Wed 21 Apr, 2010
Cabaret – REVIEW
Comments (0) Filed under: REVIEWSTags: 2 1/2 STARS, Cabaret, DCA THEATER, Storefront Theater, The Hypocrites
By Venus Zarris
The Hypocrites prove that a production can be extremely entertaining as well as disjointed and emotionally immature with their enthusiastic rendition of Cabaret. The show is attractive and the talented cast is working overtime to delight the audience but the play never comes together as a fluid piece of story telling.
We are treated to excellent incidental jazz by the exceptional band as we take our seats. The show begins. Lighting, costumes, adaptation of the unique space at the Storefront Theatre and the cast all look great. Jessie Fisher is solid and engaging as the Emcee but lacks the omnipotent confidence and otherworldly seduction needed to set the opening tone for the location of the Kit Kat Club and establish the character as an atmospheric story thread. We’re enticed but not dazzled.
The musical numbers are fun but the show starts out playing the shtick, going for the humor but not yielding enough of it and looking very sexy but lacking sexual chemistry. We are shown delightful depravity and decadence but we don’t feel it. This establishes an emotional and sexual immaturity to the production that makes it difficult to believe the characters beneath the surface of their performances. Most of the drama is played as melodrama and so were never fully invested.
“Tomorrow Belongs to Me” finally gives us something to sink our teeth into. The choral work is beguiling. Then the heavy-handed tactics begin. Instead of establishing the pending Nazi take-over of pre-WWII Germany as a menacing part of the climate throughout, we are beaten over the head with it abruptly and then repeatedly. The Nazi threat is delivered with shocking scenes that culminate in a brutal finale. If we could take the rest of the show seriously this might work but the lack of the production’s dramatic depth and tension make these scenes seem forced. Act 3 is so dark that it plays like the third act of a completely different production.
There is a lot to like about the show. Mike Przygoda’s musical direction and Marissa Mortiz’s choreography are excellent. Alison Siple’s costume design is thrilling. The Emcee’s costume for the musical number “Money” is whimsically wonderful. The cast is steadfast and charming. Everyone delivers exceptional performances. Dana Tretta is outstanding in the chorus. Kate Harris, as Fraulein Schneider, and Jim Heatherly, as Herr Schultz, create the most honest characters in the production. Harris’s rendition of “What Would You Do?” is a powerfully compelling highlight.
Matt Hawkins is a brilliant director. His Red Noses at Strawdog Theatre and Hatfield & McCoy at The House Theatre of Chicago stand as some of the most incredible productions seen on Chicago stages in the past few years. He makes some interesting conceptual choices and creates an enjoyable evening that is well worth your time but this Cabaret lacks the subtlety, nuance and dramatic continuity to reach its extraordinary potential. You’ll like it. You just won’t believe it.
2 ½ STARS
(“Cabaret” runs through May 23 at the Storefront Theater, 66 E. Randolph St. 312-742-8497)
Cabaret | DCA Theater - Chicago Dept. of Cultural Affairs
The Hypocrites We Make Theater
Cabaret production photos by John W. Sisson.
