Overview
Synopsis
Cabaret takes place from 1929-1930, a time when Berlin, in the midst of a post-World War I economic depression, is transitioning from a center of underground, avant-garde cultural epicenter to the beginnings of Hitler’s totalitarian regime and the rise of the Nazi Party. Into this world enters Clifford Bradshaw, a struggling American writer looking for inspiration for his next novel. On his first night in Berlin, Cliff wanders into the Kit Kat Klub, a seedy nightclub overseen by the strange, omniscient and gender-bending Master of Ceremonies, “the Emcee.” Here, Cliff meets Sally Bowles, a vivacious, talented cabaret performer, and an utterly lost soul. Sally and Cliff begin a relationship, which blossoms unexpectedly into a dream-like romance. As time passes, however, the situation in Berlin changes from exciting and vital to ominous and violent; Ernst, Cliff’s first German friend, turns out to be an up-and-coming member of the Nazi Party, and Herr Schultz, a fellow boarder at Fraulein Schneider’s guest house (and Schneider’s fiancee), is the victim of an Anti-Semitic hate crime. When he finds out that Sally is pregnant, Cliff decides that they must leave for America at once, before things get any worse. Sally, afraid, confused, and unsure that she’ll ever really be able to trade the sexy, illicit cabaret lifestyle for motherhood, gets an abortion, and tells Cliff that he must leave without her. With a distinctly Brechtian dose of provocation and a score featuring songs that have become classics of the American Musical Theater, Cabaret is a fierce, meaty musical that pushes the boundaries of the form and literally holds “the mirror up to nature.”
Show Information
- Book
- Joe Masteroff
- Music
- John Kander
- Lyrics
- Fred Ebb
- Category
- Musical
- Age Guidance
- Thirteen Plus (PG-13)
- Number of Acts
- 2
- First Produced
- 1966
- Genres
- Drama
- Settings
- Period, Multiple Settings
- Time & Place
- 1929-1930
- Cast Size
- large
- Orchestra Size
- Large
- Dancing
- Heavy
- Licensor
- Concord Theatricals
- Ideal For
- College/University, Community Theatre, Mature Audiences, Professional Theatre, Regional Theatre, Star Vehicle Female, Star Vehicle Male, Mostly Female Cast, Includes Adult, Young Adult, Mature Adult Characters, Large Cast
Context
After an extensive development process, the Original Broadway production of Cabaret, directed by Harold Prince and choreographed by Ron Field, opened on November 20, 1966, at the Broadhurst Theatre and transferred two times, playing a total of 1,165 performances before closing. A national touring company began in 1968 and played major theaters in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Atlanta and Dallas, among other cities. The show opened on London’s West End on February 28, 1968, featuring a young
to read the context for Cabaret and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Plot
“Playwright’s Note: There is no curtain. As the audience enters the theatre, the stage is bare and dark. Street lamps on both sides of the stage recede dimly into the distance. A large mirror hanging center stage reflects the auditorium, thus allowing the audience to see itself.”
ACT ONE
A sign is illuminated in the darkness: “Cabaret,” it reads. A spotlight comes up on the Kit Kat Klub’s Master of Ceremonies, a “bizarre little figure - much lipstick, much rouge, patent-leather
to read the plot for Cabaret and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Characters
| Name | Part Size | Gender | Vocal Part |
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Lead |
Male |
Tenor |
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Lead |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
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Lead |
Male |
Baritone |
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Supporting |
Female |
Alto |
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Supporting |
Male |
Baritone |
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Supporting |
Female |
Mezzo-Soprano |
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Supporting |
Male |
Spoken |
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Featured |
Male |
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Featured |
Male |
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Featured |
Male |
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Featured |
Male |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Featured |
Female |
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Songs
Act One
- *Willkommen -- Emcee and Company
- So What? – Fräulein Schneider
- Telephone Song – Cliff and Company
- *Don't Tell Mama – Sally, Rosie, LuLu, Frenchy, Texas, Fritzy and Helga
- *Mein Herr – Sally (replaced "Telephone Dance" in 1998/2012 revival)
- *Telephone Dance – Company
- Perfectly Marvelous – Sally and Cliff
- *Two Ladies – Emcee and Two Ladies (Bobby replaces one of the ladies in 1998 revival)
- It Couldn't Please Me More – Fräulein Schneider and Herr Schultz
- Tomorrow Belongs to Me – Nazi Youth/Waiters/Emcee
- Why Should I Wake Up? – Cliff
- Don't Go – Cliff (replaced "Why Should I Wake Up?" in 1987 revival)
- Maybe This Time – Sally (replaced "Don't Go" in 1998/2012 revival)
- *Sitting Pretty – Emcee and Girls
- *Money - Emcee and Company (mashed up with "Sitting Pretty" in 1987 revival, and replaced "Sitting Pretty" in 1998 revival)
- Married – Herr Schultz and Fräulein Schneider (Fräulein Kost in German)
- Meeskite – Herr Schultz (Cut in 1987/98/2012 revivals)
- Tomorrow Belongs to Me (Reprise) – Fräulein Kost, Ernst Ludwig and Company
Act Two
- *Entr'acte / Kickline – Emcee and Girls
- Married (Reprise) – Herr Schultz (Cut in 2012 revival)
- *If You Could See Her (The Gorilla Song) – Emcee
- What Would You Do? – Fräulein Schneider
- I Don't Care Much – Emcee (1987/98/2012 revivals)
- Cabaret – Sally
- Finale Ultimo – Company
A song with an asterisk (*) before the title indicates a dance number; a character listed in a song with an asterisk (*) by the character's name indicates that the character exclusively serves as a dancer in this song, which is sung by other characters.
Monologues
Scenes
Key Terms
Experimental theatre that began in France in the mid-nineteenth century as a reaction against accepted traditional theatre and dramatic ideas.
References a singer who sings in a more chest voice dominant manner.
Theatre that is inspired by the work of Bertolt Brecht, especially in its use of unconventional storytelling, political message, and experimentalism.
Absurd or comically exaggerated imitation, often used in vaudeville-style productions. Burlesque evolved to have sexual innuendo and striptease acts.
Nightclub or restaurant with musical entertainment.
A musical where a theme, metaphor or concept is just as important as the overarching plot and the featured songs.
A woman who flirts.
The financial and industrial slump of 1929 and subsequent years.
A sad or sentimental song, typically about unrequited love.
A type of popular entertainment popular chiefly in the early twentieth century, featuring a mixture of specialty acts, such as burlesque comedy and song and dance.
The language used by Jewish people in central and eastern Europe before the Holocaust. It is still spoken today, mainly in the US, Israel, and Russia.
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Themes, Symbols & Motifs
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