‘Cabaret’ continues to show the darker side of humanity
It’s a musical that dates back to the days of pre-Nazi Germany, buts its themes remain as timely as ever.
Fifty years after “Cabaret” marked its debut on Broadway, the story based on a Berlin nightlife scene when the Nazi party rose to power continues to examine ignorance, self-involvement and bigotry — problems that still plague the world.
The smash hit’s latest incarnation is running at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts for two weeks starting Tuesday, marking the national tour of the Roundabout Theater Company’s 2014 Broadway revival.
The highly stylized production is set to give audiences an even darker and seedier version of the Kit Kat Klub, where a highly sexualized atmosphere prevails.
“It’s a politically engaged musical that excites audiences,” said actor Randy Harrison, who plays the club’s emcee.
“I feel like ‘Cabaret’ brings you to that place where you are reminded of our collective history, and you begin to explore the conditions of how we let the rise of the Nazi party happen,” Harrison said. “You start asking yourself, ‘What would I have done? What kind of participant would I have been?’ It’s very relevant to today’s times.”
Harrison, known for his role as Justin Taylor on Showtime’s “Queer as Folk,” said he had seen “Cabaret” three times, but in order to prepare for his role and understand the decade’s social and political conditions, he researched books and stories about 1930s Berlin.
His character meets British singer Sally Bowles, a party girl who performs racy and flirtatious numbers at the club.
Actress Andrea Goss, who portrays Sally, said the role was particularly challenging for her since she saw the woman as politically oblivious and willfully ignorant of the government’s anti-Semitism and dictatorial powers.
“She is so different from me,” Goss said by phone from San Francisco, a stop on the tour. “Sally really represents a group of people who don’t want to be informed and they put blinders on. But for me, I don’t want to ignore the problems in the world.”
Like “Cabaret,” Roundabout celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.
As part of its 50th anniversary season, the theater company announced a national tour of “Cabaret,” with direction by Sam Mendes and choreography by Rob Marshall.
Mendes is best known for directing the film “American Beauty,” and Marshall’s most noted work is his Academy Award for Best Picture winner, “Chicago.”
Roundabout’s first production of the show appeared on Broadway in 1998, starring Alan Cumming and Natasha Richardson. It won four Tony Awards and went on to play on Broadway for six years before finishing its run in 2004.
The Best Revival of a Musical winner returned to Broadway in 2014, with Cumming reprising his role as the emcee.
Today’s production, which premiered at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre in mid-July, will conclude in August 2017 in Washington, D.C.
It’s a new production of a classic play that is intended to prompt audiences to think about what they would have done during such troubled and uncertain times.
“This is such a powerful piece because we’re asking the audience, ‘How did we let this happen?’” Goss said. “We want everyone to consider what’s going on in our world.”
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IF YOU GO
What: “Cabaret”
When: Tuesday until Aug. 21; 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays and 1 and 6:30 p.m. Sundays
Where: Segerstrom Center for the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa
Cost: Tickets start at $29
Information: (714) 556-2787 or visit scfta.org.
