The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
#0The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 1:47pm
I've seen plenty of musicals over the years and have had a good time at most of them.
But, nothing will ever compare to my experience at the 1998 Broadway revival of CABARET. I saw it countless times, and every time I was more touched than the last.
Sam Mendes put together an AMAZING revival of this show that left me in shock every time. Studio 54 couldn't have provided a better atmosphere.
It was raunchy. It was sexy. It was beautiful. It was moving. It was powerful. It was the best piece of theatre I've ever seen.
It may seem like a random post but I just wanted to declare my love for this extremely well put together production. I could go on and on about the costumes, orchestration, casting and breathtaking performances but this thread would need cliff-notes.
Kander and Ebb are pure geniouses and while I love CHICAGO and the current revival, I thought the CABARET revival was far superior to it and am still in awe that it closed. I wish someone had taped the final performance and broadcast it on PBS.
So I declare this to be a love thread for the 1998 revival of CABARET! Please post your thoughts or special experiences you had.
#1re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:10pm
I didn't get a chance to see it, but I have the cast recording and it is one of my favorites!
Took me the longest time to figure out what the heck Michele Pawk and her accent were saying during the Tomorrow Belongs to Me reprise, but it's all good. 
#2re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:12pm
I MISS IT SO MUCH, and regret not having seen it sooner, as to have had more time to spend with it.
It's one of my favorite shows, but not at the top. However, it is the BEST show I've ever seen. I don't know what to say other than to either go into specifics, which is redundant, or just to say that it was astounding to me to see a production where every element so perfectly fit together.
It's a powerful show, but the way Mendes staged that production took it above the power of the material alone. It was sexy, intriguing and scary.
#3re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:14pmI truly liked this show as well. I really loved the staging idea of making the theatre the club and having many of the audience members sit at tables. It was a neat way to incorporate the audience into the show because it gave the actors reason to interact with and play off them. I saw the show twice, once with Jennifer Jason Leigh as Sally (the rest of the roles were still by the original revival cast members), and once with Brooke Shields.
apdarcey
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/10/04
#4re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:23pmi think it was amazing because it completely revolutionized the show. you'll be hard-pressed to find a production these days that isn't trying to be a carbon copy of sorts of this production.
#5re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:30pm
I saw it three times and would have gladly seen it 10 more. And let me tell you, you forget how raunchy it is until you bring your MOTHER! But she loved it, too. Everything about it worked. The actors I saw:
3rd favorite cast: Brooke Shields and Matt McGrath
2nd favorite cast: Susan Egan and Adam Pascal (closing night - Sam Mendes and Kander & Ebb were there!)
FAVORITE!!: Gina Gershon and Raul Esparza (Esparza's "I Don't Care Much" remains for me one of the most amazing experiences I've ever had in the threatre.)
Great love thread, FOAnatic!
#6re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:32pm
I brought my mother, too! Mistaaaaaaake.
I'm jealous of y'all who saw Raúl.
#7re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:44pm
See, I saw it when I was 12. For some reason my aunt decided that it was a good idea to bring me. I dunno. She's a little off. I didn't really understand what the hell was going on, and I was probably scarred for life.
However, I did enjoy it. I liked the music, and I thought it was cooler than watching Undressed on MTV. 
I bought the cast recording a few years ago and fell in love with it. I wish I'd seen it again before it closed. I probably would've appreciated it more.
#8re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:44pmLOL, Emcee! During the "Two Ladies" scene behing the sheet, I was just cringing and thinking "What the hell was I thinking bringing MOM!??" I even apologized after the show, but she laughed. She had just loved it and was very moved by it. The next day, she said she had thought about the show that night at our hotel and had tried to figure out what would have happened to all the characters after the ending -- she had a story for each one.
#9re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:46pmTry being 12 and seeing the thing behind the sheet. Yeesh.
#10re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:46pm
After that scene, I couldn't look at my mom for the rest of the night.
I went back a few weeks later after Adam joined the cast (my mom and I saw Jon Secada) and when I got home, she was like "so, did you enjoy Adam and the pelvic thrusting?" I was so, so, SO embarassed.
#11re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:50pmSince when did Cabaret become a show to bring your mother to?? That is so funny because I brought my Mom to see it! She came with me when Brooke Shields was in the cast. It was a little uncomfortable during some scenes--but she loved every second of it (and gushed to Brooke at the stage door after the show). That was probably the best part of all. Brooke came out and appeared to be a little down on her performance. My Mom went on and on telling her how great she was..and how we had come all the way from NC just to see her (Actually I had tickets to see Nathan and Matthew and the rest of the OBC during the first season of The Producers). Brooke was like, "do you really think so?" It was quite and experience...my Mom giving Brooke Shields a pep-talk. Hey I got a picture and an autograph (and a story to tell) so I was happy!
