Learning Guide for "Cabaret" at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre

ISSUE
08
MARCH
STUDENT MATINEE SERIES LEARNING GUIDE
2011

CABARET
CABARET LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
THE PLOT & CHARACTERS

Time: 1929-1930
Place: Berlin, Germany
“Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome!” Cabaret opens in Berlin as the Nazis are beginning their rise to power and the
productive Weimar Republic is being torn apart by radical politics on the right and left, inflation and joblessness. But inside
the Kit Kat Klub, the world is alive with seedy glamour, raucous energy and a kind of freedom never known before -- for
now. The club's Master of Ceremonies, together with the cabaret girls and waiters, welcomes their audience, beckoning
them to leave their cares and the despair of the outside world behind. Nearby, in a train station, Clifford Bradshaw, a
young American writer coming to Berlin in the hopes of finding inspiration for his new novel has just arrived. He meets
Ernst Ludwig, a German, who offers him work and recommends a boardinghouse run by Fräulein Schneider.

On the advice of Ernst, Cliff visits the Kit Kat Klub and is introduced to a nineteen-year-old British singer, Sally Bowles, who
is determined to live the thrillingly decadent life that the vigor of the city offers the cabaret crowd. An intimacy is forged
and Sally joins Cliff in his room at the boarding house. Their fellow lodgers include Fräulein Kost, a prostitute, and a Jewish
fruit merchant, Herr Schultz. In time, we see each character’s dreams and opportunities crumble as the political and
cultural chaos intrudes. Schultz courts Fräulein Schneider and they become engaged but the harsh reality of anti-Semitism
is growing stronger. Sally becomes pregnant; Clifford’s job with Ernst sours and the threat of Hitler expands into the daily
lives of the citizens of Berlin. Sally, however, remains determined to live life to the fullest and sings a final, impassioned
cry that “life is a cabaret.” Is she a symbol of vitality and defiance in the face of the danger that is looming on Europe’s
horizon or of the denial that was so prevalent during the Nazi regime’s reign of terror?

Overseeing the action is the Master of Ceremonies (Emcee) at the Kit Kat Klub, who serves throughout the show as a
constant reminder of the tenuous state of late Weimar Germany as well as our host when we want to escape. As a kind of
Greek Chorus, he alternately beckons us to join in the wild and self-indulgent arena of the cabaret “show” and warns us of
the growing power of the Nazis in the “real world.” The tension of the plot unfolds in both worlds until their inevitable
collision.

THE CHARACTERS
In order of appearance

The Master of Ceremonies (Emcee) - The host of the Kit Herr Schultz – An elderly Jewish fruit shop owner who falls
Kat Klub. in love with Fräulein Schneider.

Ernst Ludwig – A German man who befriends Cliff when Sally Bowles - The headlining British singer at the Kit Kat
he arrives in Berlin. Klub.

Clifford Bradshaw – An American writer traveling Bobby, Victor, Max – Cabaret boys at the Kit Kat Klub.
through Berlin.
Kit Kat Klub Girls – Girls who perform alongside Sally at the
Fräulein Schneider – An older woman who runs the Kit Kat Klub.
boarding house that Cliff and Sally live in.

Fräulein Kost – A prostitute who rents a room in Fräulein
Schneider's boarding house.
Kansas City Repertory Theatre: Cabaret | 3

CABARET
CABARET
LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
SONG LIST
ACT ONE ACT TWO

Willkommen Entr’acte
(Emcee, Ensemble)
Kick Line (If You Could See Her)
Welcome to Berlin (Willkommen) (Emcee and Klub Girls)
(Emcee)
Married (Reprise)
So What? (Herr Schultz)
(Fräulein Schneider)
If You Could See Her
Don’t Tell Mama (Emcee)
(Sally and Klub Girls)
What Would You Do?
Telephone Song (Fräulein Schneider)
(Cliff, Klub Girls, Male Patrons)
I Don’t Care Much
Perfectly Marvelous (Emcee)
(Sally and Cliff )
Cabaret
Two Ladies (Sally)
(Emcee and Klub Girls)

It Couldn’t Please Me More
(Fräulein Schneider and Herr Schultz)

Tomorrow Belongs to Me
(Chorus of Waiters and Emcee)

Don’t Go
(Cliff )

The Money Song and Sitting Pretty
(Emcee, Klub Girls, Bankers)

Married
(Herr Schultz and Fräulein Schneider) Members in the cast of the Rep’s production of Cabaret. Photo by Sean Dane.

Tomorrow Belongs to Me (Reprise)
(Fräulein Kost, Ernst, Ensemble)


THE MUSIC & LYRICS
CABARET
JOHN KANDER & FRED EBB
When composer John Kander teamed with lyricist Fred Ebb in 1962, they forged one
of the longest-running and most successful creative partnerships in Broadway
history. Their bold, brassy style gave rise to a series of enormously popular and
provocative musicals including Cabaret, Chicago, and Kiss of the Spider Woman.

John Kander was born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1927 and began studying music as a
child. In Kansas City, Kander attended The Pembroke Country-Day School and later
studied at Oberlin College in Ohio before earning a Master's degree at Columbia
University.

Kander began his Broadway career as substitute rehearsal pianist for West Side Story.
The stage manager for West Side Story then asked Kander to play for the auditions
for her next show, Gypsy. During the auditions, Kander met the choreographer,
Jerome Robbins, who suggested that Kander compose the dance music for the show
in 1959. After that experience, Kander wrote dance arrangements for Irma la Douce
in 1960. He made his Broadway debut as a composer with A Family Affair in 1962. THE WORKS OF KANDER AND EBB
The show flopped, but it introduced his talents to the show’s young producer, Harold
Prince. That same year Kander met Fred Ebb and began a songwriting collaboration
MUSICALS
that would last for more than four decades.
Flora, the Red Menace (1965)
Cabaret (1966)
Fred Ebb was born in 1928 in New York. During his adult life, Ebb did anything but
Go Fly a Kite (1966)
music—he bronzed baby shoes, was a trucker’s assistant and worked at a hosiery
an industrial musical for G.E.
company. However, in 1955 he graduated from New York University with a degree in
The Happy Time (1968)
English Literature and earned his Master’s degree from Columbia University two
Zorba (1968)
years later. Ebb wrote his first book musical, Morning Sun, with Paul Klein in 1962.
70, Girls, 70 (1971)
Like Kander’s first Broadway experience, this show was also a flop, running for only
Chicago (1975)
eight performances.
2 by 5 (1976)
The Act (1978)
In 1962, John Kander was introduced to Fred Ebb and the two began working
Woman of the Year (1981)
together. Their first song, My Coloring Book, was nominated for a Grammy Award.
The Rink (1984)
Golden Gate was Kander and Ebb’s first theatrical collaboration, but it never opened
And The World Goes ’Round (1991)
on Broadway. Harold Prince was still enthusiastic about the pair and hired them for
Kiss of the Spider Woman (1992)
Flora, The Red Menace in 1965 and the team of Kander and Ebb was solidified. Their
Steel Pier (1997)
collaboration continued with 1966's Cabaret which rocketed the duo to massive
Fosse (1999)
critical and commercial success, winning seven Tony awards (including Best Musical)
Over And Over (1999)
on its way to a run of 1,165 performances and an Oscar-winning film adaptation.
The Visit (2001)
Kander and Ebb resurfaced in 1968 with two new musicals, The Happy Time and
Liza’s Back (2002)
Zorba, followed three years later by 70, Girls, 70. In 1972, they also composed a
Curtains (2006)
number of songs for Liza Minnelli's Emmy-winning television special Liza With a Z.
The Scottsboro Boys (2010)
After contributing material to Barbra Streisand's 1975 film Funny Lady, Kander and
Ebb launched Chicago, which was largely overlooked during its original run but was
FILMS
revived to massive success two decades later. In 1977, they scored Martin Scorsese's
Cabaret (1972)
film musical New York, New York; the title song later became a signature hit for
Funny Lady (1975)
Frank Sinatra as well as the Big Apple's unofficial theme song. Also that year, the duo
New York, New York (1977)
launched The Act on Broadway.
Chicago (2002)

THE MUSIC & LYRICS CABARET
JOHN KANDER & FRED EBB - CONTINUED LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
After a four year absence from the stage, Kander and Ebb returned with 1981's Woman of the Year, a vehicle
for Hollywood legend Lauren Bacall which earned four Tonys; three years later, they debuted The Rink, but
were otherwise largely silent for the remainder of the decade. Their 1991 induction into the New York Theatre
Hall of Fame coincided with the premiere of And the World Goes 'Round, an off-Broadway tribute revue
featuring dozens of their songs. In 1993 Kiss of the Spider Woman returned Kander and Ebb to their past
prominence, netting Best Musical honors from the New York Drama Critics as well as a handful of Tony
awards, including Best Actress accolades for star Chita Rivera. Steel Pier followed in 1997, and later that same
year Kander and Ebb were announced as recipients of the 21st annual Kennedy Center Honors.

