Lush, Sensual, Moody
Badanai Theatre’s Cabaret
By Armaan Basheer
Tempting. Terrifying. Timeless. These are the three words director Spencer Hari uses to describe Cabaret, Badanai Theatre’s upcoming production. Set in 1930s Berlin, Cabaret transports the audience to the city’s infamous Kit Kat Klub, and delves into the lives of patrons, hosts, and outsiders alike.
Hari has no plans to hide what Cabaret is offering, and “tempting” is just the beginning. “It’s good-looking people in very little clothing, singing beautifully,” he says. “It’s a feast for the eyes. So please, come in. Come in.”
And what do you do when the doors at Kit Kat Klub swing open for you? You go in.
The production is inherently seductive; it’s lush, sensual, and moody. “There’s excitement, movement, intensity,” Hari observes. There is no looking away here. You know you want to be part of it and you are.
Daniel Hannah, a performer in the show, is adamant that Cabaret is all about the audience. “The audience is supposed to feel like they’re at the Kit Kat Klub,” he remarks. “They’re essentially part of the show; they’re being played to and played with by the performers.” Whatever happens on stage, the audience is complicit. What better way to enjoy what promises to be a beautiful show than be involved in it yourself?
Everything is designed to draw the audience in, but it won’t be long before you notice there is something “terrifying” dancing with the dazzling populace of the Kit Kat Klub. There is something sinister lurking beneath Berlin’s façade of music and glitter, ready to catch both the audience and the characters off guard. “Halfway through, you realize how rotten it all is underneath,” Hari says. “The show turns on itself by people turning on each other.”
For Hannah, the most chilling parts of the show are those moments when characters don’t know how ugly things can get. Hannah’s character, Herr Schultz, lives in this dreary space. “He can start to feel something coming,” Hannah explains. “He’s wrestling with the ways in which reality seems to be changing around him. That feels very resonant at this moment.”
Hannah’s insight into his character also reveals why Cabaret remains relevant today. “It’s a story set in a very specific time period, but it’s every time period. It’s now. It’s the future,” Hari says.
By the end of it all, when the glamour has curdled, Hari doesn’t expect immediate praise or applause. “I wouldn’t be upset if people leave saying nothing,” he admits. “Beautiful things are given to you, but at the end, it gets taken away. Then, you’re forced to think about it.” Silence, in his eyes, means he has done his job—that the show has left its mark.
Hannah agrees. “This is the kind of show where you leave thinking, reflecting.”
Cabaret runs February 19–21, February 26–28, and March 5–7 at 7:30 pm at Badanai Theatre. Tickets are $30 and available online. Visit badanaitheatre.com for more info.
