The Significance of the Emcee
The Significance of the Emcee
#0The Significance of the Emcee
Posted: 11/27/05 at 5:36pmI'd like to discuss what people think the Emcee symbolizes and his function to the story. Thoughts?
BSoBW2: I punched Sondheim in the face after I saw Wicked and said, "Why couldn't you write like that!?"
Jon
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/20/04
#1re: The Significance of the Emcee
Posted: 11/27/05 at 5:53pm
I assume you are talking about CABARET.
It depends on which version. In the original, the Emcee starts out as a symbol of the people who ignored what was happening in Germany, and eventually gets caught up in it. He becomes a symbol of evil as he becomes a Nazi.
In the recent revival it is quite different. In the beginning, he is oblivious and makes fun of the situation. However, in the final scene, he is depicted as a prisoner in a concentration camp. By ignoring what was happening, he became a victim.
#2re: The Significance of the Emcee
Posted: 11/27/05 at 5:57pm
I was having this discussion buried on one of the bigger threads last night.
Like Jon said, it depends on the version/production. I saw an interview snippet once where Joel Grey said that his Emcee was very sinister, and that to him, he was a representation of Hitler, and of evil. In the revival, he was a representation of everything the Nazis would destroy. He was the narrator and Master of Ceremonies, but he was also a symbol *of* Germany itself -- you watched him deteriorate, just as did the world around him.
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