Eddie Redmayne, who played his final performance last month as the Emcee in the new Broadway revival of “Cabaret,” confirmed during a television appearance on “The View” that he recently returned to the production as an audience member to check out Adam Lambert, who took over his former role. Although “Cabaret” marks Lambert’s Broadway debut, before he won fame on “American Idol,” he was an ensemble member and understudy in the touring production of “Wicked” back in 2005. Redmayne said that Lambert was “so magnificent” and that he was “blown away.”
Last week, I revisited the immersive and critically divisive revival. (Auli’i Cravalho of “Moana,” who recently took over as Sally Bowles, was out at my performance.) Lambert is indeed stunning, channeling his flamboyant stage presence and vocal prowess into the complex and mysterious role and making it his own. Whereas Redmayne seemed to be working overtime to create a nightmarish, physically and vocally-twisted Emcee, Lambert is much more at ease in the raunchy, gender-fluid nightclub environment while retaining the character’s sinister edge.
The acclaimed 1990s revival of “Cabaret” (which ran through 2004) featured a lot of interesting replacement casting for both the Emcee (including Raúl Esparza, Neil Patrick Harris, Adam Pascal, and John Stamos) and Sally Bowles (including Katie Finneran, Gina Gershon, Deborah Gibson, Molly Ringwald, Brooke Shields, and Lea Thompson). Perhaps this “Cabaret” will follow suit.
Rare Gershwin musical ‘Strike Up the Band’ to play Carnegie Hall
Do you miss the days when rare Gershwin musical comedies were regularly programmed as part of the Encores! series at City Center, including “Of Thee I Sing,” “Pardon My English,” “Lady, Be Good!,” and “Strike Up the Band”? In 1998, Encores! presented “Strike Up the Band” (a political satire in the Gilbert & Sullivan vein) in its original 1927 version (which is distinct from the more successful 1930 version that played Broadway). On Oct. 29, Mastervoices will present “Strike Up the Band” in concert at Carnegie Hall using a new adaptation that is intended to combine the best elements of the 1927 and 1930 versions. With a full choir and orchestra, the principal cast will include Victoria Clark, Christopher Fitzgerald, Claybourne Elder, Bryce Pinkham, Shereen Ahmed, and David Pittu.
‘Smash’ confirmed for Broadway
“Smash,” a new Broadway musical based on the short-lived NBC television series about developing a new Broadway musical about the life of Marilyn Monroe, will open at the Imperial Theatre (currently home of “Water for Elephants”) on April 10. For years, it was rumored that “Bombshell,” the Monroe bio musical at the heart of “Smash,” would be presented on Broadway. It will feature songs that were written for the television show by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman (“Hairspray”). The cast will include Robyn Hurder, Brooks Ashmanskas, Krysta Rodriguez, and Kristine Nielsen. In the meantime, you can still stream the original two seasons of “Smash,” which starred Debra Messing, Christian Borle, and Katharine McPhee.
Sadie Sink decides ‘John Proctor is the Villain’
Sadie Sink, who plays Max Mayfield on the Netflix series “Stranger Things” (a character that, as of the end of the last season, is currently in a coma), will make her Broadway debut in “John Proctor is the Villain,” a new play by Kimberly Belflower in which contemporary high school students critically examine and question Arthur Miller’s classic drama “The Crucible.” It will play the Booth Theatre (currently home of “The Roommate” with Patti LuPone and Mia Farrow) beginning March 20.
