Village’s challenging ‘Cabaret’ a must-see

Published 6:05 pm Wednesday, July 8, 2015

“Cabaret” takes place about 80 years ago in a Germany where free expression had a brief flowering before the Nazis trampled it underfoot. The musical was written in the counter-culture milieu of the 1960s.

The Village Theatre production that opens tonight at the Everett Performing Arts Center is as vital as any new Broadway show and the message remains relevant.

Village’s “Cabaret” is one of the best we’ve seen, with outstanding direction, acting, singing, dancing, sets, costumes, lighting and sound.

It stars Snohomish High School alumna Billie Wildrick as Sally Bowles, a British chanteuse at Berlin’s Kit Kat Club, as well as Shorecrest High School alumnus Brian Earp as the American author Clifford Bradshaw, who comes to Berlin to be inspired, only to meet head on with his principles and his sexual confusion.

It is directed by Pulitzer prize-winning and Tony award-winning playwright and lyricist Brian Yorkey, who literally grew up on the Village Theatre stage.

He and composer Tom Kitt are perhaps best known for their musical “Next to Normal,” but also for the more recent production “If/Then,” which closed earlier this year on Broadway. The national touring show of “If/Then, with Ida Menzel reprising her starring role, comes to Seattle’s Paramount in November.

Despite his Broadway acclaim, Yorkey said he is most at home with Village Theatre.

“Village has grown up over the years and now I would put Village up against any regional theater in the country,” he said by phone in June. “It is the real deal and first rate.

“It’s where they know me. The folks at Village are proud of what I’ve done, but they’re not going to let me get too big for my britches or forget that I was once a snot-nose 14-year-old kid.”

Based on a short novel by Christopher Isherwood, with music by John Kander, lyrics by Fred Ebb and staging by Harold Prince, “Cabaret” was a Broadway hit in the mid-1960s. It inspired numerous subsequent productions as well as the 1972 film by the same name.

“The stage production is much different,” Yorkey said. “I liked the movie, but I liked the story in the musical much more.”

In the 1930s in Berlin, as the Nazis are rising to power, the story is focused on the decadent nightlife, with a colorful master of ceremonies overseeing the action, at a seedy cabaret where singer Sally Bowles and writer Cliff Bradshaw fall in love.

A moving sub-plot involves the doomed romance between boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider and her suitor Herr Schultz, a Jewish fruit vendor.

“We approached ‘Cabaret’ as a memory play, a look back at Cliff’s time in Berlin and what it meant to him,” Yorkey said. “It unfolds in Cliff’s memory.”

While Village’s “Cabaret’ earned glowing critical praise during its run last month in Issaquah, a few audience members walked out. It’s not a show for children; “The Sound of Music” this is not.

“It was groundbreaking at its Broadway debut,” Yorkey said. “And it’s still pretty challenging.”

It is adventurous, enlightening, snarky and smart.

“The sad truth is that (the themes in ‘Cabaret’) could not be more timely,” he said. “The way hate creeps in on society today is as troubling as it was (during the Great Depression worldwide.) The story is still fresh.”

How we respond in a world of evil is the question, Yorkey said.

“In the midst of darkness, we face the temptation to be Sally Bowles and say let’s just keep dancing,” he said.

As Sally, Billie Wildrick is great, Yorkey said.

“Billie is a super star and has been for years,” he said. “This was the first time we’ve really been able to work together and we had the best time. She is a consumate pro who wants to grasp the essential truth of her role, a brilliant singer and totally willing to jump in and try new things.”

Brian Earp was Yorkey’s first choice for the role of Cliff.

After graduating from Shorecrest, where he earned acting awards, Earp went to Yale University. There he continued acting while studying cognitive science and philosophy. Since, he has earned additional degrees from Oxford and Cambridge and has made a name for himself in the science world while acting on the side when he can.

“I knew that Brian, being open to life and not judging it, would be best to play Cliff,” Yorkey said.

Jason Collins, who plays the racy Master of Ceremonies, also grew up at Village Theatre. Most recently with Village, he was seen in “Around the World in 80 Days.”

“When we were young, he played the Artful Dodger and I was the stage manager for ‘Oliver!’ Jason was so good looking, I would have to send the girls off so he could get a dinner break,” said Yorkey. “Jason is the guy I go to when I need courage and a steady hand and a supremely capable performer.”

Also outstanding in “Cabaret” are Seattle theater veterans Anne Allgood as Fräulein Schneider and Peter Crook as Herr Schultz. The ensemble of Kit Kat Klub “boys and girls” is fabulous. In addition, the show’s orchestra is not just behind the scenes, but plays an integral part as the cabaret band.

While the entire creative team behind Yorkey must be praised for music direction (Tim Symons), choreography Kathryn Van Meter), lighting (Alex Berry) and costumes (Alex Jaeger), a special mention must go to Matthew Smucker, the scenic designer.

“I think Village has the best scene shop in Washington state,” Yorkey said. “Matthew has won so many awards. He is the best and this set is beautiful, smart and evocative.”

As the show opens in Everett this weekend, Yorkey praised Everett audiences for their enthusiasm and appreciation for Village productions.

“Tickets to our shows are not cheap, but the quality of the work that Village does to make it all happen is great. The staff works hard to bring the vision to the stage.”

If you have time and money to see only one show this summer, make it “Cabaret.”

Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @galefiege.

If you go

The musical plays through Aug. 2 at the Everett Performing Arts Center, 2710 Wetmore Ave. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays, 8 p.m. Fridays, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays, 2 and 7 p.m. Sundays, with just a matinee on closing day. For more information, go to villagetheatre.org or call 425-257-8600.