By Lucy Komisar
Rebecca Frecknall’s production of “Cabaret” is a raw dive into the seedy underbelly of 1930s Berlin. From the moment you enter the theater, transformed into the infamous Kit Kat Club with its murky red walls and intimate table seatings, you’re transported to a world on the brink of catastrophe.
The book is by Joe Masteroff, the iconic music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Eb. I’ve seen this before and didn’t recognize it.
This reimagining of the classic musical leans heavily into sexual decadence at the expense of its political undertones. The all-female orchestra, presented as a sexual come-on, sets the tone for an evening that blurs the lines between entertainment and exploitation.
The cast delivers strong performances. Sally Bowles (Gayle Rankin), with her rich, sexy voice, commands attention in numbers like “Don’t Tell Mama,” though her portrayal veers dangerously close to caricature. Sally’s child’s dress in that scene belongs in a porn show. She’s getting fired. She pulls off hair and dress revealing just bra and underwear. It’s crude; who cares?
The Emcee (Eddie Redmayne) with his glinting eyes and red lips, embodies vulgar, in-your-face sexuality. A striped outfit has a Jewish yellow star and the pink mark of homosexuals. This Cabaret is no longer focused on oppression of Jews, it’s mostly about sexual libertines, at the time, homosexuals.
The journey of writer Clifford Bradshaw (Ato Blankson-Wood) from wide-eyed American novelist on holiday to disillusioned expatriate becomes part of that. He meets a gay guy: “Would you like to buy a boy a drink.” Another approaches him: “Come on Cliff, this is Berlin. Relax. Loosen up. Be yourself.”
When Sally arrives at Chris’s place, she forces her way in. Since it’s clear he is gay, any connection between them is fake. She is tacky, a tart with no style. And very boring.
The emphasis on gay themes overshadows the political context. Chris wants to leave, he is beaten by Nazis. But Sally is amoral, corrupt, will not go.
The romance between Herr Schultz (Steven Skybell) and Fräulein Schneider (Bebe Neuwirth) is a counterpoint; their story is a reminder of the rising tide of anti-Semitism. Bricks shatter windows. Schultz tells her it’s “mischievous children!”
Ernst Ludwig, a Nazi, (Henry Gottfried) warns her against marrying a Jew. She breaks off the engagement. She says, “I need a license to rent my rooms. If they take it away…”
Schultz tells her, “It is not always good to settle for the lowest apple on the tree, climb a little I will catch you.”
When Cliff challenges her decision, she sings “What would you do?” “You pack your belongings. You move to Paris. And if you do not like Paris – where? It is easy for you. But if you were me…”
The famous gorilla’s “If You Could See Her” number (“If you could see her through my eyes, she wouldn’t look Jewish at all), performed with a distinctly British accent, loses some of its bite. However, moments like the Nazi anthem closing the first act are chilling.
Musically, the production takes risks. The jazzy score is performed slightly off-time, adding to the unsettling atmosphere. Choreography by Julia Cheng is hyper-sexualized, with can-can kicks morphing disturbingly into Nazi-style movements.
Frecknall’s “Cabaret” shifts the focus from political to sexual decadence and prioritizes shock value over nuance, reminding how quickly a society can descend into self-centered moral bankruptcy and remain blind to encroaching fascism. There is more to politics than what you do with your sexual parts.
“Cabaret” at the Kit Kat Club.” Book by Joe Masteroff. Based on the play by John van Druten and stories by Chrisopher Isherwood. Music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Eb. Directed by Rebecca Frecknall. August Wilson Theatre, 245 West 52nd St, NYC. Runtime 2hrs45min. Opened April 21, 2024. Open run.
Your review is interesting, but contains inaccuracies. The inaccuracies are: You say a brick is thrown into the window of the fruit shop. Well, there is no window and there is no brick. In previous productions yes, but not in this one.
LK: In this script, there is “a glass window shattering, followed by echoes of others…”
The other inaccuracy is that “Shultz’s last friend (by the way, it’s Schultz, not Shultz)
LK typo was fixed, correct in other mentions
sings a Nazi anthem. She does not. The Nazi anthem is “Tomorrow Belongs to Me,” which the Emcee
sings first, then, at the end of the act is sung by Kost, Ernst and the rest of the company, but Schneider does not join in.
Schneider sings “What Would You Do?,” certainly no Nazi anthem but a questioning by someone caught in a live or die situation who is forced, for her survival, to succumb to the political climate.
LK correct I didn’t notice she didn’t join in. But after a Nazi warns her against marrying a Jew, she breaks her engagement to Schultz. Her own song has the same result — acquiescing to the Nazis.
One other thing: You claim that Frecknall shifts the focus from political to sexual decadence. I respectfully disagree with your reading of this production. Yes, there is considerable emphasis on the sexual, as it was in the Sam Mendes production, but she leans into the political more deeply than I have ever seen in a production of the show. I found the evening chilling, frightening and moving in a way I never have before, and I have seen countless productions including the brilliant and groundbreaking Hal Prince production in 1966.
LK That is a matter of opinion.
Peggy Noonan in WSJ: “It is ugly, bizarre, inartistic, fundamentally stupid. Also obscene, but in a purposeless way, without meaning.
Really it is harrowing. At one point Mr. Redmayne dances with a toilet plunger, and a loaf of Italian bread is inserted and removed from his anal cavity. I mentioned this to my friend, who asked if I saw the dancer in the corner masturbating with a copy of what appeared to be ‘Mein Kampf.'”
https://peggynoonan.com/the-uglification-of-everything/
In other words, not artistic, just gross.
One more thing: It is not closing September 14th. That is Eddie Redmayne’s last performance. His replacement begins on September 16th. In fact, a quick check shows me tickets are on sale through April.
LK Initial posted date was changed, updated.
The final response from Howard Marren: Well, you are entitled to your opinion. So is Peggy Noonan, although she is not and never was a drama critic. She was a speech writer for Ronald Reagan and is a right-leaning columnist for a right-leaning publication. I hardly think she should be writing drama criticism, and it surprises me that given your background you would use her review as a backup for your opinion. But if she is a person you want to look up to, that’s your business and she, like you, is entitled to her opinion as I am entitled to mine, and I shudder to think what will happen to this country should Trump get re-elected. There will be no opinions except his, his minions and probably Peggy Noonan’s. By the way, I did read Noonan’s review, as well as almost all of the others. There were some that agreed with you and her and some which were extremely positive. I suggest you read the London reviews for opposing viewpoints.
LK To dismiss a theater critic’s aesthetic comments because of political views is a corrupt standard. Very ironic in a play about fascism.