Cabaret is a difficult show, especially considering what's going on in the world, and our country in particular. It takes place in a carnival atmosphere, at first silly and jolly; the audience gets some real laughs, and the extreme vulgarity just helps to convince us that this has nothing to do with us, not really. But the cabaret turns into a nightmare, and we're all stuck in it.
Eddie Redmayne is an actor who can do anything. I first saw him in a play called Red. I had interviewed his co-star, Alfred Molina, a brilliant actor with tremendous personal appeal. But then, something strange happened. I found I couldn't take my eyes off the young, redheaded boy who was just sitting there, listening. He was so completely present. I looked around the theater and saw that several other audience members were just a captivated as I. Since then, I've made a point of following his career, which has been stellar. Here, even in the ridiculous clown costume, complete with tiny hat, he brings something unique to the Emcee. There's an undercurrent of menace. When he sings a "romantic" song to a gorilla, he's tender, pleading for understanding. The audience laughs at the ridiculous spectacle, right up to the end of the song, when he mentions that the gorilla is Jewish. Suddenly, this show isn't so funny anymore.
Gayle Rankin does an admirable job as Sally Bowles. This role has sunk many an actress. Jill Haworth, originally in the part, was excoriated by New York critics. Sally must go from being silly, jolly, to being a wreck of a woman.
I have no harsh words for the actor who inhabits Clifford Bradford (Ato Blankson-Wood). My question is about "color-blind" casting in this particular play. A very crucial message is about the horror of bigotry in a society, and how it begins poisoning everyone. Would a Black man ever be treated so casually? No.
A big surprise and a subsequent roar from the audience goes to Bebe Neuwirth. Who knew that this chic, composed actress was hiding a tiger of a woman in the form of the frumpy spinster Fraulein Schneider? "What Would You Do?" rocks us to our core. What are we doing as so much of our society seems to be going down the tubes? Can we turn our backs as college students hurl Anti-Semitic jabs at Jewish students, who are made to feel unsafe?
Yes, in Cabaret we can see a society sinking into the nadir of fascism, but will we be able to save ourselves?