Kander and Ebb have received one Grammy nomination, four Tony Awards, two Academy Award nominations,
four Emmy nominations (of which two awards were won), three Golden Globe nominations, one Laurence
Olivier Theatre Award, a Joseph Jefferson Award, were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, recognized
with Kennedy Center Honors, and granted honorary doctorate degrees from Niagara University. The musicals
Cabaret and Chicago have been made into films; the film version of Chicago won the 2002 Academy Award for
Best Picture.

Throughout their long, fruitful career together, Kander and Ebb were never known to have had an argument or
a falling out. “When we’re at our best, we sound like one person,” said Kander. The Scottsboro Boys marked
the end of their partnership with the death of Fred Ebb in 2004. At the time of Ebb’s death, the team had
several projects in the works including The Visit, All About Us (a musical adaptation of Thornton Wilder’s play
The Skin of Our Teeth), and Curtains.

Of Kander and Ebb, David Richards of The Washington Post writes, "Their signature tunes --Cabaret, New York,
New York, How Lucky Can You Get, Maybe This Time, All That Jazz, -- are big, brassy, upbeat, numbers, usually
about going out into the world and grabbing a piece of the action before it's too late. Kander and Ebb are
arguably Broadway's foremost advocates of the power of positive songwriting."

THE BOOK
JOE MASTEROFF
Joe Masteroff is the Tony Award-winning writer of Cabaret. Born in Pennsylvania in 1919, Masteroff graduated
from Temple University in 1940 and went on to serve in World War II for four years in the US Air Force. He
studied theater at the American Theater Wing, an educational theatrical organization, from 1949-1951.

Masteroff's first play to open on Broadway was The Warm Peninsula, which debuted at the Helen Hayes
Theater in 1959 after a national tour. Four years later, Masteroff was nominated for a Tony Award for Best
Author of a Musical for the book of She Loves Me with music and lyrics by Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick. In
1966, Masteroff was commissioned by Harold Prince to write the book for Cabaret. With music and lyrics by
John Kander and Fred Ebb, Cabaret won the Tony for Best Musical and ran for 1,165 performances. Masteroff's
next and final Broadway project, 70, Girls, 70, also with Kander and Ebb, was less successful, closing exactly one
month after it opened.

Masteroff also wrote the libretto for an operatic version of Eugene O'Neill's Desire Under the Elms and the
book and lyrics for a production of Six Wives. He also wrote the musical Paramour, based on Jean Anouilh's
The Waltz of the Toreadors.

THE PRODUCTION CABARET
THE EVOLUTION OF CABARET
1939 - Goodbye to Berlin
The musical Cabaret is based in part on Goodbye to Berlin, a short novel by Christopher
Isherwood. It is often published together with Mr. Norris Changes Trains in a collection
called The Berlin Stories.

The novel, a semi-autobiographical account of Isherwood's time in 1930s Berlin, describes
life in the crumbling Weimar Republic before the Nazis rose to power. The book, first
published in 1939, highlights the groups of people who would be most at risk from Nazi
intimidation and oppression. In 2010, The Berlin Stories was chosen as a TIME 100 Best
English-Language Novels of the 20th Century.

1951 - I Am a Camera
John Van Druten used Isherwood’s Goodbye to Berlin as the inspiration for his play I Am a
Camera. In 1951, I Am a Camera premiered on Broadway; it was subsequently made into a
film in 1955.

The Broadway play starred Julie Harris as Sally Bowles, who won the first of her four Tony
Awards for Best Leading Actress in a play.

The 1955 film starred Julie Harris, Laurence Harvey and Shelley Winters, with music by
Malcolm Arnold.

1966 - Cabaret
Based on both I Am a Camera and Goodbye to Berlin, Cabaret, with music by John Kander,
lyrics by Fred Ebb, and book by Joe Masteroff, opened on Broadway in 1966. Directed by
Harold Prince and choreographed by Ron Field, this Tony awarding-winning production ran
for 1,165 performances. The opening night cast included Jill Haworth as Sally, Bert Convy as
Cliff, Lotte Lenya as Fräulein Schneider, Jack Gilford as Herr Schultz, and Joel Grey as the
Emcee, with Edward Winter and Peg Murray in supporting roles.

Awards
Tony Award for Best Musical
Tony Award for Best Score
Tony Award for Best Composer and Lyrics
Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Joel Grey)
Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Peg Murray)
Tony Award for Best Scenic Design (Boris Aronson)
Tony Award for Best Costume Design (Patricia Zipprodt)
Tony Award for Best Choreography (Ron Field)
Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical (Hal Prince)

THE PRODUCTION CABARET
THE EVOLUTION OF CABARET - CONTINUED LEARNING GUIDE | 2011

1972 Film
The film version of Cabaret was directed by Bob Fosse and stars Liza Minnelli, Michael York and
Joel Grey. The film is loosely based on the 1966 Broadway musical. Only a few numbers from
the stage score were used; Kander and Ebb wrote new ones to replace those that were
discarded. In the film version, musical numbers are confined to the stage of the cabaret and to
a beer garden. Only two of the film's major characters sing any songs.

Awards
Academy Award for Best Director (Bob Fosse)
Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role (Liza Minnelli)
Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor (Joel Grey)
Academy Award for Best Cinematography (Geoffrey Unsworth)
Academy Award for Best Editing
Academy Award for Best Music
Academy Award for Best Art Direction (Rolf Zehetbauer, Hans Jürgen Kiebach, Herbert Strabel)
Academy Award for Best Sound

1987 First Broadway Revival
After 18 previews, the first Broadway revival of Cabaret, again directed by Prince and
choreographed by Field, opened at the Imperial Theatre, eventually transferring to the
Minskoff to complete its 261 performance run. Joel Grey received star billing as the Emcee,
with Alyson Reed as Sally, Gregg Edelman as Cliff, Regina Resnik as Fräulein Schneider, and
Werner Klemperer as Herr Schultz.

1998 Second Broadway Revival
The second Broadway revival was based on the 1993 Sam Mendes-directed Donmar
Warehouse production from London. Co-directed by Mendes and Rob Marshall and
choreographed by Marshall, it opened at the Kit Kat Klub, housed in what previously had been
known as Henry Miller's Theatre. Later that year it transferred to Studio 54, where it remained
for the rest of its 2,377 performance run, becoming the third longest-running revival in
Broadway musical history, third only to Oh! Calcutta! and Chicago. In addition to Alan
Cumming as the Emcee, the original cast included Natasha Richardson as Sally, John Benjamin
Hickey as Cliff, Ron Rifkin as Herr Schultz, and Mary Louise Wilson as Fräulein Schneider.

Awards
Tony Award for Best Revival
Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (Alan Cumming)
Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical (Natasha Richardson)
Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Ron Rifkin)
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Musical
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actor in a Musical (Alan Cumming)
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical (Natasha Richardson)

THE INSPIRATION CABARET
CHRISTOPHER ISHERWOOD

Christopher Isherwood
1904-1986

Cabaret is based in part on Goodbye to Berlin, a short of Sally Bowles. Ross shared a lodging house with Isher-
novel often found in the collection The Berlin Stories, by wood and gave him permission to use her experiences in
Christopher Isherwood. Isherwood, a British-born Berlin but, in reality, Ross was nothing like the character
American writer, is known primarily for his fiction, much Sally was to become. Isherwood, however, was
of which is based largely on his own life. captivated by her dynamic personality and lack of sexual
inhibitions and would use these traits as aspects of Sally.
Born in England in 1904, Isherwood spent his childhood Ross ultimately went to great lengths to avoid public
in various towns where his father, a career military association with the character and, only after Ross’
officer, was stationed. Upon his father’s death in World death in 1973, did Isherwood publicly acknowledge that
War I, Isherwood settled with his mother in London. she had been his inspiration.

