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The Making of Cabaret
In his book Harold Prince and the American Musical Theater, Foster Hirsch recalls a woman who left the opening-night performance of Cabaret in Wilmington, Delaware, exclaiming: It is more than a musical! The exclamation suggests that the Broadway show had gone beyond European ethnicity and history on its way to success. And there is truth behind the suggestion. Even on the mere surface, Cabaret is not just a musical. The Berlin of the Third Reich, diluted for Broadway audiences, provides a symbolic edge that tips the show into a realm of fascinating metaphor.
140 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 1999
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87 people want to read
About the author
Keith Garebian
38 books5 followersKeith Garebian is a widely published, award-winning freelance literary and theatre critic, biographer, and poet. Among his many awards are the Canadian Authors Association (Niagara Branch) Poetry Award (2009), the Mississauga Arts Award (2000 and 2008), a Dan Sullivan Memorial Poetry Award (2006), and the Lakeshore Arts & Scarborough Arts Council Award for Poetry (2003).
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 18, 2019
My hunt continues for a book that chronicles the revisions to Cabaret. Unfortunately this is not that book. A quick, serviceable read.
April 2, 2019
I recently saw a local stage production of Cabaret and then spent a surprising amount of time thinking about that production and about the show. The first time that I saw Cabaret on stage was also a local production, one of the first theatre musicals I had ever seen. I loved it (and was startled later when a local critic - the Boston Globe's Kevin Kelly, I believe - cited it as one of the worst Boston-area productions of the year).
Much of the reason that I was so fascinated by this recent performance was because of escalating incidents of anti-semitism, both locally and throughout the world. It is impossible to watch Cabaret and not think that this could happen again. And, of course, growing overt prejudice is not limited to that against Jews; here in the United States, as well as over much of the Earth, there have been incidents of murderous hate aimed at Muslims, Latin-Americans, people of color, people of different sexual orientations, people who do not conform to whatever the accepted norm for a particular society may be.
Much of Cabaret is a very traditional musical, with two pairs of lovers. It is, I think, uncommon that both couples are, forced by circumstance and their own natures, separated at the end of the show. But what made this such an outstanding musical is that much of it has a social-political aspect, recording the growing power of the Nazi party in Germany in the early 1930s, and the reaction - or lack thereof - in Germany and around the world.
I found the show upsetting. I read some material about it and found that there was a book about how the show came to be and how it has subsequently been performed. That book is The Making of Cabaret, by Keith Garebian.
Unfortunately, I did not realize that the edition that I purchased was from 1999 and that the book had been revised since then. The last new edition was apparently in 2011 and seems to be 80-100 pages longer than the 1999 version. As I write this in 2019, there are 50 ratings of the book on Goodreads, all but one three stars or more, and all assigned since 2012. I suspect that most of these 50 people are reviewing some edition of the book later than the one I read.
This edition ends (rather abruptly) with a discussion of the much-lauded 1986 Broadway production directed by Sam Mendes and starring Natasha Richardson as Sally and Alan Cumming as the Master of Ceremonies. There are only five illustrations in the book, all photographs related to the original Broadway production.
Although I do suspect that later editions of the book might be even better, this one has much fascinating material. Readers learn a lot about the earlier careers of many of the people who united to make Cabaret. There is also, of course, a considerable amount of material about what went into crafting the play - writing, composing music and lyrics, casting, set design, lighting, costumes, financing, directing, acting, the million things that go into the making of a musical play. Why did the viewpoint character, originally named after the author of the book from which all this was based, the British writer Christopher Isherwood, become an American named Clifford Bradshaw? Joseph Masteroff, who wrote the libretto, was "more comfortable writing an American than an Englishman." After the director, Harold Prince, had rejected the song "Cabaret," how did it get back in the show? The choreographer, Ron Field, heard it, loved it, and convinced Prince to use it.
Of course this would be a better book at twice the length. Surely there were disagreements among the principals at times; it would be good to see how those arose and how they were resolved. Did people not argue about cutting the most powerful line in the play, from the "gorilla" number? (It was back in the production that I recently saw.) The book could surely use an index, more illustrations, song lyrics - and some (or all) of these might be present in subsequent editions. Even without those things, this is a valuable look at an important and moving musical play.
Much of the reason that I was so fascinated by this recent performance was because of escalating incidents of anti-semitism, both locally and throughout the world. It is impossible to watch Cabaret and not think that this could happen again. And, of course, growing overt prejudice is not limited to that against Jews; here in the United States, as well as over much of the Earth, there have been incidents of murderous hate aimed at Muslims, Latin-Americans, people of color, people of different sexual orientations, people who do not conform to whatever the accepted norm for a particular society may be.
