The ensemble of “Cabaret” (Photo by Leva Redina)
Reviewed by F. Kathleen Foley
Jaxx Theatricals
Thru March 29
RECOMMENDED
There’s a lot to admire about Cabaret, running through this weekend at Jaxx Theatricals in Hollywood: strong performances, the spot-on live band conducted by Andrew Lederman, L C Powell’s excellent musical direction, and Kasmira Buchanan’s lively choreography, a real accomplishment considering the intimate space she has to work with.
Ever since its 1966 Broadway debut, the show has been widely produced, most recently in a still-running Broadway incarnation, a reprise of the award-winning West End triumph.
Of course, any interpreter approaching such familiar material wants to put their distinctive stamp on it. In her current staging at Jaxx, Sasha Travis takes some bold risks, not all of which succeed. Some scenes — including a jarring final image — feel more showy than substantive and fail to achieve their intended emotional impact.
That said, such missteps are few in an otherwise ambitious production, which deploys a large cast in and around the playing area. Some of Travis’s more successful innovations include reimagining the crucial Emcee role, played here by Jeremy Lucas, not as a pasty androgyne, but as an athletically domineering character in full fetish gear who could kick anyone’s butt in a back alley. The artistic director and co-founder of Jaxx, who has directed and choreographed several past productions, Lucas is nothing short of spectacular in an impressively gymnastic turn.
Also terrific are Jill Marie Burke – who has the best voice in the show– as Frau Schneider, a tenacious survivor on the cusp of shattering societal change, and David Pevsner as Fraulein Schneider’s sweet suitor, Herr Schultz, a Jewish fruit vender who refuses to acknowledge the coming storm.
As Cliff, the sexually ambivalent American novelist swept up in the maelstrom, Kyle Stocker has a strong voice and an appealing stage presence (although he should work on his actorly listening skills — in the background of Burke’s solo number “So What,” he looks oddly disengaged.) And in the critical role of Sally Bowles, Erin Lee Smith captures the raw need under Sally’s frenetic perkiness but seems vocally strained at times, particularly when she’s belting at full throttle.
If you are seeing Cabaret again after a span of several years, you may be struck by its chilling relevance. In the past, what could comfortably be viewed as a period piece is now, with fascism on the rise, a glaring reflection of present reality.
A recent article in The Guardian reports that Adam Lambert, currently wrapping up his run on Broadway as the Emcee, has been so dismayed by audience members guffawing during a shocking and critical scene that he has interrupted the show to yell, “This is not a comedy. Pay attention!”
The tone-deaf reaction of those audience members, who misinterpret tragedy as an occasion for derisive laughter, signals a troubling erosion of empathy, a trend mirrored by the casual cruelty that has become the default among the most powerful.
As with the tragic and doomed Herr Schultz, obliviousness can be fatal. And we should all pay attention.
Jaxx Theatricals, 5432 Santa Monica Blvd., Hollywood. Thurs.-Sat., 8 pm; thru March 29. www.Showclix.com/Event/Kit-Kat 2 hours and 30 minutes with an intermission.
