her upbringing details on wikipedia.

From reading all the reviews, most mention that the doors open 75 minutes before curtain. Does that mean these actors and ushers at the Kit Kat Club all get overtime? If so, I can see how this production weekly nut would be quite high."

The pre-show is a different set of performers who aren’t part of the actual Cabaret cast, so I don’t think it any performers are going overtime, but I could be wrong. 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:23pm

Echoing the question of if American critics are going to have similar differing opinions on “Sunset Boulevard”. That’s a production that I enjoyed some elements of (the cast, mainly) but just NEVER got the insane hype it’s received everywhere. 

[broadway86]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:23pm

Matt Rogers said: "And am I crazy, but aren’t we supposed to find out that Sally had an abortion BEFORE she screeches thetitle song and not after? So we know why she is so unhinged while singing it?"

I saw the production in London, and I agree with all of your points, but this is inaccurate. That scene has always been placed after the title song.

Your other criticisms are 100% valid though.