Isherwood’s formative years were spent at preparatory Isherwood’s experiences in Berlin formed the basis of
schools, beginning in 1914, at St. Edmund’s School his most-widely known works: Mr. Norris Changes Trains
where he first met future poet W. H. Auden. From 1919- (1935) and Goodbye to Berlin (1939). The books were
1922, he attended the Repton School and then, in 1924, reissued together, in 1946, as The Berlin Stories and
began his studies at Cambridge University. While at present an in-depth portrait of life in Germany's capital
Cambridge, he was reintroduced to Auden and would as the Weimar Republic collapsed and the Nazis came to
become Auden's literary mentor and close friend. power. These works provided the inspiration for John
Though educated at Cambridge, Isherwood left in 1925 Van Druten’s play I Am a Camera (1951), the 1955 film
without a degree. I Am a Camera, the Broadway musical Cabaret (1966)
and the film (1972) of the same name.
While serving as a private tutor, Isherwood’s first novel,
All the Conspirators (1928), was published. For a brief After leaving Berlin in 1933, Isherwood moved around
time, Isherwood studied medicine at King's College Europe, collaborating on three plays with Auden: The
London but gave up his studies after six months to join Dog Beneath the Skin (1935), The Ascent of F6 (1936),
Auden in Berlin. It was in Berlin that Isherwood met and On the Frontier (1939). During this time Isherwood
nineteen-year-old nightclub singer Jean Ross, who also wrote a lightly fictionalized autobiographical
would become the inspiration for his fictional character

CABARET
THE INSPIRATION LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
CHRISTOPHER ISHERWOOD - CONTINUED
account of his childhood and youth, Lions
and Shadows (1938). Frequent traveling
partners, Auden and Isherwood traveled
to China in 1938 to gather material for
their book on the Sino-Japanese War
called Journey to a War (1939).

In 1939, after visiting New York on their
way back to Britain, Auden and
Isherwood decided to emigrate to the
United States; Isherwood became an
American citizen in 1946. Settling in
southern California, Isherwood wrote for
Hollywood films and began a life-long
interest in Hindu philosophy which would
greatly influence his future work. During
this period, Isherwood befriended such
luminaries as Truman Capote, Aldous
Huxley, Bertrand Russell, Ray Bradbury
and the Russian composer Igor
Stravinsky.
Jean Ross, the inspiration for the character of Sally
Among Isherwood’s later works are Bowles in Christopher Isherwood’s Goodbye to Berlin.

Prater Violet (1945), The World in the
Evening (1954), Down There on a Visit Isherwood taught at Los Angeles State
(1962), and A Single Man (1964). College, the University of California at
Considered by many as his finest Santa Barbara and University of
achievement, A Single Man depicts a California at Los Angeles. In 1975 he
day in the life of George, a middle-aged, won the Brandeis Medal for Fiction.
gay Englishman as he mourns the death Isherwood died in 1986.
of his partner. A Single Man was adapted
into a film of the same name in 2009,
directed and adapted by Tom Ford and
starring Colin Firth. Isherwood’s own
homosexuality factored prominently in
many of his works. In his 1971 biography
of his parents, Kathleen and Frank, he
explicitly revealed his homosexuality. His
memoir, Christopher and His Kind (1972)
would help fuel the burgeoning gay
liberation movement in the U.S. during
the 1970s.


THE INSPIRATION
CABARET
CHRISTOPHER ISHERWOOD - CONTINUED

All the Conspirators (1928)
The Memorial (1932)
Mr. Norris Changes Trains (1935)
The Dog Beneath the Skin (1935)
The Ascent of F6 (1937)
On the Frontier (1938)
Lions and Shadows (1938)
Goodbye to Berlin (1939)
Journey to a War (1939)
Prater Violet (1945)
The Berlin Stories (1945)
The Condor and the Cows (1949)
What Vedanta Means to Me (1951)
The World in the Evening (1954)
Down There on a Visit (1962)
An Approach to Vedanta (1963) Christopher Isherwood (left) with his friend and
A Single Man (1964) frequent traveling partner, W. H. Auden.
Ramakrishna and His Disciples (1965)
Exhumations (1966)
A Meeting by the River (1967)
Essentials of Vedanta (1969)
Kathleen and Frank (1971)
Frankenstein: The True Story (1973)
Christopher and His Kind (1976)
My Guru and His Disciple (1980)
October (1980)
The Mortmere Stories (1994)

Where Joy Resides: An Isherwood Reader (1989)
Don Bachardy and James P. White, editors

Diaries: 1939–1960 (1996)
Katherine Bucknell, editor

Lost Years: A Memoir 1945–1951 (2000)
Katherine Bucknell, editor

Kathleen and Christopher (2005)
Lisa Colletta, editor

Isherwood on Writing (2007)
James Berg, editor


CULTURAL CONTEXT
CABARET
THE CABARET IN WEIMAR BERLIN
During the 1920s, Berlin was a metropolis of
dramatic contrasts. Blind, maimed and
despondent World War I veterans begged on
busy sidewalks. As inflation raged out of
control, Berliners lined up with laundry
baskets and wheelbarrows of paper money
to buy their daily bread. Valued possessions
were sold in desperation, and comfortable
private apartments became rooming houses.

The same decade brought the electrification
of Berlin’s rail system, the opening of
Tempelhof Airport, and the luminescence of
the city’s entertainment districts: the
Kurfuerstendamm and Charlottenburg
theaters, the Friedrichstrasse and Unter den
Linden movie palaces and glamorous revues,
and the cabarets. Kabarett der Komiker (Cabaret of Comedians) in Berlin.

Although the French “cabaret” and the
German “kabarett” were terms used inter-
changeably in Berlin during the 1920s, the
latter was distinguished by its focus on
poetry, songs, and satirical sketches
skewering everything—from fads and
fashion to sex and politics—all of which
appealed to the artistic and educated crowd.
As the popularity of these edgy, smaller
establishments grew, larger spaces were
required to accommodate patrons and
political content was toned down.

Berlin’s cabarets of the 1920s took
inspiration from those of the early century,
like Ernst Wohlzogen’s Ueberbrettl, with its
nod to Nietzsche’s “Uebermensch” concept,
and Max Reinhardt’s famous Schall und
Rauch, with its reference to Goethe’s notion
that a name is nothing but “sound and
smoke.” Reinhardt’s goal was to “give joy
back to humanity,” to create a bright and
beautiful realm in which the miseries of daily
existence could be forgotten. Schall und
Rauch was the first cabaret to reopen after
World War I (December 8, 1919).

CULTURAL CONTEXT CABARET
THE CABARET IN WEIMAR BERLIN - CONTINUED LEARNING GUIDE | 2011

When historians speak of the “Golden Twenties,” they are
really referring to the second half of that decade: 1924-
1929. It was during this five-year period, between the end
of out-of-control inflation and the shocking collapse of the
world economy in 1929, that cabaret came to mean lines
of dancing girls in spectacular, glittery costumes, risqué
and nude dancing, and the dynamic rhythms of American
jazz. Josephine Baker, fresh from Parisian cabarets, first
appeared on a Berlin stage in 1926.

1924 saw the birth of Kadeko (Kabarett der Komiker), the
most popular Weimar era cabaret. Performers there
mocked Hitler and the National Socialists in general, which
seemed safe at that time. But by 1931, Nazi party
membership was growing and with it, threats to those
who dared to disagree with its agenda. Kadeko was put on
notice by the Nazi newspaper, Voelkischer Beobachter and Berlin’s Weisse Maus (White Mouse). In addition to the standard cabaret fare,
Berliners were afraid even to walk near the cabaret. naked ‘beauty dances’ were staged after midnight. Customers who wished to
conceal their identities were given a choice of a black or white mask to wear.
Friedrich Hollaender’s newly-opened Tingel Tangel
cabaret, suffered a similar fate. One by one, cabarets
eliminated political commentary until little of substance
was to be found at Berlin’s cabarets. By this time, many
Jewish and left-leaning cabaretists, artists and intellectuals
had already left their homeland. Tragically, their
supposed safe havens in the Netherlands, Poland and
Czechoslovakia could not protect them.