#12re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:52pmAs much as I loved this production, and I did, it's amazing how semi originial the staging one. Now I'm sure Mendes didn't steal the staging. But the concept of turning the theatre into a club wasn't exactly new. Nor was cutting back on the costumes and making the club look seedier than the orginal. I saw many a production that utilized these elements years and years before. Also the intense interaction of the Emcee was nothing exactly new, it just now had a national stage. So please don't think I am flaming the production, cause I loved it. What I love about this production is that it brought these amazing production concepts to a national level of exposure. And yes I agree it is rediculous now that people just pull carbon copies off. That is getting tired along with the fact that most unoriginal actors who play the Emcee seem to even copy Cummings line readings.
#13re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 2:59pm
I took my mum to see the Australian National Tour, which was a carbon-copy.
Afterwards, she said, "Well let's just be glad we didn't bring your father..."
#14re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:28pm
LOL.
My favorite cast was Molly Ringwald and Raul. (Personally I think Molly was the BEST Sally I'd ever seen...she would have won a replacement Tony if they were around back then).
But I also enjoyed Adam and Katrina Yaukey (she was the understudy who stepped in during the brief transition period between Molly and Susan Egan).
#15re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:33pm
Molly's a dreadful singer. Possibly even TOO dreadful for Sally, but that's just my opinion.
oh, Raul.
And Adam's performance was... well, those were some of the happiest hours of my short little life. Katrina was the understudy until the end, was she not? Because when Adam stepped in, Susan had been there for a LONG time already.
#16re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:40pm
Katrina was the understudy until the end.
And I know you'll hate me Emcee...but in the role of the Emcee...Raul was far superior to Adam. Raul WAS the Emcee...to the point where it was scary.
I'm surprised about Molly. I thought she was a great Sally. Her singing wasn't the best but I would hardly call it dreadful. Natasha's wasn't great either. But I respect your opinion. Personally she acted the past wonderfully. You can get away with Sally being not such a great singer because...well...she works in a night club/brothel.
#17re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:45pm
aw, no, I won't hate you for that. It's true -- I think so, as well. Raúl is ten times the actor Adam's ever going to learn to be. He was terrifying. BUT, Adam was good. Nowhere near the best, but damned freakin' good.
Sally's definitely not supposed to be a good singer. I just don't like Molly's voice. I find listening to her sing just.. well, painful. Natasha's not a good singer, but on the recording at least, she doesn't make me want to rip my ears off -- granted, people say she was in fact *that* bad live. I think she's a fine enough actress, though, which is probably why she did so well as Sally. I guess there's a fine line between where you can go with having a part that's not supposed to be sung well, and having it be annoyingly awful. Catch-22 much
#18re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:51pm
What I found surprising was that Molly was the Sally that grossed the most money for the show.
I would have put my money on Brooke doing that, but I guess not.
I really wanted to catch Jane Leeves in the role, but unfortunately, I missed her.
#19re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 3:54pm
Well, she's got a powerful name.
I could be mistaken on this, but did Brooke's run not encompass 9/11? That could've had something to do with it.
#20re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 4:02pmYep. Brooke performed through 9/11. She recalled in an interview the experience of performing for an audience or about 17 people.
cabarethed
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/03
#21re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 4:45pm
Brooke left on 10/28/01, she and Raul performed together for 2 days. Yes, I remember this useless info, but I couldn't tell you what I learned in most of my classes.
I saw the show an insane number of times and just felt so empty when it ended. I couldn't have asked for a better closing cast though.
#22re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 5:29pmI saw the revival more times than I'd ever admit. It was a simply brilliant production. My favorite cast will always be the original, but Raul and NPH were both great Emcees. I didn't much care for Pascal's Emcee or for Egan's Sally. I also think I'm the only person who liked both Ringwald's Sally and Jennifer Jason Leigh's Sally.
#23re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 5:31pm
MEF, I'm gonna eat you. Them be fightin' words!!
I'm kidding.
#24re: The wonder that was the 1998 CABARET revival
Posted: 12/3/05 at 5:40pm
I almost added a disclaimer to my post: "Emcee, please don't hurt me".
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