What You Need to Know About the CABARET Prologue

Seeing Cabaret soon and have no idea what this Prologue business is all about? Let BroadwayWorld be your guide!

The current revival of Cabaret just opened on Broadway at the August Wilson Theatre- a space that has been transformed into the Kit Kat Club, with an in-the-round auditorium and sinfully dreamlike spaces. To get the full experience, you've gotta show up for the Prologue...

What is the Prologue?

As audiences arrive, they are invited to explore the Kit Kat Club and discover a world inhabited by movement, music, and sensuality that spans a century from 2024 New York City to 1929 Germany.

When does the Prologue begin?

The Prologue begins when the house opens, approximately 75 minutes before the curtain time listed on your ticket. Guests will receive a “club entry time” after they purchase tickets to remind them to take in the Prologue and the club before the show starts. You may arrive any time in this 75-minute period to take part in the Prologue experience.

Does it cost extra to attend the Prologue?

No, admission to the Prologue is included with the purchase of your Cabaret ticket. Guests can however, purchase food and drinks within the club.

What can you expect when you arrive?

Upon entering the Kit Kat Club, guests are asked to place a sticker over the camera lens of their phones. Taking photos and recording video is strictly prohibited both during the Prologue and during the show.

Shortly after, guests of age are greeted with a free shot of schnapps (a reference to Herr Schultz's favorite libation in the show), and are ushered to multiple levels of activity, all taking place in the August Wilson Theatre's lavishishly redecorated common areas. Every nook and cranny has been transformed to become the Kit Kat Club, making you an active participant in the action of the story before the offical show even begins. 

The bottom floor is home to the Vault Bar. One level up is the smaller Red Bar and on the top floor is the Green Bar. On all three floors, dancers and musicians are entertaining the crowd, some on raised platforms and others weaving through the spectators. It is a fully immersive theatre experience. Shortly before the start of Cabaret, the Prolugue performers regroup onstage for one last appearance before "Willkommen." 

Is food and drink available during the Prologue?

Yes, guests can purchase drinks and snacks at all of the bars and several smaller stations also serve just champagne. The cocktail menu feaures show-inspired beverages like 'The Toast of Mayfair' and 'The Great American Novelist'. Guests must wait in a line to be served as there are no waiters in the bars areas.

You can take drinks and snacks into the theatre following the Prologue.

Additionally, patrons can upgrade their experience at the Kit Kat Club with exclusive dining or drinks packages that allow them to soak up the pre-show atmosphere. These various upgrades offer unparalleled service and unique experiences in the heart of the Kit Kat Club. Drinks can be enjoyed before and during the show, while food will be cleared shortly before the performance begins, ensuring uninterrupted and unmissable views of Cabaret. These upgrades must be made before arrival.

Does the Kit Kat Club have a special dress code?

No, you can partake in the experience wearing what you wear to any other Broadway show. Know however, that some patrons will dress festively.

Do all productions of Cabaret feature a Prologue or is this new?

No, this is a creation of director Rebecca Frecknall. “We wanted to subvert an audience's idea of what it is to go to a Broadway musical and create a club space that's surprising, arresting, and alive from the moment you enter," she explained. "Our Prologue Company will bring the Kit Kat Club to life long before the opening drumroll of ‘Wilkommen,’ drawing the audience into the world of Cabaret. They build a bridge between now and then and invite the audience to relax, loosen up, and be themselves.”

What Is the point of the Prologue?

“In creating the Prologue, we wanted to build a bridge between now and Weimar Berlin; a time when dance and music were being redefined and a time when artists were attempting to make sense of a world spinning out of control," explained  Prologue Director Jordan Fein. "Upon entering the Kit Kat Club, audiences will be immersed in Angus MacRae’s original score that combines Klezmer influences with contemporary electronic sounds and Julia Cheng’s choreography that explores the last century of movement and dance."

Who stars in the Prologue?

The Prologue Company features dancers Alaïa, Will Ervin Jr., Sun Kim, Bryan Longchamp, Deja McNair and swings Ida Saki and Spencer James Weidie. The musicians of the Prologue company are Brian Russell Carey (piano & bass), Francesca Dawis (violin), Keiji Ishiguri (dedicated substitute), Maeve Stier (accordion), and Michael Winograd (clarinet). The Prologue features original music and music direction by Angus MacRae.

The cast of the musical proper does not appear in the Prolgue activities and the Prologue company does not appear in Cabaret.

Photo Credit Mason Poole