In January 1933, the Nazi party won a majority in the
Reichstag and Hitler assumed the position of Chancellor.
He wasted no time in suspending the Weimar
Constitution, purging Berlin of its liberal factions:
communists, socialists, trade unionists and other so-called
degenerates. The rest of the story is all too familiar:
suicides, arrests, torture, executions, transport to
concentration camps, death. In an act of supreme irony,
cabaretists sent to Teresienstadt, the Nazi’s “showplace”
concentration camp, continued to perform in stripes for
their fellow prisoners and international inspectors until
their services were no longer needed. World War II
would follow.

By Jan Schall, Ph.D., Sanders Sosland Curator of
Modern and Contemporary Art at The Nelson-Atkins
Museum of Art
See bio on page 14.


CABARET
CULTURAL CONTEXT
THE “DEGENERATE ART” EXHIBIT OF 1937
“Degenerate art” is the English translation of the German entartete
Kunst, a term adopted by the Nazi regime in Germany to describe
virtually all modern art. Such art was banned on the grounds that it
was un-German or Jewish Bolshevist in nature, and those identified as
degenerate artists were subjected to sanctions. These included being
dismissed from teaching positions, being forbidden to exhibit or to sell
their art, and in some cases being forbidden to produce art entirely.
Degenerate Art was also the title of an exhibition, mounted by the
Nazis in Munich in 1937, consisting of modernist artworks chaotically
hung and accompanied by text labels deriding the art. Designed to
inflame public opinion against modernism, the exhibition
subsequently traveled to several other cities in Germany and Austria. Joseph Goebbels and Nazi officials taking in the "Degenerate Art"
Exhibition, 1937.
Many of the artists included in the Entartete Kunst exhibition are now
considered masters of the twentieth century including Marc Chagall, Otto Dix, Edvard Munch, Paul Klee and Wassily
Kandinsky. These and other avant-garde German artists were considered both enemies of the state and a threat to
German culture. Those who remained in Germany were forbidden to work at universities and were subject to surprise
raids by the Gestapo in order to ensure that they were not violating the ban on producing artwork. Although no artists
were put to death because of their work, those of Jewish descent who did not escape from Germany in time were sent to
concentration camps.
For more information about the Degenerate Art Exhibit visit A Teacher’s Guide to the Holocaust at http://fcit.usf.edu/holocaust/arts/artDegen.htm.

KC Rep Scholars’ Forum - Saturday, April 2 onstage at Spencer Theatre following the
2pm performance
Berlin Cabaret and Life between the Wars. Join Jan Schall, Ph.D., Sanders Sosland Curator,
Modern and Contemporary Art at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art to discuss the history and
background of Cabaret. This post-show forum is free and open to the public.

Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art Gallery Tour - Sunday, April 3 at 2 pm
Declaring War on Art: Hitler, the Cabaret and “Degenerate” Art. Meet in Gallery P27.
Call 816-751-1ART (1278) to reserve space. This tour will be given by Jan Schall, Ph.D.,
Sanders Sosland Curator, Modern and Contemporary Art.

Jan Schall is Sanders Sosland Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. A specialist
in modern German art, she holds a doctorate in art history from the University of Texas, Austin and is a former professor
of art history at the University of Florida. At the Nelson-Atkins, Schall curated the millennium exhibition Tempus Fugit:
Time Flies and produced its accompanying catalogue and award-winning website. Other Museum exhibitions include Kiki
Smith: Constellation, the five-part New Media series, Sparks! , Magnificent Gifts for the 75th, Inventing the Shuttlecocks,
Re: Installations, and a host of works on paper exhibitions. Her most recent publications include Sparks! “Meditations on
Cruelty and Compassion” in Zhi Lin: Crossing History/Crossing Cultures; “City as Psychic Envelope” in The Sublimated City;
and “Curating Ephemera: Responsibility and Reality” in (Im)permanence: Cultures in/out of Time. Schall’s research has
been supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD),
and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.


TIMELINE
Cabaret is set in Berlin, Germany in 1929 amidst the crumbling Weimar Republic. Born out of Germany’s
defeat in World War I, the Weimar Republic spanned from 1919-1933. In the words of Marcus Bollucks,
professor of English at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, "Remarkable for the way it emerged from a
catastrophe, more remarkable for the way it vanished into a still greater catastrophe, the world of Weimar
represents modernism in its most vivid manifestation." Use the following timeline to help you better
understand the world outside the Kit Kat Klub.

1918
Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm abdicates.
First German Republic established.
First World War ends on November 11, 1918.

Kaiser Wilhelm
1919
Treaty of Versailles signed.
Weimar Constitution announced.
Hitler sent to infiltrate German Workers’ Party.

1920
German Workers’ Party changes to National Socialist German Workers’ Party
Adolf Hitler (Nazis). Membership is 2,000.

1921
Hitler becomes leader of the Nazi Party. He becomes "Der Führer" (The Leader).

1922
670 German Reichsmark = 1 US dollar.
Benito Mussolini establishes a Fascist dictatorship in Italy.
Benito Mussolini

1923
Reichsmark virtually useless; 10,000,000 = 1 US dollar.
German currency eventually stabilized; 4.2 Rentenmarks = 1 US dollar.

1924
Hitler imprisoned for rioting (Munich Beer Hall Putsch). Sentenced for five years,
he will only serve nine months.

Children play with virtually
worthless German marks.


TIMELINE - CONTINUED CABARET

1925
Hitler gives his first speech since release from prison.
Hitler’s Mein Kampf (My Struggle) is published.

1926
Germany joins the League of Nations.

Mein Kampf

1927
Germany’s Unemployment Insurance Law passed.

1928
Hitler speaking ban lifted in Bavaria.
Kadeko (Kabarett der Komiker) opens in Berlin.
Adolf Hitler.

1929
Treaty of Versailles reworked to allow Germany’s reparations to be paid over
58 years.
US stock market crashes - start of world economic collapse.
Christopher Isherwood arrives in Berlin; keeps detailed diary.
The events portrayed in Cabaret take place.

1930
Distressed Americans at
Britain, U.S., Japan, France, and Italy sign naval disarmament treaty.
the height of the world Reichstag dissolved.
economic collapse.
New Reichstag elections; Nazis gain seats.

1931
Four million unemployed in Germany.
Membership in Nazi party reaches 800,000.
German bank crisis.
Tingel-Tangel cabaret opens in Berlin.
Bread lines during Germany’s Depression.

1932
Nazis gain majority in German elections with 230 Reichstag seats.

1933
Hitler appointed German chancellor, gets dictatorial powers.
Germany and Japan withdraw from League of Nations.
Hitler establishes the Third Reich; Nazi Party declared Germany's only political
party.
Inmates at a concentration camp outside of
Berlin.
First concentration camp opened at Oranienburg outside Berlin.
Nazi boycott of Jewish owned shops.
Nazis open Dachau concentration camp.
Isherwood leaves Berlin.

TIMELINE - CONTINUED CABARET

1937
Isherwood publishes Goodbye to Berlin.
The “Degenerate Art” (Entartete Kunst) exhibition opens in Munich.

1938
Kristallnacht (also to referred to as the Night of Broken Glass), a series of attacks
Joseph Goebbels and Nazi officials taking in against Jews, occurs throughout Nazi Germany and parts of Austria.
the "Degenerate Art" Exhibition, 1937.

1939
World War II begins.

1941
Hermann Goering orders the Waffen-SS, the multi-national military force of the Third
Reich, to prepare “the final solution” (murder of European Jews).

A destroyed Berlin, 1945.
1945
Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Dachau concentration camps liberated.
Hitler commits suicide.
Germany and Japan surrender.
World War II ends.

1946
Isherwood publishes The Berlin Stories containing the short stories Goodbye to
Berlin and Mr. Norris Changes Trains.

1951
I Am a Camera, John Van Druten’s stage adaptation of Goodbye to Berlin, opens
on Broadway.
Script of John Van Druten’s
I Am a Camera, (1951).
1966
Cabaret, with book by Joe Masteroff, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred
Ebb, opens on Broadway. The production, directed by Hal Prince, will run 1,165
performances.

1972
The film version of Cabaret, directed by Bob Fosse, is released.

The 1972 film version of Cabaret starred Liza
Minnelli as Sally Bowles and was directed by Bob
Fosse.

