Dissertation Creation - The UK's original provider of custom dissertations and dissertation help...

Free Dissertations - Theatre Dissertations

Iv. Later Cabaret Christopher Isherwood Christopher Isherwood's Works ...


IV. Later Cabaret
Christopher Isherwood
Christopher Isherwood's works include two semi-autobiographical novels that are an important part of cabaret history: Berlin Stories and Goodbye to Berlin. In fact, Bob Fosse's 1972 film Cabaret was inspired by Goodbye to Berlin. This collection of pieces is about life in Berlin during 1930 and 1931, at the beginning of the Nazi rise to power. ‘More than making monsters, therefore, the Berlin novels account for how monsters are made when history itself becomes monstrous', notes Shuttleworth. (2000: p. 160). ‘If the final sense of the texts is that the usurpation of life by art is disastrous, they are equally clear that the separation of art from life is impossible, and that the idea of an artless world, claiming authenticity or objectivity, is a delusion dangerous in itself' (Shuttleworth, 2000: p. 160).
Cabaret in Film: Cabaret
The film Cabaret, directed by Bob Fosse, was released in 1972. Immediately popular, the film soon became a classic. In it, one can get an idea of what cabaret was like in 1932 Berlin. Cabaret was inspired by Christopher Isherwood's Goodbye to Berlin, a collection of pieces, some of which are autobiographical, about life in Berlin during 1930 and 1931, at the beginning of the Nazi rise to power. The pieces are valuable as a description of a significant period in German and world history, and the effect the changing political tide had on the world of cabaret. ‘Isherwood's portrait of the Berlin demimonde and of the morally bankrupt middle classes has generally been taken to reveal a cultural condition, or let us say a widespread state of mind, which somehow explainsand perhaps even foretoldwhat was to happen in Europe and the world at large during the next fifteen years' (Bucknell, 2000: p. 13).
The story opens up with the Kit Kat Klub, in Berlin. It is set in the late 20s, before the oppression of Hitler had settled in. The Kit Kat Klub was an actual cabaret in Berlin during the 1930s. This is the common bond that links American Sally Bowles with several other colorful characters who are representative of society of the time. Among them was a wealthy German politician, a British teacher, and of course, the omniscient Master of Ceremonies. Enormously famous, the film is still considered a classic, and is often seen as a metaphor for the self-destruction that was later to follow as fascism engulfed Germany.
Cabaret in Film: The Blue Angel
The Blue Angel, starring Marlene Dietrich, is another classic in which the Weimar cabaret style is considered to be accurately depicted. It is loosely based on Professor Unrath, the novel by Heinrich Mann. Dietrich, who was relatively unknown at the time, played Lola-Lola , the star of the Blue Angel, a character known for her bold, brazen sexuality. Professor Immanuel Rath is a schoolmaster, known for his lack of a sense of humour and his puritan approach to life.

Please note: The above dissertation snippet was written by a student and then submitted to us to display and help others. Thanks to all the students who have submitted their work to us.