Before Lauren Bowler goes on stage, you’ll find her behind the curtain getting into character, visualizing where she is going and what she needs to do, playing over the first few scenes in her mind.
“If I have to sing in a show, there’s usually one song I have to stand backstage and recite all the lyrics to,” she says. “I suspect it’s going to be Don’t Tell Mama.”
Bowler has been a professional actor in Vancouver for 15 years, and starting on April 12 she’s playing Sally Bowles in Royal City Musical Theatre’s production of Cabaret. It’s frivolous, raunchy and fun, juxtaposed with heavy political themes.
The musical is set in 1931 Berlin, a city transitioning from the centre of avant-garde culture to the site of Hitler’s growing regime pre-Second World War. Cliff, an American writer, finds himself in the Kit Kat Klub on his first night in Berlin. He meets the rowdy ensemble at the cabaret, including dancer Sally Bowles. Cliff and Sally begin a relationship and live together in the guesthouse of Fraulein Schneider, who becomes the target of anti-Semitic crimes. As the story unfolds, characters discover friends belong to the Nazi party, and hate crimes become the norm.
It’s a bold, terrifying and beautiful piece of theatre, says Bowler. The costumes include fishnet, lace, lingerie and severe makeup. The music too, says Bowler, adds to the themes and whole experience, meant to evoke an emotional response.
“It’s dark and brooding and gorgeous, but it’s also willing to sit in these uncomfortable places and make people truly feel,” she says.
Her character derives her self-worth from dancing at the cabaret and performing for her clients. And while she knows the political climate is darkening, she clings to her identity as a dancer and the fun, playful community at the cabaret.
“Sally’s not stupid, but she also knows how to live, and she only wants to hang on to the fun and crazy, zany community she’s found in Berlin where she can truly be herself,” she says. “She’s witty, she’s smart, and she’s quick. She knows how to get what she wants. ... The club is her escape as well. That’s where she feels she is valuable.”
Bowler tries to understand the characters she plays, but there’s a lot about Sally she has difficulty empathizing with.
“It’s hard to play somebody making choices that you don’t necessarily agree with as an actor, but she believes she’s making the right choice, so I have to champion her,” she says. “But I also think she has a huge amount of love to give, and there’s a compelling desire for positivity and fun and exuberance that is amazing, and sort of enviable in a way.”
Cabaretwas revolutionary when it first opened in the ’60s, based on the novel Goodbye Berlin by Christopher Isherwood, with music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb.
It’s fun and energetic, but it’s also one of the first musicals to tackle serious issues, says play director and choreographer Valerie Easton.
“World War II was still close to a lot of people at that time. ... (It) was quite ground-breaking to put in a musical; you know, people think of musicals as being light and funny, so to put that subject matter in a musical was quite new,” she says.
“The story is about imperfect people, and for a musical, that’s slightly different than something like Oklahoma or Carousel.”
And though the play is now more than 50 years old, what stands out for Easton is that the topics will still be relevant to contemporary audiences.
“It’s a very powerful story, and it’s quite uncanny how it relates to how we are today, and what’s going on with women’s rights, with racism, and ... there’s a lot of worry about power struggles,” she says.
Easton says she thinks the audience will enjoy the music.
“It’s snappy, its sarcastic, its clever, and it’s very hummable,” she says.
Cabaret runs from April 12 to 29 at Massey Theatre at 735 Eighth Ave, and includes evening and matinee shows. The cast includes Lauren Bowler as Sally Bowles, Tim Howe as Cliff, Andrew Cownden as the Emcee, Cheryl Mullen as Fraulein Schneider, and Damon Calderwood as Herr Schutlz. Valerie Easton is the director and choreographer, and James Bryson is the musical director.
Tickets are $48 for adults, $39 for seniors or students, and $29 for children 13 and under, and can be purchased at ticketsnw.ca or by calling 604-521-5050.
Onstage
What: Cabaret, presented by Royal City Musical Theatre
When: April 12 to 29, with previews April 12 and 13 and opening night April 14.
Where: Massey Theatre, 735 Eighth Ave.
Tickets: $48 regular, $39 seniors/students, $29 children 13 and under. Call 604-521-5050 or see www.ticketsnw.ca.
