'Cabaret' examines themes as relevant as ever, opening April 20 at KU Theatre

LAWRENCE — The University Theatre’s sold-out season finale opens with a big, inviting party. That’s one reason why Act 1 of “Cabaret” is so adored and a reason the musical’s ending hits so hard, said Markus Potter, director and assistant professor in the University of Kansas Department of Theatre & Dance. “It’s fun, until it’s not.”

“Cabaret” takes audience members to the Kit Kat Club and Fraulein Schneider’s boarding house in Germany 1930 with the rise of Nazism as the backdrop. The show compels audiences to ask what they would do if faced with the threat of hate and oppression or if they saw that a friend’s ignorance and apathy might cost them everything, Potter said.

“‘Cabaret’ doesn’t show us the horrors of the Holocaust; instead, it shows how hard it was to even imagine those horrors until it was too late to stop them,” said Henry Bial, professor in the theatre & dance department, whose research centers on the portrayal of Jewish people in theatre and popular culture. Bial will play the role of Herr Schultz, the love interest of Schneider, who will be played by Laura Kirk, associate teaching professor in the department.

All performances in the run are currently sold out. Shows are April 20-23 and April 25-30 on Stage Too! in Murphy Hall. Stage Too! is a configuration of the Crafton-Preyer Theatre where both the audience and playing area are on stage. It provides a more intimate setting. 

The box office encourages patrons to check its website Tuesday, April 11, as any ticket availability updates will be announced at that time.

The production’s highly celebrated musical score gives fuel to choreography by Michelle Heffner Hayes, professor of dance, who has deviated from Bob Fosse’s original work. Musical direction is provided by Ryan McCall, musical director and lecturer in the department.

Students are working side-by-side with faculty in the areas of performance, design, direction and stage management. Some of these company members are featured in Willkommen: A Companion Podcast to The University of Kansas’s Cabaret.

Potter serves as the artistic director in the department, where he has recently directed productions of “The Christians,” “Changemakers” and the Kansas Repertory Theatre production of “Chasing Gods.” Additionally, he serves as the acting artistic director of Center Rep theatre in the Bay Area. Potter received an Outer Critics Circle Award nomination and the New York Times Critics’ Pick for the off-Broadway production of “Stalking the Bogeyman” at New World Stages. He is the founding artistic director of NewYorkRep and served as interim artistic director of Theatre Aspen. Read more about Potter’s directing projects.

Hayes holds a doctorate in critical dance studies from the University of California-Riverside. There, she choreographed solo and group works in both the postmodern and flamenco dance traditions. She also performed with the postmodern dance companies of Susan Rose and Stephanie Gilliland as well as the flamenco company of Armando Neri. While executive director of cultural affairs at Miami Dade College, Hayes taught jazz dance and expressive movement for actors in the internationally recognized bilingual theatre program Prometeo. Read more about Hayes.

The scenic designer is recent KU alumna Leah Mazur, whose participation in “Cabaret” is made possible by the Ronald A. Willis Visiting Scholar/Artist Fund, set up in honor of the late professor emeritus. The creative team is rounded out by Cassandra Ludlum, senior in theatre design and history of art from Topeka, costume designer; Ann Sitzman, faculty member and technical coordinator in the department, lighting designer; Tiffani Hagan, doctoral student in theatre studies from Spartanburg, South Carolina, intimacy choreographer; Paul Meier, professional accent/dialect coach, founder of Paul Meier Dialect Services and professor emeritus, dialect coach; Paul Laird, professor of music, as consulting musicologist; Jonah Greene, doctoral student in theatre studies from Fayetteville, Arkansas, dramaturg; and Jenna Link, production manager and faculty member in the department, stage manager.

In addition to Kirk as Fraulein Schneider and Bial as Herr Schultz, the cast consists of Katherine Leverenz, sophomore in theatre performance and speech, language & hearing from Houston, as Sally Bowles; Olly Mitchell, sophomore in theatre in culture & society from Maize, as Emcee; Diego Rivera-Rodriguez, senior in theatre performance and film & media studies from Lawrence, as Clifford Bradshaw; Asher Suski, senior in theatre performance and linguistics from Ames, Iowa, as Ernst Ludwig; Allison FitzSimmons, sophomore in theatre performance and psychology from Lincoln, Nebraska, as Fraulein Kost; Paul Ruf, first-year student in biochemistry from Overland Park, as Bobby/ensemble member; Brody Gable, sophomore in music therapy from Roca, Nebraska, as Victor/ensemble member; Charles Nordquist, senior in theatre performance from Marion, as Herman/ensemble member; Johnny Dinh Phan, senior in dance and chemistry from Overland Park, as Hans/ensemble member; Anna Avery, senior in strategic communication from Overland Park, as Lulu/ensemble member; Jordan Nevels, junior in theatre performance from Overland Park, as Rosie/ensemble member; Anna Shelton, sophomore in dance from Hesston, as Texas/ensemble member; Basia Schendzielos, junior in French and Francophone studies from Shreveport, Louisiana, as Fritzie/ensemble member; Olivia Johnson, senior in mathematics and dance, as Frenchie/ensemble member; Allison Rader, first-year student in theatre performance from Shawnee, as Helga/ensemble member (understudy for emcee); Myles Hollie, junior in theatre performance from Richmond, Virginia, as Max/ensemble member; and Rachel Meyer, senior in theatre performance from Topeka, as customs officer/ensemble member. Additional members of the dance ensemble are ShonMichael Anderson, first-year student in theatre performance from Wichita; Lane Barrette, senior in theatre performance and political science from Basehor; Hannah Gassman (understudy for Herr Schneider), junior in voice and theatre from Deerfield, Illinois; Brandon Heflin (understudy for Herr Schultz and Ernst Ludwig), first-year student in microbiology and pre-pharmacy from Olathe; Gracie Hernandez, first-year student in theatre performance from Overland Park; Christie Phillips, junior in psychology and dance from St. Louis.; Madi Seelye, first-year student in dance and pre-nursing from Lawrence; and Maya Welde (understudy for Fraulein Kost), first-year student in Spanish and theatre performance.

In addition, the band will provide accompaniment from on stage. The band consists of McCall on piano, Robert Vandivier on trumpet, Brady Gell on trombone, A.J. Bonci on guitar/banjo, Clarke Russell and Clare Hawkins on bass, Julia Reda and Grant Owen on drums, and Jenny Clink and Wesley Rhodes on reeds.

The University Theatre and University Dance Company are production wings of the University of Kansas’s Department of Theatre & Dance, offering six public productions throughout the academic year. The University Theatre and University Dance Company productions are funded in part by KU Student Senate, and the theatre’s season is supported by Truity Credit Union.