Cabaret

“What good is sitting alone in your room?

Come hear the music play.”

Films can be watched anywhere, but cinema is a communal experience. That’s why they call it the theatre. Cabaret, based on the musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb, based on the play I Am a Camera, based on the novel Goodbye to Berlin, is meant to be seen with a crowd. And it’s not about the cinematography or scale. Director Bob Fosse’s depiction of love and hate in the burning twilight of Germany’s Weimar Republic focuses tightly on the lascivious, glorious Kit Kat Club. When the emcee (Joel Grey) grins like the Joker and bids us “Willkommen, bienvenu, welcome,” we are stageside in this smoky refuge from Nazism. But remember: Even if everyone else starts singing “Tomorrow Belongs to Me,” you don’t have to join in.

“Life is a cabaret, old chum,

Come to the Cabaret.”

Tue., May 31, 8:50pm (P)

This article appears in May 20 • 2016.

A note to readers: Bold and uncensored, The Austin Chronicle has been Austin’s independent news source for over 40 years, expressing the community’s political and environmental concerns and supporting its active cultural scene. Now more than ever, we need your support to continue supplying Austin with independent, free press. If real news is important to you, please consider making a donation of $5, $10 or whatever you can afford, to help keep our journalism on stands.

SUPPORT US

The Chronicle's first Culture Desk editor, Richard has reported on Austin's growing film production and appreciation scene for over a decade. A graduate of the universities of York, Stirling, and UT-Austin, a Rotten Tomatoes certified critic, and eight-time Best of Austin winner, he's currently at work on two books and a play.