Cabaret - Playhouse Theatre

[bb8]

Any rumoured cast replacements yet?

[mattnyc]

Apr 11, 2023 20:29:50 GMT bb8 said:

Any rumoured cast replacements yet?

They haven’t been announcing anything until almost the new start date, have they?

[jacob]

first visit yesterday, overall very enjoyable! thank you jgblunners for the ticket. Aimee was a delight, not overly expressive in act 1 which nicely contrasted for Act 2. And a surprisingly beautiful voice too! Jamie New.. I mean, John.. as the Emcee was interesting, slightly less ‘out there’ than I’d thought he’d be. Listening to Eddie on the recording there’s definitely more seriousness with John . If anything the sinister portrayal was a clever contrast with his vocals just thought that the big numbers would’ve been pushed further if he did just a little more.
After seeing streetcar I cannot fault Rebecca’s push for in the round staging because it truly works. very cool to have other cast members watching in from the wings / aisles and playing around the audience.

cannot fault the venue too, staff were approachable and welcoming, although walkie talkie murmurs unfortunately echoed during act 2 from outside but these were minor. convinced that the alcohol sales also make the show more profit that ticket sales. And no one puked in the audience at all! ☺️Albeit some arguably tone death table occupiers on the tables who continue to clap after the anti-semetic remarks in some songs, everyone seemed well behaved

[nottobe]

I have seen a rumour on tiktok that the new Sally Bowles is going to be Maude Apatow. I would take this’s with a very big pinch of salt but who knows. Also I would find it surprising for them to go for another c list American Actress as opposed to an English actress.

[thistimetomorrow]

I've heard the new Emcee will be Mason Alexander Park (another American)

[asps2017]

Any idea why this hasn't gone to Broadway yet? Sorry if already discussed. 

[theatrefan77]

Probably because the Sam Mandes production run for years and it was again revived in 2014. Maybe Broadway producers think it's too soon for another Cabaret?

[mattnyc]

Apr 24, 2023 18:47:22 GMT asps2017 said:

Any idea why this hasn't gone to Broadway yet? Sorry if already discussed. 

Also they’d want to recreate the atmosphere like at The Playhouse and we have only a couple theaters that could be done at so availability is an issue.

[minion]

And also I remember reading around the album release when people asked him about it, Eddie Redmayne seemed to be carrying some guilt around, so seems unlikely that it's going to happen soonish at least (sounds very similar to why Billie Piper is reluctant to do a musical on stage).

I don't think they'll undertake the investment without his name there to kick things off at least.

“Doing theatre when you have young children is really complex,” he says. There is the need to be at the theatre early to warm up, then the late nights working. “Unless you get up in the mornings to take your kids to school, you’re not seeing your children, and then you’re working weekends…” he says in one exasperated flow. He slows down to add, lest he sound ungrateful, “and that is just our actor’s life, if we’re lucky enough to be working. So the answer to your question is I’ve had a thrilling experience, and theatre is in my DNA and blood. But it also takes a toll.”


inews.co.uk/culture/arts/eddie-redmayne-cabaret-greatest-career-toll-2113514

[enh2]

New cast has been announced. Playing from 29 May. Maude Apatow (HBO's Euphoria) as Sally Bowles, Mason Alexander Park (The Sandman) as Emcee, Teddy Kempner as Herr Schultz and Beverley Klein as Fraulein Schneider.

[distantcousin]

Didn't Teddy Kempner play Schultz in the Rufus Norris Lyric Theatre version? Or am I misremembering?

Not wowed by the two new leads. Going for very "niche famous" actors again.

And good old "Nepo baby" realness in the case of Apatow.

[teamyali]

From their recent castings, they really target the millennial and Gen-Z crowd - audiences of Marvel shows, Sex Education, It’s a Sin, Euphoria, etc. Which is a good thing because live theatre needs a new generation of audiences. As for the prices, well…there’s always those rush tickets and daily lotteries.

How long would they recoup their investment here?

[minion]

People didn't exactly fall over with praise for Apatow in her current stage stint, so this casting is extremely suspect. Not sure exactly who is going to be excited to see her.

Also, having been a couple of times, I don't think the demographic of audience is changing with these casts. I think the show sold exactly as it always does when the alternates were on for two weeks earlier this year. The show itself is the draw.

[benny20]

Saw Maude in LSOH last month in New York. She can sing OK but I was not convinced by her acting...and that was just playing Audrey. It did clearly attract fans of a certain age who watched her TV role. It might be an interesting one but not for me

[alece10]

Hadn't heard of either actor, Googled them and still none the wiser. I haven't even heard of the TV shows they have been in.
I'm guessing a younger person will be aware of them but, at Cabaret prices, would they be queueing up to fork out £200 for a Cabaret table?
It's not as if they are even established MT performers which would get me to go for a third visit.

