Eddie Redmayne leads a dazzling & dangerous ‘Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club’

The Rundown

Cabaret arrives on Broadway for the fifth time this spring in a smartly conceived reimagined Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club.

Based on John Van Druten’s 1951 play I Am a Camera, which was, in turn, inspired by gay novelist Christopher Isherwood’s 1939 novel Goodbye to Berlin, the musical was a watershed moment when it premiered in 1966, starring Joel Grey as the maniacal Emcee of a seedy nightclub in Weimer era Germany. Alan Cumming took the reigns in 1998, and now Oscar- and Tony-winning Eddie Redmayne puts his stamp on the role, accompanied by a stellar cast and creative vision that reimagines the Broadway experience.

A host of heavy hitters have played the Emcee over the years, from Neil Patrick Harris to Michael C. Hall, while the character of Sally Bowles — the gin-swilling cabaret performer with a broken heart — has also attracted its share of talent, from Liza Minelli’s iconic movie performance to Michelle Williams, Gina Gershon, and Molly Ringwald onstage. Gayle Rankin, who made her Broadway debut as a Kit Kat Girl in the 2014 reboot, steps into the spotlight this go-around.

Producers rallied a whopping $25 million for director Rebecca Frecknall and scenic, theater, and costume designer Tom Scutt to reexamine the musical, and the result is as mesmerizing as the neon green eye logo that entices visitors upon entry into the theater via a side alley.

No Tea, No Shade

A longtime favorite of community and regional theaters, part of Cabaret‘s longevity is its malleability. The show’s creators, Joe Masteroff (book), Kohn Kander (music), and Fred Ebb (lyrics), provided a blueprint for interpretation. Hal Prince, the musical’s original director, said working on the show “changed my mind about musicals, teaching him “how you could tell stories in a fragmented fashion and use theater as a metaphor.”

But balancing style and substance requires a deft hand. Enter director Frecknall and designer Scutt, who frame the musical’s two parallel narratives against an intoxicating backdrop. American writer Clifford Bradshaw (Ato Blankson-Wood) arrives in Berlin. As the memories of World War I recede, a new party begins to take shape — one that’s intent on dismantling the Weimer Republic in favor of a fascist regime.

Clifford takes up residence at the boarding house of Fraulein Schneider (Bebe Neuwirth) and quickly falls under Sally’s spell after seeing her perform. After losing her job, she moves into his flat, setting in motion a torrid affair (despite his nebbish disposition, Clifford swings both ways). On a more traditional trajectory, Herr Schultz (Steven Skybell), a Jewish fruit vendor, hopes to win Schneider’s affection by seducing her with pears and pineapples.

Redmayne’s Emcee colors the proceedings with alluring charm, punctuated by choreographer Julia Cheng’s elastic movement in which the nimble actor shape-shifts alongside an ensemble of Kit Kat Club dancers, whose collective energy punctuates the world of the play.

That world begins over an hour before the house lights dim, with audiences invited to wander multiple levels of the theater that have been redesigned as a modern-day Kit Kat Club. Director Jordan Fein populates the lounges —The Pineapple Room, Red Bar, Green Bar, and Vault Bar — with dancers and musicians. Craft cocktails cascade into glass barware (save the sippy cups for The Wiz).

Here Lies Love attempted a similar overhaul, turning the Broadway Theatre into a high-energy dance club, but closed after 150 performances. Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club‘s new environment serves as an immersion tank, enveloping the audience in transitional spaces that tease what’s to come.

But the construct of a commercial Broadway production impacts who’s in “the room where it happens,” as Aaron Burr sings in Hamilton. Claiming the highest average ticket price ($231.14) while still in previews, can Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club reach audiences that can further inform the space rather than just observe it?

Those with a couple of decades of New York City queer history under their belts may remember Bar d’O (which closed in 2001), a smoky downtown cabaret room headlined by Joey Arias, Raven O, and Sherry Vine. More recently, Company XIV in Bushwick, Brooklyn, has filled a naughty niche with its incense-laden den of theatricality. At the same time, 3 Dollar Bill (also in Brooklyn) hosts wildly imaginative LGBTQ+ nightlife extravaganzas that speak to the real-life next generation of Kit Kat clubbers.

Let’s Have a Moment

Those familiar with Minnelli’s Oscar-winning performance may recall her Sally Bowles as a beacon of optimism despite the era’s political unrest. Rankin’s raw and uncompromising performance takes a hard turn, excising Sally’s vulnerabilities through the lens of a shot glass.

But Rankin also knows how to seduce. It’s no wonder Clifford falls for her laissez-faire demeanor as she relishes the remnants of Germany’s Golden Years.

But by the time she sings the musical’s title song in Act II, Sally’s life manifesto is showing cracks. Those hairline insecurities fully fracture within the song structure, depicting an unhinged woman without family or home, afraid to fully love or leave the abusive world that’s swallowing her whole.

The Last Word

Redmayne, who first played The Emcee in prep school, followed by the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and the West End before bringing the show to Broadway, told Vanity Fair, “I was staggered by the character. The lack of definition of it, the enigma of it.”

The enigma Redmayne speaks of extends to the work as a whole. “At the end of the day, the biggest question of the 20th century is, ‘How could this have happened?’ ” says Sam Mendes, director of the 1998 production.

We don’t have to look too far to see how quickly democracy can collapse. A presidential candidate facing 91 felony charges, “Don’t Say Gay” laws, and the proliferation of drag bans could push any of us to unleash our inner Sally Bowles.

Redmayne, Rankin, and a smartly conceived Cabaret reboot shoot warning flares high into the sky. We only need to wander into the Kit Kat Club to discover a world mirroring our own.

Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club plays at the August Wilson Theatre. Open-ended run.