Sharon Shao (center) as Sally Bowles, flanked by Deanalís Arocho Resto (top left) as the Emcee and Kit Kat Dancers Ije Success (bottom left) and Mylo Cardona (bottom right).Ben Krantz Studio
They dance through the audience, swarming the stage in glittering costumes, their eyes as luminous and as mad as pinwheels. The threat of a Nazi regime breathing just outside of the safe space they have created. Oakland Theater Project's revival of “Cabaret” has arrived as a living form of existential angst for broken times.
The Emcee, played by Deanals Arocho Resto, sets the tone with a bittersweet “Willkommen,” as if they are tasting something extraordinarily delicious yet fleeting. The production stays true to both the 1966 musical by John Kander, Fredd Ebb, and Joe Masteroff, as well as the 1972 Bob Fosse film in many ways. However, it has been updated and reimagined under Erika Chong Shuch's direction and choreography.
Deanalís Arocho Resto (left) as the Emcee and Sharon Shao (right) as Sally Bowles. Photo Credit: Ben Krantz Studio
Inside the Kit Kat Klub, the Weimar aesthetic has been shed in favor of an updated wardrobe heavy on Doc Martens. The band is replaced by a DJ, and guitarist Joshua Pollock, who doubles as Herr Schultz, the Jewish tenant of Fraulein Schneider, played by Beth Wilmurt. Together, these two play out perhaps the most true and tragic part of the story in a senior love story as sweet as it is doomed. The proto-fascist skirmishing plays out in a sexual tableau, a taunting of the Nazi abhorrence for all things deviant, homosexual, permissive, and diverse. The ensemble drives these points home, sliding, writhing, and dancing, and having a most marvelous time save for the fear creeping into their eyes.
The stage is sparse, made up of three tiers of painted black box pushing the audience who surrounds it on all sides to the crowded corners of the room. With the wardrobe updates and the clever use of mirrors, it's hard not to draw similarities between past and present.
Beth Wilmurt (left) as Fraulein Schneider and Joshua Pollock (right) as Herr Schultz . Photo Credit: Ben Krantz Studio
Sharon Shao owns the stage as a rule-averse and lovable Sally Bowles. Her ephemeral love for Clifford (James Mercer II), an American bisexual would-be novelist, shows a strong bond between the two actors. Shao's rendition of the titular song is a more thoughtful version than expected. As talented as this cast is, a swastika bearing, red hanky signaling Megan Trout as Ernst Ludwig deftly commands the lion's share of attention. Sliding through the space with an aura as sharp and as threatening as a stab wound, dissent and fear follow where she goes.
Megan Trout as Ernst Ludwig. Photo Credit: Ben Krantz Studio
As much as I do miss the band, and while some of the ideas might be bigger than OTP's space has to offer, the cast makes up for in energy and intent. Songs meant to be sung as solos morph into duos and grow still more. The chilling rendition of "Tomorrow Belongs to Me," sung by tenant Fraulein Kost (Ije Success), sends the message home that danger is indeed at the door. "Money Money" from the film was also a part and included audience involvement. The frenetic movement and familiar words pulsing through the room left the audience uplifted.
Mylo Cardona (center) as Ditzie. Photo Credit: Ben Krantz Studio
“Cabaret” will run at Oakland Theater Project through December 14 at FLAX art and design. Shows are currently sold out, but check their website for more info and upcoming shows.
