EVANSVILLE, IN Â The University of Evansville (UE) Theatre, announces the second installment of the 2022-2023 season with Cabaret, inspired by the play by John Van Druten, stories by Christopher Isherwood, music by John Kander, and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The show opens at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, November 11, in Shanklin Theatre. Additional performances are at 7:30 p.m. on November 12, 17, 18, and 19; and at 2:00 p.m. on November 20.
Set against the tumult and sheer chaos of Germany’s 1929 Berlin, the alluring emcee invites all to engage in willful ignorance and revel in the lustful delights inside the legendary Kit Kat Club. “Here life is beautiful.” With hedonistic abandon, these riveting characters live life as a carnival of debauchery and despair. Winning Tony Awards for Best Musical for the 1966 Broadway premiere and for Best Revival of a Musical in 1988, this provocative and challenging style of storytelling packs a potent punch on the dangers of mass indifference in the face of injustice and atrocities and asks audiences to either act now or say, “so what?”
Cabaret is directed by Wes Grantom ’03, assistant professor of theatre. Evelyn Hipp, a sophomore theatre studies major from Nolensville, Tennessee, serves as the assistant director; Tyler Simpson, guest artist, serves as the music director; Chad Goodridge, guest artist, serves as the choreographer; Tansy, guest artist, is the burlesque consultant; Eric Renschler ’83, associate professor, serves as the scenic designer; Sara Mathew, a senior design and technology major from Union, Kentucky, is the costume designer; Stephen Boulmetis, associate professor of lighting design, serves as the lighting designer; Richard Ingraham, guest artist, serves as the sound designer; Diane Brewer, professor of theatre history and criticism, is the dramaturg; Keegan Macaluso, a senior design and technology major from Georgetown, Texas, serves as the technical director; and Madison Wilson, a senior stage management major from Fort Worth, Texas, is the stage manager.
This cast features Jake Conrad, a senior performance major from Olympia, Washington, as Emcee; Lillian Grace Carlson, a junior performance major, from Minneapolis, Minnesota, as Sally Bowles; Caden Sevier, a junior performance major from Humble, Texas, as Cliff Bradshaw; Elizabeth Dye, a senior performance major from Frisco, Texas, as Fraulein Schneider; Spencer Marfy, a junior performance major from Tallmadge, Ohio, as Herr Shultz; Jimmy Guest, a senior performance major from Bettendorf, Iowa, as Ernst Ludwig; Nathan Viscaino, a senior performance major from Redmond, Oregon, as Max; Gabriel Smothers, a senior performance major from Casper, Wyoming, as Bobby; May Anderson, a sophomore theatre management major from Minneapolis, Minnesota, as Frenchie; Amelia Overholt, a senior performance major from Fort Collins, Colorado, as Fraulein Kost and Rosie; Madison Conway, a junior performance major from Jeffersonville, Indiana, as Fritzie; Tomi Akinwande, a first-year performance major from Houston, Texas, as Texas; Riley Katherine Miller, a senior performance major from Crown Point, Indiana, as Helga; Cara Connelly Gilbert, a sophomore performance major from Suffern, New York, as Lulu; Daniel Perez, a first-year performance major from San Antonio, Texas, as Herman; Mason Norton, a first-year performance major from Bremen, Indiana, as Victor; and Landry Barker, a first-year performance major from Fort Worth, Texas, as Hans.
In following industry standards as established by the Broadway League, all audience members must remain masked during the performance. It is our hope that these restrictions will allow our student actors to safely perform unmasked.