CULTURAL CONTEXT
CABARET
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
As Adolf Hitler and the Nazis rose to power, life changed drastically for many in
Germany. The following terms give a snapshot of the turbulent political and social
world at the time of Cabaret.

Anti-semitism: Opposition to and discrimination against
Jews.

Aryan: A term for peoples speaking the language of
Europe and India. In Nazi racial theory, a person of pure
German "blood." The term "non-Aryan" was used to
designate Jews, part-Jews and others of supposedly
inferior racial stock.

Beer Hall Putsch /pootch/: On November 8, 1923, Hitler,
with the help of the Sturmabteilung (Stormtroopers), a
paramilitary organization of the Nazi Party, and German
World War I hero General Erich Ludendorff, launched a
failed coup attempt in Bavaria at a meeting of Bavarian
officials in a beer hall. Adolf Hitler (1889-1945).

Brüning, Heinrich /brooning hainrikh/: Appointed by Chancellor: Chief (prime) minister of Germany.
President von Hindenburg in 1930, he was the first
chancellor under the new presidential system which Communism: A concept or system of society in which
ruled by emergency decree rather than laws passed by the collective community shares ownership in resources
the Reichstag. and the means of production. In theory, such societies
provide for equal sharing of all work, according to ability,
Bystander: One who is present at an event without and all benefits, according to need. In 1848, Karl Marx, in
participating in it. collaboration with Friedrich Engels, published the
Communist Manifesto which provided the theoretical
Cabaret /kabaray/: Large restaurant providing food, impetus for the Russian Bolshevik Revolution in 1917.
drink, music, a dance floor, and floor show.
Enabling Act: The Enabling Act, ratified on March 23,
1933, allowed the government emergency powers: to
pass decrees without referring to the president and
eventually create new laws. This helped the new Nazi
regime to establish a firm footing in the Reichstag.

Fascism: A social and political ideology with the primary
guiding principle that the state or nation is the highest
priority, rather than personal or individual freedoms.

Führer /fewra/: Leader. Adolf Hitler's title in Nazi
Germany.

The Winter Garden, Berlin’s most famous cabaret. Note the Nazi flag in the
foreground.


GLOSSARY OF TERMS - CONTINUED

German Workers' Party (Deutsche Arbeiterpartei)/
doiche abaitapatai/: As the precursor to the Nazi Party,
Hitler joined the right-wing Deutsche Arbeiterpartei
(DAP) in 1919. The party espoused national pride,
militarism, a commitment to the Volk, and a racially
"pure" Germany.

Great Depression: A deep, worldwide, economic
contraction beginning in 1929 which caused particular
hardship in Germany which was already reeling from
huge reparation payments following World War I and
hyperinflation. Members of the Hitler Youth.

Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945) /ahdolf hitla/: Nazi party The Nazi (National Socialist German Workers') Party:
leader, 1919-1945. German Chancellor,1933-1945. The National Socialist German Workers’ Party, or NSDAP,
Called Führer, or supreme leader, by the Nazis. was founded in Germany on January 5, 1919. It was
characterized by a centralist and authoritarian structure.
Hitler Youth: Hitler Jugend /hitla yoogend/ was a Nazi Its platform was based on militaristic, racial, anti-semitic
youth auxiliary group established in 1926. It expanded and nationalistic policies. Nazi Party membership and
during the Third Reich. Membership was compulsory political power grew dramatically in the 1930s, partly
after 1939. based on political propaganda, mass rallies and
demonstrations.
Homophobia: Fear of homosexuals.
Nuremberg Laws: The Nuremberg Laws were announced
League of German Girls: Female counterpart of the by Hitler at the Nuremberg Party conference, defining
Hitler Youth formed in 1927 but not formerly integrated "Jew" and systematizing and regulating discrimination
by Hitler until 1932. and persecution. The "Reich Citizenship Law" deprived
all Jews of their civil rights, and the "Law for the
Mein Kampf /mine kahmpf/: Meaning "My Struggle," it Protection of German Blood and German Honor" made
was the ideological base for the Nazi Party's racist beliefs marriages and extra-marital sexual relationships
and murderous practices. Published in 1925, this work between Jews and Germans punishable by
detailed Hitler's radical ideas of German nationalism, imprisonment.
anti-semitism, anti-Bolshevism, and Social Darwinism
which advocated survival of the fittest. Pogrom: An organized and often officially encouraged
massacre of or attack on Jews. The word is derived from
Nationalism: The policy or doctrine of asserting two Russian words that mean "thunder."
the interests of one's own nation, viewed as separate
from the interests of other nations or the common Prejudice: A judgment or opinion formed before the
interests of all nations. facts are known. In most cases, these opinions are
founded on suspicion, intolerance, and the irrational
National Socialist Women's Association: The NS hatred of other races, religions, creeds, or nationalities.
Frauenschaft /frouenshahft/ was an organization
intended to recruit an elite group of women for the Propaganda: False or partly false information used by a
Nazis. government or political party intended to sway the
opinions of the population.
National Socialist Teachers' Association: Established by
the National Socialist German Workers’ Party in 1927, it Reich /raikh/: German word for “empire.”
assumed responsibility for the ideological indoctrination
of teachers.

GLOSSARY OF TERMS - CONTINUED
Sudetenland /zoodeytenlahnt/: Formerly Austrian
German-speaking territories in Bohemia which were
incorporated into Czechoslovakia after World War I.

Treaty of Versailles /versai/: Germany and the Allies
signed a peace treaty at the end of World War I. The
United States, Great Britain, France, and Italy negotiated
the treaty at the Peace Conference held in Versailles
beginning on January 18, 1919. The German Republic
government which replaced the imperial administration
was excluded from the deliberations. The treaty created
the Covenant of the League of Nations, outlined
Germany's disarmament, exacted massive reparation
On March 7, 1936, Hitler went to the Reichstag and announced that he had payments from Germany, and forced Germany to cede
just sent 35,000 troops across the border of the demilitarized zone into the large tracts of territory to various European
Rhineland.
nation-states.
Reichskammern /raikskaman/: Reich government
departments. Volk /folk/: The concept of Volk (people, nation, or
race) has been an underlying idea in German history
Reichstag /raikhstag/: The German Parliament. On since the early nineteenth century. Inherent in the name
February 27, 1933, a staged fire burned the Reichstag was a feeling of superiority of German culture and the
building. A month later, on March 23, 1933, the idea of a universal mission for the German people.
Reichstag approved the Enabling Act which gave Hitler
unlimited dictatorial power. Weimar Republic /vaimahr/: The German republic and
experiment in democracy (1919-1933) which was
SA (Sturmabteilung /shtoormabtailung/ or Storm established after the end of World War I.
Troopers): Also known as "Brown Shirts," they were the
Nazi party's main instrument for undermining
democracy and facilitating Adolf Hitler's rise to power.
The SA was the predominant terrorizing arm of the Nazi
party from 1923 until "The Night of the Long Knives" in
1934. They continued to exist throughout the Third
Reich, but were of lesser political significance after 1934.

Scapegoat: Person or group of people blamed for crimes
committed by others.

Social Darwinism: A concept based on the idea of
"survival of the fittest." Based on Social Darwinism, Nazis
created a pseudo-scientific brand of racism which was
most virulent when directed against the Jews, but
others, particularly Slavs, were not exempt.

Socialism: A theory or system of social organization that The main signatories of the Treaty of Versailles were (from left) Prime
advocates the ownership and control of land, capital, Minister Vittorio Orlando from Italy, Prime Minister David Lloyd George from
Britain, Prime Minister Georges Clemenceau from France and President
industry, etc. by the community as a whole. In Marxist Woodrow Wilson from the United States. These leaders were known as the
theory it represents the stage following capitalism in a 'Big Four' and met to decide the fate of Germany after the First World War.
state transforming to communism.


THE LANGUAGE
Cabaret contains many German and French phrases. Use the guide below to help
you translate any unfamiliar terms. How does the use of these languages help to
convey a sense of time and place?

