WILLKOMMEN, BIENVENUE, WELCOME!

CABARET

THE REVOLUTIONARY REINCARNATION OF THE CLASSIC KANDER AND EBB MUSICAL WINNER OF FOUR 1998 TONY AWARDS

SFX Theatrical Group, in association with Eric and Scott Nederlander & Jujamcyn Productions are pleased to announce the National tour of the Roundabout Theatre Company's (Todd Haimes, Artistic Director) production of CABARET.

With music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb, and book by Joe Masteroff, CABARET tells the story of an English woman's romance with an American writer set against the background of a crumbling Germany at the start of the Third Reich. CABARET features some of the best-known songs in musical theatre, including "Willkommen," "Tomorrow Belongs to Me," "Money" and "Cabaret."

British director Sam Mendes first staged CABARET at the Donmar Warehouse in London to critical acclaim, and sold-out houses, in 1993. For the New York production, Mr. Mendes chose the former Henry Miller Theater, which was operating as a nightclub, to create the non-traditional performance space that is the infamous Kit Kat Klub. The theatre was re-configured with a combination of cabaret-type seating as well as traditional theatre seating.  The production eventually transferred to the notorious Studio 54, with a multi-million dollar custom redesigned theatre space.

John Kander and Fred Ebb, who won the 1998 Kennedy Center Honors for achievement in the arts, are two of the most successful and prolific collaborators in the American theatre.  In addition to CABARET they are currently represented on Broadway with the award-winning revival of Chicago. Their shows include 70 Girls 70, Woman of the Year, Kiss of the Spider Woman, The Rink, The Act and Steel Pier.

Sam Mendes received a Tony nomination for his American directing debut with the Roundabout Theatre Company's production of CABARET. As artistic director of London's Donmar Warehouse theatre  company, he staged recently the acclaimed production of The Blue Room starring Nicole Kidman and Lain Glen, which was completely sold-out when it played at Broadway's Cort Theatre for a 12-week engagement.  He has also staged acclaimed productions of Stephen Sondheim's Company and Assassins, and in London's West End he directed Cameron Mackintosh's hit production of Oliver!.

Sam Mendes was awarded the 1999 Academy Award for Best Direction for his directorial debut of AMERICAN BEAUTY staring Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening. AMERICAN BEAUTY was also honored in the categories of Best Film, Best Actor (Kevin Spacey), Best Original Screenplay, and Best Cinematography.  AMERICAN BEAUTY was produced by DreamWorks Entertainment.

Co-director and choreographer Rob Marshall, a Tony nominee for CABARET, recently staged the Broadway production of Little Me, starring Martin Short and Faith Prince, for which he also garnered a Tony nomination for Best Director.  His choreography includes She Loves Me (Tony nomination) and Company, both at the Roundabout Theatre Company, as well as Broadway's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Victor/Victoria, Damn Yankees and Kiss of the Spider Woman. Most recently, he made his directorial debut with Promises, Promises for City Center Encores! series. He directed and choreographed "Annie" starring Kathy Bates as Miss Hannigan, and choreographed "Cinderella" featuring Whitney Houston for ABC-TV.

In addition to winning eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical, the original production of CABARET also received the New York Drama Critics' Award, the Outer Critics' Circle   Award, the Variety Poll of New York Critics, and London's Evening Standard Award and Plays and Players Award. The original Broadway production opened on November 20, 1966 and played a total of 1166 performances. The film version of CABARET won eight Academy Awards.  The new production of CABARET continues the award-winning tradition.  The Mendes/Marhsall staging received 30 major award nominations, winning four Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical.

CABARET is based on the true-life observations of Christopher Isherwood who wrote "The Berlin Stories" about his experiences in Berlin between 1929 and 1932. Playwright John van Druten turned one of these stories, "Sally Bowles," into the play I Am a Camera, which was produced on Broadway in 1952 starring Julie Harris, who repeated her role in the 1955 film version. Playwright Joe Masteroff had the idea of developing the story into a musical and brought it to the attention of Harold Prince, who contacted the song-writers, John Kander and Fred Ebb. The original Broadway production starred Jill Haworth as Sally Bowles and Joel Grey as the emcee. Liza Minnelli played Sally Bowles in the film version of CABARET directed by Bob Fosse.

The design team for CABARET includes Robert Brill (sets), William Ivey Long (costumes), Peggy Eisenhauer and Mike Baldassari (lighting) and Brian Ronan (sound).

For more information check out http://www.cabarettour.com