Sometimes I see the world, the humanity, as a big party where people laugh, sing and dance exorcising their worries; a party set up, felt, lived in spite of the pain, the sadness, our tragic condition, the existential absurdity. Despite a great Evil that can take the form of a world war or some other kind of war, a pandemic.

I dedicate this show to the memory of the actress Oana Ștefănescu.

In this statement, I believe that everything that RăzvanMazilu intended and managed to achieve with the most recent premiere of the Odeon Theater in Bucharest, the musical CABARET, is included. A show full not only of brilliance but also of substance, a glamorous painting in which, however, the dirt hidden under the rug, penetrates easily to the surface, two hours in which we laugh and grieve as indicated by the conductor's magic wand… To all this I add the acting performance that can only be appreciated in superlatives.

At the beginning, I considered RăzvanMazilu's ambition to stage famous musicals in Romania all over the world, especially through screenings that had become legendary, as suicidal and irresponsible. There have been many such attempts, the most risky seeming to me The Sound of Music. The more extraordinary the success, the more worthy of admiration are the performances of those involved in the performances, given that the musical school is, in our country, practically non-existent. A group of young actors formed around RăzvanMazilu - the tenacious dancer, slowly but surely transformed into a director, choreographer and costume designer - who cultivated their voices, trained their bodies, sharpened their ambitions and, out of love for a wonderful genre, they turned into actors / singers / dancers comparable to those from American, English or French schools. In the case of the CABARET, however, the intention was for the whole show to be performed only with the actors of the theater. None of them being a singer, none of them a dancer. An exam of maximum difficulty that, after many and difficult months of sustained work, in the harsh conditions of a destructive pandemic, both physically and mentally, all those involved passed with flying colors. And if RăzvanMazilu saw the world, the humanity, as a big party where people laugh, sing and dance exorcising their worries; a party set up, felt, lived despite the pain, the sadness, our tragic condition, the existential absurdityall those with whom he worked on the CABARET did / felt the same. The result: an extraordinary show, from all points of view.

The story provides the context: in Paris and Berlin people spend time trying to forget the wars that bring with them human misery, famine, death. The music supports the facts, the action and the characters through songs of the age, shrill harmonies and devilish rhythms, but, when necessary, also through slow, melodic songs, full of true feelings. The main character, the one who wields the magic wand playing with everyone's lives, the Master of Ceremonies, is performed, sung, danced with chameleonic mastery by Mihai Smarandache. Apparently strong, in fact, the so fragile Sally Bowles finds in IoanaMărcoiu an artist who puts her soul onto the stage and who, after toiling at the galleys imposed by the singing and ballet teacher, sovereignly receives the applause she deserves fully. SilvianVâlcu gives life to a character from another world, that of the naive and dreamers, whom the cruel truth of life hits hard, knocking them down. No wave of untruth in his game, on the CABARET stage, SilvianVâlcu is a real Clifford Bradshaw. The couple Fräulein Schneider - Gabriela Popescu - Herr Schultz - IonelMihăilescu, the volcanic FräuleinKost - AntoanetaZaharia, the nice but actually sinister Ernst Ludwig - Eduard Trifa and the girls from the band Kat Kat Club: Rozi - Meda Victor, Frenchie - Maria Alexievici , Lulu - Cristina Danu, Texas - Anca Florescu who, almost all the time, fill the scene with movement and color, brilliantly complete the cast of a show-story that would not have existed without them and to whose success it fully contributes. We must not forget to pay due attention to the orchestra composed of exceptional instrumentalists, neodeonians, specially invited for this production.

As usual - yes, we got used to this "as usual" - Răzvan Mazilu is also the author of the costumes used in the show, opulent for cabaret scenes and customized, depending on the role, for domestic scenes. The decor, also inspired, gathers on stage, always "in sight", in an ingenious puzzle, spaces suitable for every situation, from the theater box to the bathtub in the "shared" space. Attentive to details, seemingly unimportant but proving essential to the atmosphere of a certain moment, Sabina Spatariu did not hesitate to place a stuffed fox on an old closet or to lock Sally in a cage that shines in the spotlight.

Despite a great evil that can take the form of a world war or another kind of war, a pandemic,RăzvanMazilu and the talented actors worked hard, didn't abandon the project and managed a big time show, which certainly will make history and not only in the golden book of the Odeon Theater. Impressive the gesture to dedicate it to a colleague, herself once involved in the show in which she didn't have the chance to play.

CABARET

Music - John KanderLibretul -Joe Masteroff

Lyrics - Fred Ebb

After John Van Druten's play and Christopher Isherwood's stories.

Distribution

Sally Bowles - Ioana Mărcoiu

Master of ceremonies - Mihai Smarandache

Clifford Bradshaw - SilvianVâlcu

Fräulein Schneider - Gabriela Popescu

Herr Schultz - Ionel Mihăilescu

FräuleinKost - Antoaneta Zaharia

Ernst Ludwig - Eduard Trifa

The band from the Kit Kat Club:

Rozi - Meda Victor

Frenchie - Maria Alexievici

Lulu - Cristina Danu

Texas - Anca Florescu

Bobby - Vlad Bîrzanu

Viktor - Cezar Antal

Max - Marian Lepădatu

The sailor, the Nazi - Relu Poalelungi

Moment Two Ladies (With two): Meda Victor / Maria Alexievici, Vlad Bîrzanu / Cezar Antal

Solo Married (Wedding): Cristina Danu / Anca Florescu

Monkey Solo: Cristina Danu / Anca Florescu

Orchestra:

MihaiMurariu, piano; AndreeaArchip, piano; Robert Magheti, drums; Florian Nicolau, bass; Alex Avramovici, clarinet; Robert Preduț, saxophone; Alexandru Moraru, trombone; Silviu Groaza, trumpet

Direction, choreography, costumes: Răzvan Mazilu

Setting: Sabina Spatariu

Light design: Cristian Niculescu, Ștefan Ioșca

Text translation: Carmen Stanciu

Song translation: Alex Ștefănescu

Musical training: Maria Alexievici

Concept make-up: Ioana Roman

Choreography assistant: Monica Petrică

Costume assistance, accessories: Covent Ground (Raluca Ioanițoaie, Remus Gabor)

Set design assistant: Andrei Șova

Orchestra management: Corina and Alexei Țurcanu

Co-repeaters: Maria Alexievici, AndreeaArchip, Mihai Murariu

Stage director: Dan Iosif