Student-produced ‘Cabaret’ performs at Buskirk theater

Sally Bowles, an English woman scantily clad in black lingerie and knee socks a mile high, performs a soulful number.

“Mama thinks I’m living in a convent in the southern part of France,” she belts.

Welcome to the cabaret.

There might not be cabarets in Bloomington, but the Buskirk-Chumley Theater was transformed into one this weekend. The student-run production of “Cabaret,” presented by Union Board, brought a scandalous and moving musical show to town.

Joe Masteroff wrote the musical “Cabaret,” and it premiered on Broadway in 1966. It was made into a feature film starring Liza Minelli in 1972.

Now IU students have made it something all their own and have brought a bit of Broadway to Bloomington.

Set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic and the Nazi party’s rise to power, “Cabaret” revolves around the love affair between Bowles, portrayed by sophomore Julia Mosby, and young American writer Cliff Bradshaw, portrayed by junior John McLaughlin.

Cliff moves to Berlin to find inspiration for his next novel. He sees Sally perform at the Kit Kat Klub, they fall in love, but things suddenly go down hill. Sally learns she is pregnant, and Nazi control threatens their ideal life in Berlin.

Senior Sarah Kiperman played Cliff’s German landlady Fraulein Schneider, who falls in love with the Jewish Herr Schultz, played by freshman Matt Birdsong.

Kiperman sang a solo song “So What?” and teamed up with Birdsong to sing the duets “It Couldn’t Please Me More” and “Married.”

“It was good,” junior Katie Strandlund said. “They have amazing voices.”

The stage was adorned with tables and chairs to give the stage the cabaret atmosphere of the Kit Kat Klub. Several structured thresholds, adorned with light bulbs, set the stage. The stage band sat behind the set decorations and started the action with jazz numbers.

The show began with the song “Wilkommen,” a performance by the Emcee, freshman Ethan Carpenter, and all the Klub staff. Sally catches the eye of Cliff with the song “Don’t Tell Mama,” accompanied by the women of the Kit Kat Klub.

“The young man who played the lead was absolutely incredible,” said Bloomington resident Wendy Corning. “I thought it was fabulous ... amazing talent for such young people.”

The Union Board presents a musical or dramatic production each year. Past productions included “Godspell” and “Once On This Island.” After proposing the idea to Union Board to put on “Cabaret” last semester, director Emma Strauss and choreographer Esther Widlanski have been working on the production ever since. After weeks of rehearsals, it all came together on Friday night.

“I am very happy with it,” Strauss said after the show. “The actors really came into their characters.”

Alexa Lopez, the show’s producer and Union Board’s performing arts director, heard many comments about how the content of the show is relatable to today.

“The turnout was phenomenal,” Lopez said. “This really does fit with the times now.”