u/RalphCraft69

I've noticed that Cliffe basically has no singing parts in Cabaret, only during 'perfectly marvelous' and 'finale'. Is there any deeper meaning behind this? From my own understanding it tells us something about how much these characters are in the 'trance' of 1930s Berlin, before the illusion falls. Cliffe only sings when he let's Sally into his appartement, which is really the first time that he 'gives in' to the Berlin way of life (or at least, the illusion of it). The same happens in 'Married', where Fraulein Schneider only agrees with Herr Schulz after he starts singing, or in other words, when he puts up the illusion. When Cliffe finally sings again, It's in the finale, reprising 'Wilkommen', as if he is now aware of the true intentions of that song (and ofcourse that song, and all the other club songs are just a part of the illusion)

I could be all wrong though, and there are probably bigger Cabaret fans that know better than me. Does anyone have a concrete answer?

Last Saturday I saw Hadestown on the West End and was blown away by the entire cast. I've seen the show before (4 times in Amsterdam, and several recordings of different casts) but never quite like this. Everyone played their character so well, I've never seen such clear definitions of who everyone is intil this performance. Bethany Antonia played a very scared/traumatised Eurydice; pulling back or shocking every time someone came close to her, which slowly went away throughout the show, making it so tragic to see the ending. Rachel Adedeji was also great, she put a big emphasis on Persephone's drinking problems, especially during her number in Act 2, she'd look around the stage absolutely devastated before taking a sip of alcohol and transforming back into her 'Livin' it up' self.

Alastair Parker's Hades was also a major standout, incredibly angry at everything and everyone, especially Persephone, a super bitter Hades, in a way I think that this version of their story has been going on for quite a while, as if their relationship is now at the worst possible stage. But then, during Epic III, He completely breaks. As Orpheus sings his final verse, Alastair cries and shakes, sweat and tears running down his face, and when he finally sings his melody to Persephone, his voice is almost uncontrolable. Absolutely devaststating to see. I was a bit sceptical at first, because I quite like Patrick Page's take on the character, especially with his emphasis on 'doing everything for Persephone', but it seems like Alastair's Hades was far past that point. He had tried everything in his power to win Persephone, and thus had grown bitter, and the contrast to that anger in Epic III was a beautiful payoff to that entire show of anger.

The performance that stuck out to me most though, was Marley Fenton's Orpheus. I've never seen an Orpheus quite like his.

Orpheus is often played as a naive, innocent young man, who is entirely oblivious to the world. (Reeve Carney and Jack Wolfe come to mind) but Marley does something different. He jokes around, during Wedding song and Epic I he plays to the workers and Eurydice as is he is trying to get a laugh out of them, making funny faces or putting emphasis on certain words. For example: when he says "who walked.. up above" in Epic I, he points to the sky and raises his body a little, as if he doesn't realise the weight of what he is singing about. He keeps doing this, even alone during Epic II, he laughs to himself (not audibly) as he makes up his lyrics, going "King of silver.. *smiling and nodding* king of gold"

Then during Chant we see him change for the first time. During his last verse (the Gods have forgotten...) you can see him slowly realise what's going on, and looking in absolute shock.

Then, in Wait For Me, he starts off joking again, which Clive Rowe's Hermes does back to him. Marley is excited as he asks "Where's Eurydice?", as if he wants to show her some funny line he just made up, and Clive responds with a smile on his face, "brother what do you care..." but as he reveals what happened, you see Marley change. It's no longer a joke to him, reality has hit. During the actual song you can see how scared he is, but still confident (he's a lot like Jordan Fischer in this song).

Then, in the second act during Come Home With Me II, he seems scared but confident, he checks if Eurydice is okay, and talks back to Hades on full force. But as he gets beaten up he gets completely destroyed. During 'Nothing Changes' he lays flat on his back, as if he's passed out. But during If It's True he wakes up again. He's now angry at the world, angry at Hades. Constantly pointing to his office door, rallying up the workers. During "Is this how the world is?" He finally realises what's going on, no more jokes. And during Epic III there aren't any jokes anymore either. He sings to Hades as if his lofe depends on it, and the before mentioned Alastair Parker supports that very well. When Marley first sings his melody, Alastair runs towards him in anger, fist in the air (which was truly scary to see live) but Marley doesn't flinch. He keeps singing.

During promises, it seems like he truly wants to make sure that Eurydice knows what he can and can not give, because he knows how it is to be oblivious.

The only (small) problem I have though is right at the start of Word to the Wise, he asks "can we go?" In that same, joking way as he did in Act 1, which to mee seems out of place after his entire arc. But ofcourse, it's only a small thing, so it doesn't really matter. Anyways: during Doubt Comes In he gives everything he can. His soft falsetto notes turn into raspy vocals as he sings "is this a trap...". I had goosebumps for the entire song.

Then, after he has turned around and Euryidice goes back, (unlike most Orphei I've seen, who run just as she descends) he starts running right when it's too late, you could hear a very soft "no no no no" as he runs towards the pit.

One last thing I'd like to mention (about the entire cast, but also still mostly Marley) is the silent acting they do here. Every character reacts expressively, and most importantly, with intent. It seems that everyone on stage knows exactly where their character is supposed to go narratively, and acts accordingly throughout the show. A great (and I assume to be improvised) example of this is during Way Down Hadestown. Bethany (Eurydice)'s shoe got untied during the song, and Marley (who had already been very protective of her during this number) pulled her asside for her to tie it, but they both stayed in character. He looked annoyed at the Fates and Workers as they danced, as if he wanted to tell them to watch out (it wasn't any actors fault the shoe got untied)

Overall, this cast was just great. I was lucky enough to talk to everyone at the stage door (at which I already told Marley and Alastair how much I liked their acring and emphasis on arcs)

Everyone seemed to have a great grasp on their characters, and how they all should change. It was a great experience, and I would go again if I could (sadly, I live in the Netherlands)

Is there any meaning behind which characters sing and when in Cabaret?

I want to be both an actor and a writer/director. Are there any colleges for that?

I'm working on an Essay about Hades' character, does anybody have any thoughts to share?