German French
In order of appearance in the script In order of appearance in the script

willkommen - welcome bienvenue - welcome
fremde - stranger, foreigner étranger - stranger, foreigner
Glücklich su sehen - Happy to see you Je suis enchanté - I am delighted.
bleibe - a place to stay reste - rest
Meine Damen und Herren - Ladies and Gentlemen Mesdames et Messieurs - Ladies and Gentlemen
Guten abend - Good evening Bon soir - Good evening
Wie geht’s - How are you doing? Comment ça va- How is it going?
Ich bin euer Conferencier - I am your Master of Ceremonies. Je suis votre Compère- I am your Master of Ceremonies.
Und sage - And say
Wir sagen - We say
Deutsche Grenzkontrolle - German border control
Ihr pass, bitte - Your passport, please.
Nein. Auf eine urlaubsreise. - No. On a vacation trip.
Öffnen Sie bitte Ihren Koffer. - Please open your suitcase.
Haben Sie nur diesen einen Koffer? - If you have only this one case?
Ja Das is alles. - Yes That is all.
Ja! Gut! - Yes! Good!
Hals-und Beinbruch - Break a leg
Groschen - a penny
Eins, zwei, drei, vier - One, two, three, four
Sech, sieben, acht - Six, seven, eight
Liebchen! - Darling!
Letzte Ansage! - Last announcement!
Bahnsteig siebzehn - Platform five p.m.
Alle einsteigen, bitte. - All aboard, please.


THE PRODUCTION
CABARET
ERIC ROSEN - DIRECTOR

Eric Rosen is a nationally recognized playwright, director Regional credits include work at Steppenwolf, the Goodman,
and producer and the fourth artistic director in the 45-year Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Hartford Stage, Cincinnati
history of Kansas City Repertory Theatre. He is also co- Playhouse, St. Louis Rep, 7 Stages in Atlanta, and workshops
founder and former artistic director of Chicago’s acclaimed at Playwrights Horizons and Center Theatre Group.
About Face Theatre, where he developed, wrote, produced
and/or directed nearly 30 world premieres in his thirteen As dramaturg and producer, Rosen collaborated on Doug
seasons there. Wright’s play I Am My Own Wife, winner of the Tony Award
for best play and the Pulitzer Prize; produced the famed
Rep credits include direction of Metamorphoses and The site-specific performance Eleven Rooms of Proust created by
Trip to Bountiful prior to his appointment, and direction of Mary Zimmerman; and was dramaturg for Frank Galati and
Clay; Winesburg, Ohio (for which he also wrote book and Stephen Flaherty’s Loving Repeating at the Museum of
lyrics); the world premiere of A Christmas Story, The Contemporary Art, Moisés Kaufman’s One Arm at
Musical! and the world premiere of Venice, a new musical Steppenwolf Theatre, all in About Face Theatre
he co-wrote with Matt Sax, his creative partner on Clay partnerships; and Kaufman’s 33 Variations at Sundance
(which he directed at Center Theatre Group in Los Angeles Theatre Lab, where he also directed Carlos Murillo’s
in the fall of 2010). Rosen’s original plays and musicals Diagram of a Paper Airplane in 2009.
include Winesburg, Ohio (Chicago’s Jefferson Award for best
new work, and five Barrymore Awards including best Rosen earned his Ph.D. in performance studies from
musical), Dream Boy (Jeff Award for best direction and Northwestern University, and is the recipient of numerous
production) and Wedding Play (Jeff nomination for best new awards and honors including a Human Rights Campaign
work), Dancer from the Dance, Whitman and Undone. His Community Leadership Award and a National Endowment
production of Clay was seen at Kansas City Rep, About Face for the Arts (NEA)/Theatre Communication Group (TCG)
and Lookingglass Theatres in Chicago, Center Theatre Group Career Development Fellowship for Directors. He has twice
in Los Angeles, and Lincoln Center Theater/LCT3 in New served as a theatre panel member for the NEA and has
York. participated in the TCG/Pew Charitable Trusts’ National
Theatre Artists Residency Program. Rosen has taught at
Other directing credits include the world premieres of M. Northwestern University, University of Chicago, Brooklyn
Proust by Mary Zimmerman (Jeff nomination for best new College, and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill,
play) and Theater District (Jeff Award for best new play), his alma mater.
and the Chicago premiere of Take Me Out, all in About Face/
Steppenwolf co-productions.

CABARET
DESIGN ELEMENTS LEARNING GUIDE | 2011

JACK MAGAW - SET DESIGNER

Jack Magaw returns to the Rep after having designed the sets for A Flea in Her Ear and Winesburg, Ohio.
The Rep’s production of Cabaret, which is set in the round as well as behind the proscenium arch, is designed
to create an intimate setting for the audience; essentially giving them the sense that they are huddled around
the story. The set itself has a sparseness to it and Jack was inspired, in part, by the arch beams one would see
inside a factory. Jack recently spoke to us about his designs for the set of Cabaret.

Could you tell us a little about your design concept?
Eric [the director, Eric Rosen] was interested in setting the entire piece inside the Kit Kat Klub as well as
surrounding the playing space with the audience. We felt it was important for the audience to see itself.
Once the physical space was decided, a lot of thought went into how to play the book scenes with a minimal
amount of furniture and practically no special scenery.

What kinds of challenges have you faced with this design?
We had the added challenge of turning a traditional proscenium theatre into an arena space. Because of the
level changes between the existing audience space and the stage as well as the architectural proscenium, the
sight lines for audience members in the round were difficult to accommodate. In addition, we are using a
turntable to help change the audience's view of the action and to keep the visual idea dynamic for everyone.

Above: Photographic research and a sketch of the set design for Cabaret. Courtesy of Jack Magaw.


CABARET
JACK MAGAW - SET DESIGNER
Could you tell us a bit about the design
process for this production?
Eric brought me to Kansas City back in
late August to look at the space. The
first step was to decide if it was even
logistically possible and artistically
desirable to change the traditional
arrangement of this particular theatre
space. Since then, our interaction has
been a pretty constant back and forth
of floating new ideas, trying them out,
modifying them, etc. Also, we have
had to work closely with the other
designers as well as the staff to make
sure everything we are planning to do
can be accomplished. It may look
simple from the audience's point of
view, but the whole piece is actually
rather complicated to pull off.

Putting it Together
Top: One of Jack Magaw’s design
drawings for the set of Cabaret
showing the theatre set in the round.
The Rep’s scene shop uses these
drawings to create plans to build the
set.

Bottom: An early model of the set.
Note the cabaret tables on stage.
Patrons can purchase tickets for these
seats, essentially becoming part of the
show.


CABARET
SARAH BEERS - COSTUME DESIGNER
Costume Designer Sarah Beers returns
to the Rep after having designed the
costumes for the Rep’s 2010
production of Bus Stop. Sarah recently
took a moment out of the rehearsal
period to talk to us about designing
for Cabaret.

Where did you draw your inspiration
from for the costumes?
The inspiration for the costumes came
from image research of Berlin cabarets
during the Weimar era, as well as from
period clothing of the 1920s and early
30s and also what is happening
currently in contemporary
fashion. Eric Rosen wanted to create
a world of this cabaret that was set in
1930, but also evoked everyday life; a
setting that would be exciting and
theatrical but would also remind the
audience of themselves.

Are there any challenges when
designing costumes for a production
set in the round?
The biggest challenge when designing
costumes for a production in the round
is the consideration of costume
changes. The actors are sometimes
further away from changing areas in
the round and they need time to get
off stage, change and return. Because
the audience will see the clothes from
Costume sketches for Sally Bowles and the Kit Kat Klub girls courtesy of Sarah Beers.
all angles and also quite close up, the
clothes have to be finished well,
without distracting closures.


DESIGN ELEMENTS CABARET
SARAH BEERS - COSTUME DESIGNER

Could you describe the various looks
of the Kit Kat girls?
For life inside the Kit Kat Klub, Eric
wanted the dancing girls to look as
though they had made or altered, and
certainly mended their performance
costumes, themselves. I liked the
sassiness of referencing the military
with the matching blue and white sailor
suits and nautical elements in women's
fashion was appropriate for the
period. Working with the costume
shop who have built the costumes, we
tried to create suits that were a little
haphazard and worn, with frayed edges
and miss-matched buttons. The Kit Kat
Klub Girls also wear a nude tattooed
body suit and red briefs during the
Money Song. I wanted them to have a
side-show quality, like tattooed
carnival performers . I wanted to
reflect the performer both as a worker
and yet as slightly rebellious to
conventional society. The Kit Kat Klub
girls also appear as non-descript
German citizens (who are not
necessarily the girls from the
cabaret) during the engagement party
scene.

