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‘Cabaret’ @ Shakespeare Tavern
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
THEATER REVIEW. Grade: C-
The cast of the New American Shakespeare Tavern’s “Cabaret” deserves to be lined up and spanked.
Not for giving a bad performance. But for imbuing the seedy underbelly of 1930s Berlin with all the decadence and debauchery that made it such a fascinatingly taboo subject for novelist Christopher Isherwood and his autobiographical “Berlin Stories.”
At the naughty heart of John Kander and Fred Ebb’s 31-year-old musical is the Kit Kat Club, where an epicene emcee encourages bisexual nooky and frames the tale of lonely-hearts Sally Bowles and Clifford Bradshaw (Isherwood’s doppelganger). Sally is a sexually insatiable burlesque diva. Clifford is everybody’s boy-toy and the penniless writer with whom she shares a room.
Though the master of ceremonies (Jeff McKerley) assures us that the nightclub is a safety zone from the troubles of the outside world, it’s really a subterfuge for sinister politics and doomed romance. While Sally (Agnes Harty) and Clifford (Matt Nitchie) get tangled in their web of sexual co-dependency, their unmarried landlady, Fraulein Schneider (Ellen McQueen), is courted by an adoring old schnapps-breath named Herr Schultz (Clark Taylor).
To its credit, director Heidi Cline’s staging captures the suffocating sense of despair lurking under the carefree exterior. But this “Cabaret” often feels more like a really good dinner-theater production than a top-notch professional endeavor.
The Tavern’s intimate scale and cabaret-style atmosphere make it the ideal venue for the material, and some of the performances are quite entertaining. But no matter how much you admire the ensemble for experimenting outside the familiar Shakespeare canon, at three hours (including a 15-minute intermission), the show is long and frustratingly uneven.
Harty’s take on Sally is more that of bulldozing dominatrix than blithe-spirited tomboy and soul mate to Clifford. Harty’s big breakout numbers are dynamic, but her English accent is all over the map. Nitchie captures Clifford’s erotic confusion without ever being wispy, but in this roomful of outsize personalities, he fails to make much of an impression.
Oddly enough, the real standout here is McQueen as the shy, homely Fraulein Schneider (“So What?”), who so reluctantly falls for Herr Schultz and his gifts of oranges and pineapples (“It Couldn’t Please Me More”). Their sweet autumnal romance becomes the delicate counterweight for the sordid world swirling around them. With her low-pitched voice and quirky movement vocabulary, McQueen is the real deal. Drunk, giddy and perhaps not long for this world, Herr Schultz is reminiscent of the terminally ill but bubbly Otto in “Grand Hotel.”
You should also keep your eye on the sailor-baiting Fraulein Kost (LaLa Cochran, always a hoot) and the cunningly manipulative Ernst Ludwig (Jeff Watkins). As emcee, McKerley is low and lascivious —- an equal opportunity crotch grabber and provocateur. McKerley also choreographed the company’s dance moves, which are appropriately louche and only loosely Fosse-esque.
One interesting thing is the way some of the actors double as musicians. Thus you may see Watkins act out a scene and then stealthily move to the balcony to play the clarinet. The technique is vaguely reminiscent of John Doyle’s “Company” and “Sweeney Todd, ” though not as streamlined.
If in the end this “Cabaret” is a disappointing, the ensemble seems to be having a rollicking good time, yet the darker elements of Isherwood’s story never get lost in the merriment. By insisting that you not sit alone in your room, the emcee really is a prophet of doom.
THE 411: 7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 6:30 p.m. Sundays. Through July 1. $10-$32. New American Shakespeare Tavern, 499 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-874-5299, shakespearetavern.com.
THE VERDICT: Uneven, but packs a punch.
Comments
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By Luke Camp
June 18, 2007 3:07 AM | Link to this
Coming from someone who loves musical theatre, and loves the darker side of musicals, I must say that the actors and actresses at The Shakespeare Tavern do an outstanding job at this musical. I live two hours away and I have already been to downtown Atlanta to see it twice, with plans of a third visit in the works. Agnes Harty plays her part of Sally Bowles so well, and sings her songs with such confidence. Her rendition of “Cabaret” in itself is worth the trip. Jeff McKerley’s take on Emcee is probably the best I’ve heard. From the moment the show begins, he captivated me and brought me into the world of this club in Germany. To have seen the show twice, I must say, I have never enjoyed an amatuer production of any musical as much as I have this one. Good Job everyone, and keep up the good work.
-Luke
By Elizabeth Connor
June 22, 2007 2:22 PM | Link to this
Before I saw this production, I was afraid that Cabaret for me would evermore be Liza Minelli and Joel Gray. I shouldn’t have worried. The Tavern’s performances in this Cabaret, from Angela Harty and Jeff McKerley, are amazing. Yes, Fraulein Schneider does rise to the occasion, and I’m sure I’m not the only one who wants to jump onto the stage to pull Herr Schultz to safety. The performance is riveting — in parts, chilling — and more than worthy of the important message it delivers. Congratulations to the troupe, and thanks to Atlanta for supporting this production. -Elizabeth