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‘Cabaret’ is returning to Broadway with Eddie Redmayne — and a restored Jewish subplot
(New York Jewish Week) — For the last 15 months, the undeniably Jewish musical “Funny Girl” has held court at the August Wilson Theater on Broadway. When the show closes in September, it won’t be long until the theater once again hosts a show with Jewish themes and characters.
A revival of “Cabaret,” the 1966 musical about the fate of a Berlin nightclub and its patrons during the rise of the Nazi party, is slated to arrive on Broadway at the August Wilson in the spring of 2024 with a restored Jewish subplot.
Revived on Broadway several times since it was staged in 1966, the latest version of the musical by the Jewish duo John Kander and Fred Ebb will be an adaptation of the West End revival that has been playing since 2021.
The West End production emphasizes a subplot surrounding an ill-fated romance between German boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider and her Jewish suitor Herr Schultz — a relationship that was featured minimally in other productions and removed from the 1972 film altogether.
A 2022 review of the West End production in the Jewish Chronicle called the Jewish subplot “the emotional heart of the story, and its moral core” that “undoes an act of Jewish erasure.”
The musical arrives after a season in which shows with Jewish themes featured prominently on Broadway, including Tom Stoppard’s “Leopoldstadt,” the musical “Parade,” the Lorraine Hansberry drama “The Sign in Sidney Brustein’s Window” and Alex Edelman’s one-man show, “Just for Us.” Headed to the stage next season are Barry Manilow’s “Harmony,” “A Prayer for the French Republic” and “Transparent,” each with a strong Jewish theme.
The West End production of “Cabaret” starred Eddie Redmayne (“The Theory of Everything,” “The Danish Girl”) in the central role as the Master of Ceremonies. It won seven Olivier Awards, including best revival of a musical and best actor in a musical. Redmayne is expected to join the New York production, though the cast has not been announced yet.
“Cabaret” is also the show where Jewish actor Joel Grey first received widespread acclaim, in the role of the Master of Ceremonies. He won the Tony Award for best featured actor in a musical in 1967; that same year “Cabaret” won the Tony for best musical. Grey also won the Oscar for best supporting actor for the 1972 movie version, where he reprised his role opposite Liza Minelli as Sally Bowles. (Minelli won the Oscar for best actress as well.)
Composer John Kander, 96, already has two shows running on Broadway: the new musical “New York, New York” and the long-running revival of “Chicago.”
“Cabaret” will be directed by Rebecca Frecknall and produced by Ambassador Theater Group and Underbelly, both British production companies.
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The post ‘Cabaret’ is returning to Broadway with Eddie Redmayne — and a restored Jewish subplot appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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UN Security Council Meets on Iran as Russia, China Push for a Ceasefire
Members of the Security Council cast a vote during a United Nations Security Council meeting on the 3rd anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at UN headquarters in New York, US, Feb. 24, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/David Dee Delgado
The U.N. Security Council met on Sunday to discuss US strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites as Russia, China and Pakistan proposed the 15-member body adopt a resolution calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Middle East.
It was not immediately clear when it could be put to a vote. The three countries circulated the draft text, said diplomats, and asked members to share their comments by Monday evening. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by the United States, France, Britain, Russia or China to pass.
The US is likely to oppose the draft resolution, seen by Reuters, which also condemns attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites and facilities. The text does not name the United States or Israel.
“The bombing of Iranian nuclear facilities by the United States marks a perilous turn in a region that is already reeling,” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told the Security Council on Sunday. “We now risk descending into a rathole of retaliation after retaliation.”
“We must act – immediately and decisively – to halt the fighting and return to serious, sustained negotiations on the Iran nuclear program,” Guterres said.
The world awaited Iran’s response on Sunday after President Donald Trump said the US had “obliterated” Tehran’s key nuclear sites, joining Israel in the biggest Western military action against the Islamic Republic since its 1979 revolution.
U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that while craters were visible at Iran’s enrichment site buried into a mountain at Fordow, “no one – including the IAEA – is in a position to assess the underground damage.”
Grossi said entrances to tunnels used for the storage of enriched material appear to have been hit at Iran’s sprawling Isfahan nuclear complex, while the fuel enrichment plant at Natanz has been struck again.
“Iran has informed the IAEA there has been no increase in off-site radiation levels at all three sites,” said Grossi, who heads the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Iran requested the U.N. Security Council meeting, calling on the 15-member body “to address this blatant and unlawful act of aggression, to condemn it in the strongest possible terms.”
Israel‘s U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon said in a statement on Sunday that the U.S. and Israel “do not deserve any condemnation, but rather an expression of appreciation and gratitude for making the world a safer place.”
Danon told reporters before the council meeting that it was still early when it came to assessing the impact of the U.S. strikes. When asked if Israel was pursuing regime change in Iran, Danon said: “That’s for the Iranian people to decide, not for us.”
The post UN Security Council Meets on Iran as Russia, China Push for a Ceasefire first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Rejects Critical EU Report Ahead of Ministers’ Meeting
FILE PHOTO: Smoke rises from Gaza after an explosion, as seen from the Israeli side of the border, June 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen/File Photo
Israel has rejected a European Union report saying it may be breaching human rights obligations in Gaza and the West Bank as a “moral and methodological failure,” according to a document seen by Reuters on Sunday.
The note, sent to EU officials ahead of a foreign ministers’ meeting on Monday, said the report by the bloc’s diplomatic service failed to consider Israel’s challenges and was based on inaccurate information.
“The Foreign Ministry of the State of Israel rejects the document … and finds it to be a complete moral and methodological failure,” the note said, adding that it should be dismissed entirely.
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Pope Leo Urges International Diplomacy to Prevent ‘Irreparable Abyss’
FILE PHOTO: Pope Leo XIV holds a Jubilee audience on the occasion of the Jubilee of Sport, at St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Vatican June 14, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Yara Nardi/File Photo
Pope Leo on Sunday said the international community must strive to avoid war that risks opening an “irreparable abyss,” and that diplomacy should take the place of conflict.
US forces struck Iran’s three main nuclear sites overnight, joining an Israeli assault in a major new escalation of conflict in the Middle East as Tehran vowed to defend itself.
“Every member of the international community has a moral responsibility: to stop the tragedy of war before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” Pope Leo said during his weekly prayer with pilgrims.
“No armed victory can compensate for the pain of mothers, the fear of children, the stolen future. Let diplomacy silence the weapons, let nations chart their future with peace efforts, not with violence and bloody conflicts,” he added.
“In this dramatic scenario, which includes Israel and Palestine, the daily suffering of the population, especially in Gaza and other territories, risks being forgotten, where the need for adequate humanitarian support is becoming increasingly urgent,” Pope Leo said.
The post Pope Leo Urges International Diplomacy to Prevent ‘Irreparable Abyss’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.