How did the Spanish influence for the
Money Song come about?
Both Jack Magaw [the set designer] and
I had found a piece of German cabaret
research of a performer dressed as a Costume sketches courtesy of Sarah Beers. Sarah uses pen, colored pencils, acrylic, and sometimes fabric
dusky matador with his gypsy paint to create her sketches. Occasionally, when she wants to do something a little more airy, she will
paramour. This led me to thinking switch to watercolors. Note the vintage catalogue illustrations and fabric swatches used as reference.

about the spectacle, showmanship and
barbarianism of the bullfight. The idea
that the bull fight is a dance, but also a
fight for one’s life, seemed to fit the
intention of this production.


CABARET
SPOTLIGHT ON AN ACTOR LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
KARA LINDSAY - SALLY BOWLES

Kara Lindsay

Kara Lindsay is making her Kansas City me aside and said, "You know, you could
Rep debut as Sally Bowles in Cabaret. actually do this for a living." I had always
Kara, who received her BFA from dreamed of being an actor, but thought it
Carnegie Mellon University, recently would never be more than a dream,
starred as Laura Ingalls in the national realistically. I had heard the "starving
tour of Little House on the Prairie artist" stories and I did not want to be
opposite Melissa Gilbert. Kara recently that. But I knew that I had to try, because
took a moment out of the rehearsal I'd be kicking myself five years down the
process to share her thoughts about road when I'd chosen a different career
theatre and the role of Sally Bowles. path. Theater is what makes me happy
and feel fulfilled. I made the choice to
What got you interested in pursuing a pursue my dream and here I am! I still
career in theatre? feel like I'm just beginning. I have a lot
Throughout middle school and high yet to learn and, fingers crossed, many
school I participated in theater, from the more opportunities to grow.
yearly musical to show choir. Oh yes, I
was in show choir...not ashamed to say. The role of Sally Bowles is a triple threat,
I was also involved in dance, soccer and demanding an accomplished actor,
basketball. I was one of those students dancer and singer. Where did you get
that couldn't make up their mind about your training?
what they wanted to do, so I just decided I graduated in 2007 with a BFA in Acting/
to do everything! My high school drama/ Musical Theater from Carnegie Mellon
choir teacher had a lot of faith in me. University. It was incredible training.
Near college application time, she pulled


CABARET
KARA LINDSAY - CONTINUED

They are heavily geared toward acting,
which was essential for me. They gave
me the confidence and tools I need to
tackle a character, scene, play, or
whatever it may be. As far as dance, I
grew up dancing competitively which has
been helpful. I stopped dancing several
years ago, though, because of an
injury. However, some of the dance
training has, thankfully, been able to stick
with me. I have been singing since I was
in middle school and took many a lesson
and master class. I am continuously
learning how to use my voice. Every
show is different. The songs for Sally
Bowles, for example, sit pretty low in my
voice, which has allowed me to explore a
new range of sound.

Could you describe the character of Sally
Bowles in a word or two?
Decadently eccentric. She actually
describes herself as "mysterious and
fascinating" in a scene with Cliff. She is
also a bit childlike, although super
spunky. Our director, Eric Rosen, keeps
calling her "Hurricane Sally" which could
not be more appropriate.

How did you prepare for this role?
I started preparing for this role as soon as
I found out about the audition. I had
never read the script before or seen any
productions of Cabaret. I saw clips of the
movie with Liza Minnelli, but that was
it. I was happy to read the script without
any other interpretations in my head. It's
nice to hear it in your own voice rather
than someone else's. This way you can
discover the character for yourself with-
out any preconceived notions. After
reading the script, I went to the Theater
on Film and Tape Archives at the New


CABARET
KARA LINDSAY - CONTINUED

York Public Library and watched the first Lindsay, connect with the character. It’s
and second Broadway revivals of the best starting place, because
Cabaret. Two completely different ultimately it’s you up on that stage. The
shows! Almost the same script, but more you can connect with a role, the
widely different in tone. Reading more honest and true it will feel.
Christopher Isherwood's Goodbye to
Berlin was essential since Cabaret is What would you like young people to
based on several chapters in this book. I take away from this production?
also needed to learn about the world that I hope they can see how this story is
these characters live in. Berlin in 1930 relevant to our world right now.
was a frightening time. Especially Unfortunately, political rhetoric has not
because the people of Germany had no changed much since the early 1900s. We
idea the horror that they were about to cannot be blind to the world we live
endure. Nazi power would soon take in. We must stand up for any injustice
over and Hitler would become Chancellor and protect our community, and be
of Germany - destroying everything and proud to do so.
everyone.
Could you share some advice for young
Are there any particular challenges in people who want to work in theatre?
playing this role? Never be anybody but yourself. It is easy
There is a laundry list of challenges in to get caught up in the demands of the
playing the role of Sally Bowles! She business and to start wishing silly,
never stops talking, impressing, shocking, impossible things like, "I wish I was
singing, dancing, laughing or crying. Any blonde," "I wish I was older," "I wish I was
emotion that exists, Sally feels at some super skinny and short," "I wish I had a
point in the show, I'm convinced. She has loud belt voice," etc. You have something
quite a journey from the top of Act One very unique to offer the theater world so
to the end of Act Two. This perfectly don't waste it by trying to be someone
marvelous gal has a childlike air about her else. Audition after audition of seemingly
in the midst of all the sexual comments failed attempts can bring you down, but it
and behavior. She is the dictator of her should do the complete opposite. I use
own life. She craves attention, hence her these times to learn from my mistakes
adoration for performing at the Kit Kat and to grow each time I step into the
Klub. At this point in the process, I'm still audition room. Nobody can be YOU. Be
trying to figure her out, though. I think I confident in that.
will be discovering more and more about
her right up until we close. That's the joy
of theater. You perform the same script
and score eight times a week, but no two
shows are ever the same. Actors are
constantly learning more about their role
and the world they are living in. But I do
think it's important to see how I, Kara


CABARET
SPOTLIGHT ON STAFF: CHARGE SCENIC ARTIST LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
ALICE BRACKEN-CARROLL
Alice Bracken-Carroll has been the Rep’s
Charge Scenic Artist for the past 24 years.
She recently spoke to us about what it
means to be a scenic artist, where she
draws her inspiration from, and why she’s
known across the country as ‘Toxic Alice.’

What does it mean to be the Charge
Scenic Artist?
A scenic artist (also known as a scenic) is
a person who, literally, paints everything
the audience sees - and sometimes
things they don’t see. A scenic works
directly with the Technical Director to
determine what type of materials will
benefit the build and what is needed in
order to fulfill the desires of the director
and set designer. A scenic is a person A light-hearted moment in scene shop as the Rep’s
who must provide the designer with a set Charge Scenic Artist, Alice Bracken-Carroll, hops on the
horse from Into the Woods.
that matches his/her paint elevations and
desired look. The paint elevations are repainting certain pieces. There are also
scaled paintings of the actual set pieces. times the scenic will sit through rehearsal
Sometimes a scenic who has worked with so the two can discuss notes under lights.
certain designers can talk through certain
pieces without an elevation. For example, You are also on the faculty at UMKC in
we will talk about shows we have done in the Department of Theatre. What do you
the past and decide what look and enjoy about working with the students?
process would be perfect for this present Teaching keeps me young. Over the
show. All the processes are made up years, I have noticed that grad students
from the scenic with a close collaboration are not unlike kindergarten children.
with the designer. The two will send After years of structure and being tight-
many emails, photos and full scale fisted and a bit uptight, my job is to
samples. Scenic artists often have the release the inner child so creativity can
misfortune of being the last department flow again and they can begin to see
to touch the scenery. This can be things in an unconventional manner.
problematic because if one person or
department falls behind, we are still What is your educational background?
responsible to deliver on time. During I went to Kansas State University for art,
technical rehearsals, the scenic and Wichita State University for sculpture and
designer will discuss new avenues if photography and nine months in Ireland
something isn’t working right. For learning Gaelic. So I am two classes from
example, if the lights are making a unit a degree but, with life experience, I have
dull and drab they will discuss pushing been able to teach in five schools over the
and pulling of colors or, at times, totally years.


