How 'CABARET' should be performed within the show's context

[Musicaldudepeter]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 5:38am

I recently saw a community theater production of 'Cabaret,' and Sally was singing the title song like as if NOTHING had happened to her up until then and she was ultra-happy for the whole song, singing about a damned cabaret. But can someone explain how the actual song should be performed within the context of the show? Hasn't Sally been on an incredible journey up to that point in the show; the song is completely ironic in that she is deciding whether or not to have the abortion - isn't that correct? I watched Jane Horrocks' version on YouTube and remember seeing Natasha Richardson's (RIP) version when it used to be on YouTube - both were incredibly breathtaking but heart wrenching performances. Richardson's version on the recording of the show even when just listening to it, still gives me goosebumps. I think 'Cabaret' is definitely one of the best numbers any female could sing, and Sally is one of the juiciest female parts ever written.

[FrauleinKost]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 8:25am

It's the end of the show--literally and figuratively--the "glamorous" world that Sally loved was gone. She had refused to believe it.

As for how the song is performed--well, it depends on the production I would imagine, but in the Mendes production that definitely wouldn't work.

(I saw the show about a zillion times on Broadway, and I can't tell you how many stupid audience members would be tapping their feet and humming along to the song. Ironic, I guess. Their heads were in the sand as much as Sally's...)

Updated On: 10/27/11 at 08:25 AM

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 8:37am

Most of the irony of the song is right there in the lyrics.
Jill Hayworth played it very upbeat.

It takes a brilliant actress like Richardson to walk the fine line, if you play it too dark you will ruin the moment.
In the Mendes revival, that final mic action was perfect and let Sally express her devastation in a single blow.

[DeNada]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 8:40am

It depends how you'd like to interpret Sally, I think.

Sam Mendes appears to have interpreted the song in different ways for the Donmar (Jane Horrocks) and Roundabout (Natasha Richardson). It seems clear to me that Horrocks is basically going through the abortion as she sings the song - justifying the pain she's going through because she loves her "glamorous" life. With Richardson it seems more to me like she's justifying herself, more specifically - she's trying to convince herself that she loves this life and that what she's doing is the right thing, whereas she isn't really that convinced. There's anger in both portrayals, but note that Horrocks is essentially paralysed with pain at the end of hers whereas Richardson (and her successors from the clips I've seen) storms off the stage in disgust, throwing away the microphone.

I think that perhaps some performers think "THIS IS MY BIG NUMBER!!!!" and want to sock it out the park - especially as "Maybe This Time" hasn't always been in the show. I don't think it's ironic if you decide that the Club is actually what she really wants - if you want to avoid the stage directions you could play her as more callous towards Cliff in the final scene, perhaps? I dunno.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 9:30am

I used to have a manual about how this song should be performed in the context of the show, actually, but I can't find it. Suffice it to say, ultra-happy was not in there. I do remember that much. If I can track it down, I'll give some more details about the correct way to do it.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 10/27/11 at 11:05pm

You can play up the subtext all you want, but depending on the audience, as soon as they hear Cabaret, it's happy time!

[Gothampc]

Posted: 10/28/11 at 9:33am

I think each actress and director need to decide whether Sally is performing the song or whether she's living the song.

Liza Minnelli's version is complete performance. I don't think it parallels Sally's real feelings. For Liza, it becomes a show biz anthem.

Natasha Richardson came close to an interesting performance but didn't quite hit it.

Jane Horrocks was all over the place in the song. It seemed like she was trying to perform German Music Hall material but then got off into mimic and voices and then just ended up screaming the end of the song.

One actress I saw actually collapsed in the middle of the number and started to crawl offstage but the owner of the Kit Kat came out and jerked her up and the rest of the song she performed with her clinging to the microphone for support. This was an interesting interpretation, but the song was stopped midway and restarted in the middle and I think that frustrated the audience. But also in that production, there was a visual of the MC taking over the conductor's position in the orchestra.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 10/28/11 at 4:18pm

The revival of Cabaret is very different than the original version in many ways. There isn't a definitive way to perform this song. This thread is very interesting to me because when the NY revival began it seemed there were some people who were quite disappointed that the show and in particular the song were not what they were used to. Your post, Musicald..., shows we've come full circle in terms of expectations based on the revival. Still, if you consider the artistry that Minnelli and Richardson, and Fosse and Mendes, brought to the piece, it's clear there is more than one way to get there.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 10/28/11 at 5:53pm

I don't agree that Minnelli singing the title song in the movie is "complete performance", at least not if by that the OP means the film Sally simply shakes off the events of the film and goes back to having fun on stage.

Yes, in performance and direction there is biting satire of the old truism that "the show must go on" despite (or even because of) the horrors happening outside. This is the "Razzle Dazzle" theme more explicitly explored in CHICAGO.

But there's also a mania in Minnelli's performance, in the use of backlighting, and in that final, discordant chord that suggests the entire song is an exercise in denial, that Sally is pushing too hard on stage in an attempt to forget what she has done off stage.

That the mirror at the end of the film is full of Nazi arm bands is chilling, but not as personally touching as Sally's borderline hysteria.