re: CABARET - the good, the bad and the ugly
Last Edit: Delvino 04:47 pm EDT 05/26/24
Posted by: Delvino 04:42 pm EDT 05/26/24
In reply to: CABARET - the good, the bad and the ugly - rogerad 12:19 am EDT 05/25/24

In the moving double interview in the Times, Redmayne and Grey compare notes, takes, challenges. To my surprise, Redmayne insists that he's not playing a real man, but (my paraphrase) a construct, an idea. I don't know how that works in terms of performance engagement, but oddly enough, it suggests a reason why so many people find the robotic new interpretation lacking (freshness? the breath of life? Fill in the blank).

Cumming made this man a wry, young, vital - and even recognizable - human being trapped in the wrong place in awful times. And the show made it clear what happened to his joy, his winking prism, his life, which made everything that came before feel fatalistic. To me, an ideal reading. Of course, a viable Cabaret is certainly possible without that added coda; Grey scored in two mediums without it. But the show gained a relatable immediacy: we somehow recognized the sensual world around us - and available - in this outre performer. When his joie de vivre ended up swallowed by history's darkest hour, we felt his light go out. I'll never forget how it left us. How do you top that? Maybe (not) this time.
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