UW-Green Bay to offer ‘Cabaret’ Backstage Pass one night only, following play
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay will offer a behind-the-scenes look at its production of the award-winning musical Cabaret Friday, April 20, following the play’s opening night at the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts on campus, 2420 Nicolet Drive.
The one-time event, “Cabaret Backstage Pass,” will feature Director and UW-Green Bay Prof. Laura Riddle, along with the Cabaret cast and crew, for an up close-and-personal look at the show, UW-Green Bay Theatre’s first Weidner Center mainstage production in more than a decade. This special event takes place in the Weidner Center’s Fort Howard Hall immediately following the 7:30 p.m. mainstage show on Friday, April 20.
During the Backstage Pass event, attendees will enjoy cabaret singers at the “Kit Kat Club,” along with a cast meet-and-greet and German desserts and coffee. A cash bar will be available. Major sponsors of this special event are Prevea Health and Green Bay Packaging.
Tickets for Cabaret Backstage Pass are $20 and may be purchased in advance only from the University Ticketing Service and Information Center, (920) 465-2400. Attendees may purchase their Cabaret tickets at the same time.
Set in the seedy Kit Kat Klub in 1930s Berlin, Cabaret premiered on Broadway in 1966, sweeping the Tony Awards. The 1972 film starring Liza Minnelli brought international fame to Christopher Isherwood’s character, Sally Bowles, a young, eccentric cabaret performer who fascinates Cliff, an American writer and teacher of English. The decadence of the nightly celebrations in the cabarets stands in stark contrast to the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. Cabaret has become a classic of American musical theatre, featuring a brilliant and memorable score by Kander and Ebb, who later collaborated on the musical Chicago.
The cast, crew and orchestra of Cabaret represent a broad base of UW-Green Bay Theatre and Music talent. The University also is bringing in seasoned alumni, including Eric Lindahl, a 2002 graduate — who is now acting professionally in Chicago — in the role of the Emcee. Lindahl performed in the last Weidner Center mainstage production, Pippin, in 2000. Alumni also have key roles behind the scenes — for example, Stacey Nellen Kolze (’98) will provide wigs for the show. Kolze owns Nell’s Wigs in Green Bay, a shop that provides wigs for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
UW-Green Bay Theatre and Music will present Cabaret for two nights only, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 20 and Saturday, April 21. Tickets are $25 or $30, and can be purchased online at www.uwgb.edu/tickets or by calling (920) 465-2400 or (800) 328-tkts. Click here to watch a video preview of the show.
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