[nottobe]

Oh dear the rumour was right. Come on we have lots of talented actresses this side of the pond to pick from who would love to play Sally. Don’t know the emcee actor but at least they are more interesting. I’m also surprised that they have not caught any flack yet for only casting Caucasian people as Sally and Emcee,

[minion]

Apr 26, 2023 13:28:05 GMT nottobe said:

Oh dear the rumour was right. Come on we have lots of talented actresses this side of the pond to pick from who would love to play Sally. Don’t know the emcee actor but at least they are more interesting. I’m also surprised that they have not caught any flack yet for only casting Caucasian people as Sally and Emcee,

I mean the Emcee has to be white for the production to work. Sally they definitely could do better with.

[distantcousin]

Apr 26, 2023 13:28:05 GMT nottobe said:

Oh dear the rumour was right. Come on we have lots of talented actresses this side of the pond to pick from who would love to play Sally. Don’t know the emcee actor but at least they are more interesting. I’m also surprised that they have not caught any flack yet for only casting Caucasian people as Sally and Emcee,

Interesting, but conversely there feels like a conscious decision to cast every Cliff so far as a non-white actor.  (which makes zero sense in terms of authenticity of the character, but hey....)

[c4ndyc4ne]

Apr 26, 2023 13:40:50 GMT distantcousin said:

Apr 26, 2023 13:28:05 GMT nottobe said:

Oh dear the rumour was right. Come on we have lots of talented actresses this side of the pond to pick from who would love to play Sally. Don’t know the emcee actor but at least they are more interesting. I’m also surprised that they have not caught any flack yet for only casting Caucasian people as Sally and Emcee,

Interesting, but conversely there feels like a conscious decision to cast every Cliff so far as a non-white actor.  (which makes zero sense in terms of authenticity of the character, but hey....)

Gosh darn it, and they were getting it so period-accurate with those handheld microphones. 

[luminaire]

Millennial here - I am very excited by this casting, and love both shows / actors, cannot wait to see what they do! So excited to be there for their first week!

[MoreLife]

Did some Googling of my own and stumbled upon a few YouTube videos of Mason Alexander Park as Hedwig in the US national tour of the production that opened in NY with Neil Patrick Harris at the helm.  Based on that, I can definitely see why they'd be considered a good fit for the EmCee, and clearly they are a competent and reliable performer if they were chosen to lead the touring production stepping in the role that NPH had been spectacular in on Broadway. 

Besides, given the stamp that Eddie Redmayne - whose vocals are solid, but not out of this world good - has given the role in this production, the performer's charisma, energy and physicality count more than anything else, and someone who's played Hedwig should easily pass the test in those departments.  

On the other hand, I haven't been able to find examples of Maude Apatow's singing/performing.  The fact that the LSOH production has published videos with almost all the other actresses who've played / are playing Audrey, including Tammy Blanchard - who brought to life an unusual and interesting portrayal of Audrey, but wasn't quite vocally flawless - but not a single one with Apatow does make me wonder...  

Of course I also wonder whether these names are big enough to command the ticket pricing that was originally deemed "justified" when Redmayne and Buckley were cast, but the show has been running for a year and a half now and despite the cast having changed to include leads with maybe less of a resume/name it keeps selling reasonably well, the lottery remains super tough to win, there's still a certain buzz about it, it's a well-known title that can sell to tourists and those have been returning to London in recent months... so I feel that it can continue to run with that pricing for another while! 

[Steffi]

Mason has also already played the role in the US. There's a couple of videos of them on Youtube.

[Deleted]

Any news on a broadway transfer?

[42ndBlvd]

May 6, 2023 21:31:24 GMT @thebroadwayboy said:

Any news on a broadway transfer?

I hear Bille Piper is being considered to play Sally...

[ncbears]

Apr 27, 2023 9:31:08 GMT MoreLife said:

Did some Googling of my own and stumbled upon a few YouTube videos of Mason Alexander Park as Hedwig in the US national tour of the production that opened in NY with Neil Patrick Harris at the helm.  Based on that, I can definitely see why they'd be considered a good fit for the EmCee, and clearly they are a competent and reliable performer if they were chosen to lead the touring production stepping in the role that NPH had been spectacular in on Broadway. 

Besides, given the stamp that Eddie Redmayne - whose vocals are solid, but not out of this world good - has given the role in this production, the performer's charisma, energy and physicality count more than anything else, and someone who's played Hedwig should easily pass the test in those departments.  

On the other hand, I haven't been able to find examples of Maude Apatow's singing/performing.  The fact that the LSOH production has published videos with almost all the other actresses who've played / are playing Audrey, including Tammy Blanchard - who brought to life an unusual and interesting portrayal of Audrey, but wasn't quite vocally flawless - but not a single one with Apatow does make me wonder...  

Of course I also wonder whether these names are big enough to command the ticket pricing that was originally deemed "justified" when Redmayne and Buckley were cast, but the show has been running for a year and a half now and despite the cast having changed to include leads with maybe less of a resume/name it keeps selling reasonably well, the lottery remains super tough to win, there's still a certain buzz about it, it's a well-known title that can sell to tourists and those have been returning to London in recent months... so I feel that it can continue to run with that pricing for another while! 

Note: Euan Morton led the US National Tour of Hedwig. Park was the Standby.