Cabaret question
Cabaret question
#1Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 3:18pm
I've never seen Cabaret, but I just heard about a production of it near where I live that wants to use a female emcee.
Could this work?
I've listejed to the cd a million times, and I guess they could make the music work but plotline wise?
Thanks
#1re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 3:23pmWhen I did Cabaret in 1982, we had a female Emcee. The only change we had to make was that in "If You Could See Him," the gender of the gorilla was (obviously) changed and the "Two Ladies" were drag queens.
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#2re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 3:55pmI think having a female in the Emcee role strips the show of masculinity. Let's face it Cliff is a girly-man and Herr Schultz has no masculinity.
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joanna2
Featured Actor Joined: 5/2/06
TheatreDiva90016
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/10/04
#4re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 5:47pm
Eww.
That changes the whole dynamics of the script. And I don't know if you are allowed to do that, under copyright laws.
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Kringas
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/27/05
#5re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 5:48pmThere doesn't even seem to be a good reason for doing it, as Cabaret is a pretty female-heavy show.
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Emcee4ever
Leading Actor Joined: 7/27/05
#6re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 6:13pmUnless you're a girl (like me) and wanna be the Emcee (like me).
#7re: Cabaret question
Posted: 12/14/06 at 8:28pm
A female Emcee was done as far back as the 1970 Vienna production, presumably with the permission of the authors. There was a commercially issued recording that has also been issued on CD.
I don't think there's any need to change any lyrics. It would be perfectly fine to play the character as a Dietrich-like character, a woman in male drag "acting" a man. Of course, I don't mean literally Dietrich-like. You know what I mean.
And as far as I can tell, that's how it was done in Vienna, with a "female" gorilla.
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