Stirring Things Up
A DYNAMIC BLEND OF BERKSHIRE CABARET IS HAPPENING THIS SUMMER
By Taylor Staubach
Singer and actress Janelle Farias Sando stars “A Night at the Speakeasy,” presented by the Great Barrington Public Theater.
IF CABARET were a cocktail, it would be the Collins—classic yet infinitely adaptable. Like a mixologist crafting a specialty concoction, cabaret offers a framework ripe for personalization, a traditional recipe that embraces innovation. Just as altering the base spirit or adding diverse ingredients can transform a Collins, cabaret allows artists to infuse their own creativity, offering audiences a fresh experience within something familiar. This summer, the cabaret scene is stirring things up! With a diverse mix of performances served tableside, there’s sure to be a show to suit every taste.
Known locally as the Berkshires cabaret diva, Sherri James Buxton has appeared both on and off Broadway, dazzling audiences from New York to Chicago. Buxton epitomizes the classic cabaret style, a passionate soprano with over 40 years of experience. Channeling the spirit of Irving
Berlin this summer, Sherri James Buxton and Friends will present “Say It With Music" on July 11 at the Taft Theatre at Berkshire Music School. Buxton's show promises an evening of timeless melodies and captivating storytelling.
Continuing the celebration of cabaret's rich history, Tanglewood offers a unique opportunity to explore the life and career of one of its most iconic figures. On August 3, join Berklee scholar Angela Farr Schiller at the Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI) inside the Linde Center as she hosts an engaging conversation about Josephine Baker—humanitarian, artistic trailblazer, spy for the French Resistance, and cabaret superstar. Through live archival footage, Schiller will separate truth from fiction, exploring Baker's vast career and life, diving deep into her expansive songbook and the dangerous liaisons that defined her extraordinary journey. The following day, on August 4, pianist Kirill Gerstein and conductor HK Gruber will perform cabaret music from 1920s Berlin.
Unlike traditional theater, cabaret defies a singular definition, blending comedy, music, and storytelling, often performed by an ensemble of artists. After a successful 2023 debut, Williamstown Theatre Festival’s WTF Cabaret returns this summer with multi-talented actress, singer, and director Asmeret Ghebremichael as the 2024 cabaret curator. Ghebremichael acknowledges that much of the show's success lies in the sum of its parts, particularly in the talents of music director Joel Wagoneer. “Joel is so brilliant at making arrangements and just good at so many different things,” says Ghebremichael. “He’s an amazing, composer and arranger. He sings. He plays a million instruments, and he's just really fun and funny. He's sort of the key.”
Running July 25 through August 10 at the ’62 Center for Theatre and Dance in Williamstown, WTF Cabaret aims to keep audiences guessing, bringing something new each weekend. Emphasizing the beauty of this unconstrained and spontaneous approach, Ghebremichael notes, “Each week develops its own theme along with a rotating roster of guests and a host.
“Last year, we had a diverse mix of actors, singers, and comedians. It's the only place where you can hear Billie Eilish, Patti LaBelle, Pat Benatar, and Ring Them Bells. So it’s sort of like anything goes! I think it keeps the spirit of what the cabaret is, but makes it more intentional.”
In the unique setting of a cabaret, the connection between artist and audience is paramount. Understanding the importance of this atmosphere, all of the venues will feature special seating arranged to foster the intimate vibe of a cabaret. Taking it one step further is Great Barrington Public Theater, which will present “A Night At the Speakeasy” on July 26 at the McConnell Theater in Great Barrington. Starring singer and actress Janelle Farias Sando in an original show made up of familiar show tunes, American songbook classics, and genre crossovers, audiences will be transported to the Roaring Twenties, where the allure of Prohibition-era lounges meets the seduction of live performance. Director Wendy Welch promises a surprise element, echoing the clandestine nature of speakeasies past. “Historically, there's the stereotype of knocking on the door with the secret window and giving a password to be let in, and we're going to incorporate that in a surprising way for the show,” says Welch.
For Alan Paul, artistic director at Barrington Stage Company (BSC), the intimacy and personalization of the cabaret framework is a rare opportunity for performers. “A lot of these people are performing in an 1800-seat Broadway theater, so they've got to be big and project and play the crowd. When they get a chance to do something with 90 people, in the size of a living room, it's a very different experience for the audience. And often on Broadway, they're playing a role. But in a cabaret setting, they're themselves. They pick the songs, they pick what they want to say in-between. Often, the arrangements are different. It's a very personal experience for the performers, as well. So, even if you've seen Krysta Rodriguez in Cabaret or Telly Leung in Aladdin, you've never seen them up close like this. It’s special and different, and that's what the form itself can really do.”
BSC’s Mr. Finn’s Cabaret, which runs select weekends through September 1, boasts a heavy-hitting lineup of Broadway stars and BSC alumni. Free from the constraints of traditional theater, artists like Matt Doyle and Julie Benko craft deeply personal performances, curated to engage and inspire. In a cabaret, performers unconventionally address the audience during monologues, building an immersive and personal world that transitions between storytelling and song and back again. It’s an art form that needs to be experienced to truly be understood.
Cabaret’s ability to be open to interpretation leaves the door open to a variety of themes. Shakespeare & Company's “Shake It Up: A Shakespeare Cabaret” exemplifies this boundary-pushing spirit, playfully fusing the Bard’s timeless verse with rock-and-roll rhythms.
Billed as a “waggish” collection of Shakespeare’s stories and songs, audiences can expect to see this cabaret cocktail blending some unique ingredients. Artistic Director Allyn Burrows saw this as the perfect platform for a mashup. “I feel like Shakespeare has become part of the fabric of our culture, and for me, rock-and-roll is, too,” he says. “Shakespeare is a great poet, and some of these songwriters were great poets—The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder. You take rock-and-roll songs that were inspired by Shakespeare, like Elton John’s The King Must Die, and ones that may have been subliminally inspired by Shakespeare, and it was natural to have them crash into each other and see what alchemy came out of that.”
A cozy setup of café tables and couches will grace the Tina Packer Playhouse in Lenox for the five-day stint, July 2 to 7. Featuring talents like Jacob Ming Trent, Jennie Jadow, Benny Fingers Kohn, Johnny Irion, and Connor Meehan, “Shake It Up” is an exploration of love and connection as a counterbalance to a tumultuous world, aimed at offering a respite from the chaos through music and poetry. “To oversimplify, all of Shakespeare's canon is about one's relationship to love, and all the music in the realm we're working in for this piece follows the same thread,” says Burrows. “The world seems to contain so much hatred at the moment. I'd like to focus on the loving. Have a good time. Shake it up.”
You could say that life truly is a cabaret this summer—one that mixes genres and expectations, crafting a brand-new theatrical landscape for audiences in the Berkshires. Consider this your invitation to raise a glass and toast an evening of connection, innovation, and entertainment!