SPOTLIGHT ON AN STAFF
CABARET
ALICE BRACKEN-CARROLL - CONTINUED
How did you make your way to the Rep? He handed me some paint and brushes
I was a migrant scenic artist/designer for and said, “GO FOR IT!” So I painted Little
15 years, traveling either to design or to Mary Sunshine by myself (except for the
be a guest scenic artist. I did movies in two times the T.D. helped). At that time,
L.A., went south to Florida and worked at K-State had a professional theatre
the Burt Reynolds Theatre, worked at the company attached to it called Continental
North Carolina School of the Arts, and Theatre Company. They came into town
painted at the Guthrie Theatre and to put on a show they were touring
Huntington Theatre Company. I also around the U.S. and they needed two
taught at Lindenwood University and at large paintings that were portraits 5’ x
the University of Illinois. I was the Charge 10/1/2’ and I was hooked. I painted and
Scenic Artist at Goodspeed Opera House then designed their tour shows from the
for four years where the set designer early 70s to the 80s. My mother said she
James L. Joy was designing quite a bit. At always knew I would be ‘some kinda
times I would assist him by drafting or painter.’ She would have a hard time
doing models when I wasn’t painting. keeping me off the driveway as a child
Mr. Joy was designing a lot at this theatre because I would take a stick and play with
[known at the time as Missouri Repertory the antifreeze spills (which I still think is
Theatre] and asked me if I wanted to cool). I had no schooling in the field of
charge the winter season at Missouri Rep. painting; I was just a sponge who was
As my parents lived in Manhattan, curious about things and what paints
Kansas, I, of course, said yes. That was liked each other and what paints didn’t. I
January 2, 1987. Goodspeed had no lean to the latter; most of my techniques
winter season, so it fit into my schedule involve chemicals and water-based
very nicely. While I was here, I met John paints—that’s why across the country I
Ezell [Hall Family Foundation Professor of am known as ‘Toxic Alice.’
Design in the Department of Theatre at
UMKC], who loved my unorthodox
method of painting and asked me to stay
and teach a class in scene painting as a
trial. After teaching that class, I was
not only hired as faculty but also as
permanent Charge Scenic Artist. The
paint department didn’t exist before
I came.

What got you interested in working in
the theatre?
I was an art major at K-State and some-
one told me to check out the theatre
department because they were always
looking for people to paint the sets. To
paint big didn’t bother me; my mother
was an artist and had done some murals.
So I walked in and the technical director/
set designer almost had a heart attack.

SPOTLIGHT ON AN STAFF CABARET
ALICE BRACKEN-CARROLL - CONTINUED LEARNING GUIDE | 2011

What artists inspire you? Theatre is a collaboration of many
The artist I love the most is ‘Mother people who are experts in their fields;
Earth.’ If I’m doing a show that has old each department relies on another field
brick and crumbling walls, I find myself to make this wonderment appear. While
tuning out everything around me and I you are young, you should see as many
see art all around me in brick buildings. shows and movies as you can; not to
There is beauty in crumbling walls or criticize but as research. As a young thing
broken cement facades. Sometimes I will my parents took me to museums, shows
drive around and take pictures of and movies to help expose me to life and
interesting places and things. Some to see art imitating life. All fields
people love the shuttlecocks at the research, whether you are an actor/
Nelson (I do, too) but I get more pleasure actress, designer or director. I always tell
in seeing the beautiful graffiti under the my students, ‘There are no mistakes, only
overpasses that I see when I take the new avenues.’ Above all you must enjoy
train to St. Louis. Taking the train is an and have fun! Many of my students will
art experience in itself, places, watching tell me they can’t paint but want to take
trees, graveyards and things you see that my class and I always reply that anyone
no one would see if driving on the high- can paint. My classes are filled with
way. All of these works inspire me and scene designers, technical students, stage
amaze me. For example, how a junkyard managers and some undergrads. They
looks the way it does, and how one can are always amazed; at the end, they can’t
translate that to the stage (which is believe they painted all those projects. If
harder than one would think). Trees are you plan on going on to college, check
something I have had to make many out the faculty. It’s amazing what
times so, once again, I go outside to be a happens when you research You must
sponge and the cycle keeps going around love theatre in order to do theatre – take
and around. the good with the bad. If you come into
theatre you should leave your attitude at
What advice do you have for young the door. We are all the same and
people interested in a career in theatre? nobody is more important than the other.
Ask questions, be curious, be dedicated Theatre is a great place to work. Who else
to what you believe, find answers, read, but us can make dreams happen and
practice, practice, practice and above all affect the public as theatre can?
have fun. All of this pertains to painting
and designing as well as life. Theatre is
hard work and dedication, with a bit of
insanity mixed in, and when it’s blended
together you end up with a piece of
performance that can transport the
audience to places they never thought
they would go to.


CABARET
BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
PRE-SHOW DISCUSSION
Before attending Cabaret at the Rep, use the following prompts as conversation starters with
your students. You may also want to visit http://www.youtube.com and search for The Real
Cabaret (there are six parts totaling approximately one hour). This is a fantastic documentary
that explores the inspiration behind Cabaret. Follow Alan Cumming (the Emcee in the second
Broadway revival) as he explores the origins and history of the show. This documentary is
engaging and interesting and is a great way to prepare your students for seeing the Rep’s
production of Cabaret. Note: You may want to preview the segments before showing it to
your class.

What are your expectations of seeing Cabaret at the Rep? Make predictions about the set, costumes, sound and lighting.

Cabaret is set in the round. What are some challenges in designing and performing in the round?

Cabaret is based on Christopher Isherwood’s novel Goodbye to Berlin. What might be some of the challenges in bringing a
novel to the stage? List examples of other films or plays that have been based on literature.

Research the time period of Cabaret. Can you think of any parallels between now and 1929? Explain.

Cabarets served to comment on the political climate of the day. Many times they were subversive and satirized their
governments. Can you think of any forms of entertainment that do that today? Explain.

If you have seen the movie Cabaret what do you think or feel about the story as you have experienced it?

What is the role of the audience in a theatrical production?


CABARET
BEFORE THE PERFORMANCE LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
PRE-SHOW ACTIVITY - KEY CONCEPTS
EVALUATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE: Research and discuss the topics listed below using a graphic
organizer. Put the key concept in the middle of the circle and list students’ ideas in the area
coming out from the main circle. You will need to use a separate organizer for each topic. Use
available resources to research additional information. You may also want to refer to the
timeline on pages 15-17 and the glossary of terms on pages 18-20.


CABARET
REFLECT & CONNECT LEARNING GUIDE | 2011
POST-SHOW DISCUSSION TOPICS
TOPICS FOR THOUGHT: Use the following prompts as conversation starters with your students
after attending Cabaret at the Rep. Following the discussion, you may want to have your
students write a review of the production. We’d love to hear from them! Please share student
responses with Melinda McCrary, Director of Education, at mccrarym@kcrep.org.

The Production
1. Review the expectations about the set, costumes, lighting and sound that you had for the production. Were the
design elements what you expected? Why or why not?

2. What do you think were the strengths of the production? What were the weaknesses?

3. Think about the different people who were involved in the Rep’s production of Cabaret. You may want to consult
your program for the listing of the various designers and other theatre personnel. Are there any particular
positions that appeal to you? Explain. What educational background, skills and abilities might you need to fill this
role? How might you go about learning more about this type of position?

The Characters & Story
1. Discuss the main characters in Cabaret. How is the worldview, or outlook on life, of each character different from
your own? Similar?

2. List the characters in the musical that are at risk for Nazi persecution. Why don’t they leave Berlin?

3. Though Cabaret is set in a specific place and time, how is the story universal?

4. What do you think is the central theme, or message, of the play?

The Music
1. What moments or songs do you find replaying in your mind?

2. How did the songs move the plot forward?

3. Discuss the songs Tomorrow Belongs to Me and Have you Seen Her. How do these songs reference the coming
political storm of Nazism?

Reflect & Connect
1. What does the metaphor “Life is a cabaret” mean to you?

2. Do you agree that Cabaret is primarily a political show? Or do you think the love story is more important?
Explain.

3. Read Goodbye to Berlin. How is the novel similar to Cabaret? How is it different?

4. Watch the film version of Cabaret after seeing the play. Discuss their similarities and differences.

5. Cabaret’s plot, set in the same locale and featuring many of the same characters has been told in a short novel, a
stage play, a musical and a movie. Which genre do you think is the most effective for telling the story? Explain.


Learning Guide for "Cabaret" at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre

Learning Guide for "Cabaret" at the Kansas City Repertory Theatre

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