One of these days, I’m going to take my daughters to Broadway and see Beauty and the Beast or The Lion King. I’m in no rush, because there’s an amazing children’s theater company right in my backyard.
The Downtown Cabaret Children’s Company in Bridgeport starts it’s 25th season this Saturday (Sept. 30) with a world premiere orginal production based on the gothy kid’s book "Cinderella Skeleton." (That's Cinderella in the photo at left)
Our 6-year-old daughter has grown up going to the Cabaret’s shows and our 2-year-old, when she’s not busy causing national security alerts, is also a big fan.
Simply put, the Cabaret is genius on a stick. The creative crew weaves theater magic seemingly from old paper bags, tattered cloth and children’s imagination. The shows are often spoofs of well-known material, like the show "Rudolph!" which mated the Christmas tale with "Chicago!" style attitude. Every production is fun, cheery and full of wacky humor and song. Company creative director Bert Bernardi puts it best when he says "At the Cabaret, it’s always new, always different."
If you’ve never taken the kids to the Cabaret, I can’t urge you enough to make the trip. Heck, if you don’t have kids, it’s a great offbeat date. Support local, independent theater!
This season, the lineup is "Cinderella Skeleton," "Christmas in Candyland 2," "Oliver Twist," "Peter Rabbit," and "Beauty and the Beast."
Who needs Broadway?