Review: A SPECTACULAR CHRISTMAS CABARET SHOW! Continues at Off Center Theatre in Kansas City

Scrooge walking into the Off Center Theatre in Crown Center would have had the Bah Humbug chased from him with the second performance of A Spectacular Christmas Cabaret Show! Anyone entering the theater without the Christmas spirit would leave filled with joy over the gift Musical Theater Heritage is presenting to audiences this holiday season.

Tim Scott like Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer guides his group featuring some of Kansas City's finest vocalist through the second night of their Christmas Special. Scott described Act 1 as filled with music that would be heard in musical theater, while Act 2 contained more traditional holiday tunes. George Harter founder of MTH gave the audience a brief but amusing history of the organization.

The show opened with the cast singing "Christmastime Blues," followed by a beautiful vocal of "I Got Love" sung by Toni Gates. Katie Karel stole Act 1 with her rendition of "Surabaya Santa." With a wonderful German accent, she presented the humorous holiday treat to the delight of the audience. Matthew King followed two songs later with "Cadillac Car," when asked by Scott to tell the audience what he wanted for Christmas. Alison Sneegas-Borberg presented a lovely vocal of "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas." Pancho Villegas excited the audience with a splendid interpretation of "Simon Zealots" from Jesus Christ Superstar.

The cast opened the second act with "My Simple Christmas Wish," followed by two traditional holiday songs. Jeff Berger accompanied by Alison, Trista Smith, and Sara Kennedy performed "Poppa Santa Claus," reminiscent of Bing Crosby's performance with The Andrews Sisters in 1950. Alison joined Patrick Lewallen, Matthew, and Jeff in two Christmas classics, "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and "We Three Kings." Patrick and the cast followed two songs later with an awesome rendition of "Somebody to Love." The production closed with the cast performing, "Joy To The World," which should be renamed "Joy To Kansas City," as it was the Kansas City audience that reaped the rewards of the fantastic arrangement.

Each of the three nights, a special musical guest joins A Spectacular Christmas Cabaret Show! On opening night, the marvelous talent of Cathy Barnett joined the cast. On the 15th, Lauren Braton joined the cast and with Tim Scott performed a hilarious version of "Winter Wonderland" with ukulele and mouth trumpet. Ben Gully joins the cast for the final performance on December 22.

Musical Director Jeremy Watson accompanied the dynamic cast on piano, with Brian Wilson on bass, Joe Levens on guitar, and Tod Barnard on drums.

Only one performance remains for A Spectacular Christmas Cabaret Show! on Monday December 22. It was announced that the show on the 15th and 22nd were sold out, but interested patrons should contact the box office at 816-545-6000 or visit the Musical Theater Heritage website. Photo and video courtesy of Musical Theater Heritage.

To post a comment, you must register and login.