BSU Says ‘Wilkomen’ to Cabaret!
This late April and early May, the BSU Theater Department invites you to step out of 2020s Bridgewater and into 1930s Berlin to experience the wild and politically charged nightlife of Cabaret. Witness entertaining and provocative dance numbers, emotionally charged songs, and the slow rise of the Nazi party.
Follow the tragic stories of American writer Cliff Bradshaw and his relationship with English cabaret performer Sally Bowles, or of the doomed romance between German boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider and her suitor, Herr Schultz, a Jewish fruit vendor. All while Kit Kat Klub’s charismatic Emcee brings the fourth wall crashing down around you. I had the pleasure of interviewing Ava White who plays Emcee (pictured here) as well as Amanda Brochu who is one of the Kit Kat dancers. When I sat down with these two amazing actresses they were able to give me a glimpse behind the curtain.
These two actresses worked hard to paint a picture of Cabaret without giving away its amazing story. “I think the main message of this show is to not be ignorant,” Ava stated when asked about the show’s message. Amanda added “It’s kind of like a wake up message. This happened. It’s kind of happening again. Wake up.” Cabaret covers the prelude to the holocaust and the fall of the Weimar Republic. When asked about the importance of discussing Cabaret‘s heavy topic, Ava said “This was a terrible time in history, it’s important to not only discuss it, but to do so with sensitivity and respect. This was a real story that happened to real people.” When asked this same question, Amanda responded “Yes, it was history. It happened in the past, but history does repeat itself if you don’t learn from it.”
As we wrapped up the interview, I asked Ava if she had anything to say to our readers, Ava stated, “I would encourage people to just come see it, bring people who maybe you think need to see this story and talk about it—have conversations about it. Because it’s really important that right now we are having these conversations with people and with our communities.” When I asked if there was anything more that could be said about Cabaret, both Amanda and Ava responded “You’ll just have to come see the show.”
