What a venture! Kander and Ebbs clash of music, sex, politics and debauchery

Cabaret- Hutt City Musical Theatre

What a venture! Kander and Ebbs clash of music, sex, politics and debauchery .A challenge for any company to attempt.

Highlights being the performance of Sally Bowles by Janelle Pollock. A beautiful strength in her voice and a presence that carried her through the demanding two hour show. She shows a lot of potential.
Also the orchestra for their work in making this amazing music come to life. I would have loved to see them more. The orchestra in a cabaret show is vital- to acknowledge them and not try to hide them, is acknowledging the music itself.

However I question some of the creative decisions of this interpretation. The staging of a catwalk style area made the action seem so much further away so that audience interaction happened it seemed foreign and out of place. How can a piece invite the audience into the action and establish a relationship early on? Energetically I wasn't reached. When I was approached by ‘Sally' during the song ‘Cabaret' it felt wrong. I didn't feel like I was connected enough to this character to have such an intimate encounter.

A very bold choice inviting BYO to a show and having tables and chairs like a true cabaret. This automatically gives a very different feel. It creates a restaurant type setting and makes it seem alright for audience members to talk throughout the performance. The sense I got from the energy of the performers didn't support this. There was a reluctantly to connect personally at first and a sense of shunning to those who did talk throughout. How can a theatre piece support the conventions it creates? Awareness. To put tables in chairs means talking. If you don't want this-stage it another way.

Overall a daring piece of theatre. After talking with Tonie Lucie-Smith the director of the show and president of Hutt City musical theatre it is clear that this company is trying to explore very real questions in theatre. How can the audience be involved in the action of the narrative?

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