The action takes place in 1929-30 Berlin, mostly in the seedy Kit Kat Klub. As the movie, music and art capital of Europe, Berlin became a haven for young, unconventional hedonists from Britain and America -- and a turbulent hotbed for Communists and fascists, the latter claiming to be upholders of sexual morality and Aryan virtue. Mentioned incidentally during the first act of Cabaret, the Nazis leap into action just before intermission, maintaining an unseen presence right up to the stunning new end. En route are depictions -- spiked with humor -- of diverse sexualities, demonstrated by the cabaret dancers and their impish Emcee. He is performed by the dynamic and talented Norbert Leo Butz (direct from Rent, attired in loose, torn clothes exposing a bare chest with ruby-sequined nipples.
This touring production features the two-level set seen in London and New York. Spiraled narrow stairways, located stage left and right, allow those on-view band musicians who double as Kit Kat dancers with role names to make their entrances and exits in character. The production is touted as "a replica" of the 1998 award-winning Broadway incarnation playing at the former Studio 54 nightclub. Dialogue -- including one utterance of the "f" word -- and choreography are more audacious, daring and brazen than the 1966 original and 1988 revival, both starring Joel Grey as a clean-cut, sardonically cheerful Emcee. Sally Bowles is the Klub's cabaret show star, portrayed by Joely Fisher, daughter of former crooning star Eddie Fisher and actress Connie Stevens. She has appropriate singing skills, looks and acting talent, and even a convincing English accent. But she doesn't have the charisma to portray this rebellious airhead, a runaway from England's conservative social conventions who falls for the innocent but more aware Clifford (played with conviction by classical actor Rick Holmes), a clean cut American writer seeking inspiration.
On the Paris-to-Berlin train, he befriends Ernst Ludwig, a friendly, attractive young German (the excellent Drew McVety). Clifford's landlady, Fraulein Schneider, is played with admirable restrained emotion by Alma Cuervo (the original Ida Straus in
