out at the aronoff for cabaret

Coming at you today with another Broadway play review that I am totally unequipped to deliver.

I need to remind you all that I am an English teacher and I interpret texts and writing for a living. But I swear, sometimes I see these Broadway plays and find myself mouthing what is happening? the entire time.

That is sort of the story for me and Cabaret, but not entirely. I had a functional understanding of what it might be about. I knew it was a well-known, classic musical, one that has been celebrated for years. I knew it would be edgy and bawdy and naughty and risqué, but I wasn’t expecting the very real and serious plot line lying underneath it all. That was what I did not see coming and something I had to work through while simultaneously applauding in standing ovation in the end. I stood there clapping, delivering the much deserved praise, while also feeling pretty sad and uncomfortable with how everything turned out (which I’ve since learned, is precisely the point).

Either way, Cabaret is one to see (if you are 18-years or older and maybe not sitting next to your dad). The performers were amazing and I was totally obsessed with Andrea Goss, who played Sally Bowles. Each one of her songs completely sucked me in and reminded me why I answered Roaring 20s when I was once asked which fashion decade I wanted to live in. Randy Harrison, who played the Master of Ceremonies, was also extremely captivating, while leaving no innuendo rock unturned. Those two, with the Kit Kat girls and Kit Kat boys, made for a pretty titillating and entrancing experience.

Cabaret, a Roundabout Theatre Company production, is playing at the Aronoff through May 22nd.

images and tickets c/o Broadway in Cincinnati