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Theatre

Who Should Play Sally Bowles in the Upcoming Broadway Revival of ‘Cabaret’?

By Tyler Coates on

There are two major actors who are most associated with John Kander and Fred Ebb’s musical Cabaret: Liza Minnelli, who won an Oscar for her role as Sally Bowles in Bob Fosse’s 1972 film adaptation of the musical, and Alan Cumming, whose performance as the Emcee in Roundabout Theatre Company’s revival won him a Tony in in 1998. Both actors became associated with their roles. Minnelli performed several of the show’s numbers in her award-winning solo performance, Liza With a Z, and last week it was announced that Roundabout will be remounting their most popular production in the spring of 2014 with Cumming reprising his most famous stage role. But who will play the young English chanteuse Sally Bowles? Here are the five best casting opportunities. … Read More

Film

The Surprising Kinship Between ‘Les Mis’ and ‘Cabaret’

By Alexander Huls on

You might not think that Bob Fosse’s Cabaret and Tom Hooper’s Les Miserables would have much in common. They hardly seem comparable aesthetically, narratively, or musically. Yet during a recent viewing of Fosse’s classic film (out on Blu-ray today), I was struck by a not-so-distant kinship between these stage-to-screen musicals. Les Mis and Cabaret don’t just present a movie to their viewers. They welcome us in directly, intimately immersing us in the action.

Cabaret literally (actually literally) invites us in. The film begins with The Kit Kat Klub’s Master of Ceremonies (Joel Grey) looking directly at us before launching into a song welcoming us and the club’s audience. Cabaret knows we’re there and doesn’t want us to linger at the threshold. It symbolically sits us down in the Kit Kat Klub. Throughout “Willkommen” (and almost every subsequent musical number) the camera becomes us — an audience member constantly roaming around to get the best view. Cabaret goes on to extend that sense of our presence to the entire movie. The audience is made to be an omnipresent voyeur, living inside the film, while fostering an intimate and immersive connection with the characters and story. … Read More

Design

Reimagined Posters for Classic 1970s Films

By Caroline Stanley on

First, a disclaimer: We’re of the opinion that it would be impossible for anyone to outdo the original poster for Annie Hall. The image of Annie and Alvy standing face-to-face is perfect in its simplicity. That said, we’re always happy to see artists engage in a little cinematic homage. Such is the case with LWL70, an exhibition of reimagined 1970s film posters commissioned by Little White Lies, a British film magazine, that are currently on display at the East London-based Kemistry Gallery. Click through to view some of our favorite work from the show, and if you like what you see, snap up an affordable art print in the online shop. … Read More

Theatre

Exclusive: Eden Espinosa Talks Elphaba, Maureen, Brooklyn and ME

By Alex Catarinella on

Eden Espinosa is famous, albeit without the paparazzi — just YouTube her and read the comments from fans who freak out over her pipes. You may have heard her hit impossible high notes when she defied gravity as Wicked‘s Elphaba the green witch in LA, San Fransisco AND the Great White Way. But if you don’t recognize the name, you’re likely not a part of the fan culture who haunts stage doors in hopes of scoring a new Facebook default pic with their favorite Broadway star.

With a resume boasting roles that include Elphie, Maureen in Rent, and the title role in the short-lived Brooklyn The Musical, some have pigeonholed Espinosa as just another lucky pop singer who can riff. But Kelly Clarkson, she’s not. (Her dream role is the highly demanding Eva Peron in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita.) From Espinosa’s Disneyland past (she’d perform 5 to 6 shows a day complete with Pocahontas garb) to headlining her first solo NYC show, she has worked her way to the top the traditional way — with solid talent.

This weekend, she’s setting aside the green witch makeup and bringing a few of her favorite tunes (which include Eva Cassidy!) and special guest vocalist Katie Thompson to Joe’s Pub for a three night run of Eden Espinosa — ME, which garnered a previous sold-out run at LA’s Upright Cabaret. After the jump, we chat with Espinosa between rehearsals for her NYC solo debut about all things theater, including her nutty fans (cough, cough… Britney Spears) and the New York Times review that made her cry.. … Read More