Much of Cabaret is a very traditional musical, with two pairs of lovers. It is, I think, uncommon that both couples are, forced by circumstance and their own natures, separated at the end of the show. But what made this such an outstanding musical is that much of it has a social-political aspect, recording the growing power of the Nazi party in Germany in the early 1930s, and the reaction - or lack thereof - in Germany and around the world.
I found the show upsetting. I read some material about it and found that there was a book about how the show came to be and how it has subsequently been performed. That book is The Making of Cabaret, by Keith Garebian.
Unfortunately, I did not realize that the edition that I purchased was from 1999 and that the book had been revised since then. The last new edition was apparently in 2011 and seems to be 80-100 pages longer than the 1999 version. As I write this in 2019, there are 50 ratings of the book on Goodreads, all but one three stars or more, and all assigned since 2012. I suspect that most of these 50 people are reviewing some edition of the book later than the one I read.
This edition ends (rather abruptly) with a discussion of the much-lauded 1986 Broadway production directed by Sam Mendes and starring Natasha Richardson as Sally and Alan Cumming as the Master of Ceremonies. There are only five illustrations in the book, all photographs related to the original Broadway production.
Although I do suspect that later editions of the book might be even better, this one has much fascinating material. Readers learn a lot about the earlier careers of many of the people who united to make Cabaret. There is also, of course, a considerable amount of material about what went into crafting the play - writing, composing music and lyrics, casting, set design, lighting, costumes, financing, directing, acting, the million things that go into the making of a musical play. Why did the viewpoint character, originally named after the author of the book from which all this was based, the British writer Christopher Isherwood, become an American named Clifford Bradshaw? Joseph Masteroff, who wrote the libretto, was "more comfortable writing an American than an Englishman." After the director, Harold Prince, had rejected the song "Cabaret," how did it get back in the show? The choreographer, Ron Field, heard it, loved it, and convinced Prince to use it.
Of course this would be a better book at twice the length. Surely there were disagreements among the principals at times; it would be good to see how those arose and how they were resolved. Did people not argue about cutting the most powerful line in the play, from the "gorilla" number? (It was back in the production that I recently saw.) The book could surely use an index, more illustrations, song lyrics - and some (or all) of these might be present in subsequent editions. Even without those things, this is a valuable look at an important and moving musical play.
August 10, 2017
A perfectly serviceable history of the show from its original production to the 1998 Sam Mendes/Rob Marshall revival and others.
June 8, 2022
Excellent overview
A fine comparison of the various major productions of Cabaret from 1966 through the early 2000s. Brought back a lot of memories.
A fine comparison of the various major productions of Cabaret from 1966 through the early 2000s. Brought back a lot of memories.
April 9, 2013
Purely wonderful and inspiring, "The Making of Cabaret" is the most beautifully-written academic text I've ever had the pleasure of being consumed by - and consumed I was, fully and unconditionally. The author's passion for theatre, history, and Cabaret in all its forms shines through, amidst an often poetic style of prose. This is the kind of writer I've always wanted to be. I've been inspired by this book, which I felt truly spoke to me, to perhaps research my own favourite (and historically ignored) theatre productions, and perhaps illuminate them with even an ounce of the beauty that Garebian has here in his book. It is well-researched and documents all notable productions of Cabaret, citing reviews and first-hand accounts of each element of the production process that you could want to know about. This book was all I could have wanted and more.
January 9, 2013
This is a very worthwhile book. The new edition published in 2011 contains just about everything you could want to know about Cabaret and the 1930s cabaret scene. In discussing the show the author covers key practitioners from the syllabus of most degrees in drama from the 1980s on. But if you are not interested in the Christopher Isherwood sourcebook Goodbye to Berlin and the Van Druten play I am a camera I suppose this could be a dull read. What is provided here are some sharp insights into the craft of developing musical theatre, and the author deconstructs the creative process with ease and skill.
August 13, 2019
There are precious few musicals whose development and repeat reinventions would merit enough discussion for a book of this size. Luckily, "Cabaret" has more than enough material to make a deep dive like this worthwhile. Keith Garebian examines the production process, especially the way the changing sexual mores of the 20th century necessitated first censorship and then almost overindulgence in the lascivious themes of the Kit Kat Klub.
March 5, 2013
An interesting book, but as I have read most of the books quoted by the author, I was ever so slightly disappointed. Nevertheless a good book, especially about the most recent productions.
May 14, 2014
What an unlikely path for what is now a classic musical. More illustrations (and perhaps some in color) would have been nice.
February 12, 2016
Fascinating history of a timeless musical.
March 23, 2017
A rather thorough examination of the evolution of Cabaret from Christopher Isherwood's stories about Berlin through John van Druten's stage play and a British film before finally becoming the Broadway musical the impresario Harold Prince developed to change the look of musicals. Lots of good background information for people interested in the history of the musical.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews