#weimargermany

The Term ''Integration'' Within Musical Theatre, Refers To The Artful Amalgamation Of Various Components (singing, Dancing And Dialogue) That Work In A Fluid Manner Towards Producing A Combined Dramatic End. In More Classical Terms, It Can Be Argued That The German Composer Richard Wagner First Brought The Idea Of Integration To Light, Through His Concept Of ''Gesamtkuntswerk'' Or ''Total Work Of Art''. In His Writings, He Refers To The Three Disciplines As:

''[...Primeval Sisters Whom We See At Once Entwine Their Measures      Wherever The Conditions Necessary For Artistic Manifestation Have Arisen.    By Their Nature They Are Inseparable Without Disbanding The Stately Minuet Of Art…They Are So Wondrous Closely Interlaced With One Another, Of Fairest Love And Inclination, So Mutually Bound Up In Each Other’s Life, Of Body And Of Spirit: That Each Of The Three Partners, Unlinked From The United Chain And Bereft Thus Of Her Own Life And Motion, Can Only Carry On An Artificially Inbreathed And Borrowed Life.'']

Historical Developments Since Consider That Music, Book, Lyric, Orchestration And Underscore Also Fall Under The Umbrella Of Integrative Ingredients Required To Enhance The Message, Theme And Understanding Of A Musical. Each With Their Own Unique Worth And Ofference, They Help To Create Organic Perspective And Depth Within The Story, Plot And Character's Lives And Thoughts.

Throughout This Essay, I Will Discuss And Analyze The Significance Of Integration Within John Kander And Fred Ebb’s Cabaret (1966). I Would Argue That Every Musical Number Within Cabaret, Contains Lyrics That Are Somewhat Foreshadowing And Metaphorically Representative Of Social And Political Advancements In The Lead Up To World War II. The Synthesis Of Satirical Political Commentary (which Was A Real Occurrence In Cabaret Bars During The Weimar Era) And Musical Lyric Is Genius. Although Some Songs May Seem Like They Lack Political Depth On The Outside, The Interior Root Has A Massive Interpretive Scope Of Dark Underlying, Hidden Meanings, That Many Fail To See. Harold Prince (Director) And Kander And Ebb's Work Is One Of Brilliance, As They Successfully Integrated A Large Number Of Ideas Within Cabaret's Music, Lyric, Dialogue And Choreography, Falling Under The Larger Umbrella Of Propaganda.

Firstly, I Will Investigate The Unusual Integrative Structure Used Within The Musical And It's Significance To The Plot. Furthermore, I Will Analyze Kander And Ebb's Use Of Musical And Lyrical Propaganda, In Conjunction With Foreshadowed German Historical Events Within The Musical Numbers, Including The Conflict Between The Nazis And The Communist/Social Parties, The Great Depression, Kristallnacht (Night Of The Broken Glass), The Nuremberg Laws, Wehrmacht And Anschluss.

‘’We’re Looking For A New Form Of Musical Theatre, One That’ll Break Away From What’s Become Stale And Static, And Self-imitative. We’re Looking Back In Time Only To Look Forward In Form’’ Explained Ebb. Cabaret Undeniably Broke Free From The Chains Of Theatrical Norms, Revolutionizing The Art Of Musical Theatre Through Experimentation With Alternative Plot And Integrative Theatre Structures Inspired By Russian Expressionism. Set In 1931 Berlin, Late Into The Weimar Republic Democratic And The Nazis Rise To Power, Cabaret Follows The Grungy, Sleazy Lifestyle Of The Kit Kat Klub, Its Main Headline Performer Sally Bowles And Her Blossoming Relationship With An American Writer, Cliff Bradshaw. A Sub-Plot Involving A Forbidden Romance Between German Landlady Fräulein Schneider And Jewish Fruit Shop Owner Herr Schultz Also Ensues. Cabaret Is Considered One Of The Earliest Concept Musicals. American Author Raymond Knapp Described It As Being ''Less About A Particular Narrative Than About Establishing Perspective.''

The Integrative Structure Of Cabaret Defied The Stereotypical Musicals Which Came Before It, By Overlooking The Conventional Linear Pattern Of Plot And More So Focused On A Thematic Idea. The Concept Of A Show Within A Show Extends Beyond Limits Of Mastery, As A Tool Of Manipulation, Where We As The Audience, Suddenly Become Immersed In The Performances Of The Kit Kat Klub, Laughing, Sitting Back And Enjoying, But Not Fully Realizing That Harold Prince Has Unknowingly Cast Us As A Metaphor For The Oblivious And Absent-Minded People Of Weimar Germany, Who Inadvertently Allowed The Nazi Party Come To Power. Joe Masteroff (Writer) And Prince Innovatively Interwove Book Scenes From The Outside German World, With Musical Commentary From Within The Kit Kat Klub In A Diegetic Manner. These Were Mainly Carried Out By The Emcee, Who Acted As The All-knowing, Conscience Of Germany. Even The Manner In Which The Musical Numbers Are Placed Is Crucial, As It Initially Represents The Laissez Faire Attitude And Individuality The Kit Kat Klub Was Renowned For, To The Metamorphosis Of Nazi Propaganda Seeping Through Its Cracks And Into The Minds Of The Impressionable.

''Two Ladies'' Occurs Within The Kit Kat Klub, Performed By The Emcee And Two Of The Clubs Performers, Either Two Girls Or A Girl And A Boy In Drag. The Number Mirrors The Scene Previous Where Sally And Cliff Decide To Move In Together, With The Emcee Interjecting That ''Everyone In Berlin Has A Perfectly Marvelous Roommate.. Some People Have Two People!'' While Skillfully Managing To Synthesize The Book Scene With The Social Era Of Sexual Experimentation, Liberation And Expressionism, I Believe That There Is A Third Radical Theme To Consider, Concealed As A Metaphor Within The Number. I Consider, That On A Larger Scale, The ''Two Ladies'' Are Two Political Parties, The Social Democratic Party (SDP) And The German Communist Party (KPD) Who Were Both Large Sources Of Resistance Towards The Nazi Party. ''The Only Man'' Would Represent Adolph Hitler, The Nazi Party And His One Totalitarian Dictatorship. The Song Is A Metaphor For His Total Control Over Two Individual Parties, Working Almost Like A Puppet-master. [''This Two For One'']

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPOiaAU_vJg

There Is A Lot Of Repetition In The Song Between The ''Two Ladies'' [''Beedle Dee, Dee,Dee,Dee!''] In A Call And Response Format Which I Believe To Symbolize That They Are All The Same, Morphing Into The One German Ideal. They Keep Making The Same Mistakes, Through Their Own Ignorance. They Keep Looking To One Superior Power In A Brainwashed Manner, Someone Who They Are In An Inferior Position To. Hitler Believed Women  Should Be Stay At Home Housewives And Raise Children, While Their Husbands Went Out And Worked. In This Case, Hitler Is The Dominant Power And Strength, Responsible For His Country's Survival. [''I Do The Cooking..And I Make The Beds..I Go Out Daily To Earn Our Daily Bread''] The Fact Hitler's Policies Have Come To Power And His Propaganda Has Worked On Manipulating And Unifying The German People Is Suggestive In The Line [''I Like It..They Like It'']

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umhuM3M_mfI

Germany, Italy And Japan Were The Major Axis Powers In WWII, Who Believed That Together They Could Invade Russia. In Contrast To This, Germany Were Alone When The Treaty Of Versailles (United States, France) And War Guilt Clause Was Passed Blaming Them For The War And Demanding Them To Pay £6.6 Billion In Reparations, Which Can Be Interpreted In A Vengeful Way In The Line [''Twosies Beats Onesies, But Nothing Beats Threes!''] There Is Also A Possible Reference To The German Social Ladder In The Lyric, [''I'm Left!..Und I'm Right!..But There's Room On The Bottom If You Drop In The Night!] Which I Consider To Refer To The Two Parties And The Voiceless, Jewish People Considered To Be Of Lowest Class, Trampled By The Hierarchy. It's Also Worth Noting That The Joining In Of The Final [beedle Dee Dee!] Line Is A Gradual Process, First Lady, Second Lady, Emcee. This Highlights The Progression Of Faith In The Nazi Party By The German People, And Growing Support Towards A Dictatorship.

Similarly, ''Money'' Occurs In The Kit Kat Klub, Performed By The Girls And The Emcee. Again, He Claims A Superior Entity Position, Leading The Song, While The Girls Plead In A Desperate, Fanatical Response.[''Money, Money, Money..''] I Believe That The Emcee Is Reinforcing The Idea And Effect Of The Great Depression Within Germany. After The Wall Street Crash Of 1929, The German Economy Suffered Immensely, Losing Out On Loans And Foreign Trade That They Heavily Depended On From America To Keep The Weimar Republic Afloat. The Government Began Printing More Money To Handle Reparations, Resulting In Extreme Hyperinflation And Devaluation Of The German Mark. One American Dollar Was Worth 4,210,500,000,000 German Marks. By 1933, Unemployment Levels Soared To 6 Million, Counting For One Third Of The Population. The Consequences Of The Economic Collapse Were Devastating, As Famine Ensued, With Thousands Dying Of Malnutrition And Hunger-related Diseases, Which Is Disturbingly Portrayed In The Lyric [..''And You Look Thirty Pounds Underweight'']

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8P80A8vy9I

The Hypnotic, Piano Introduction In ''Money'', Similar To A Haunting Lullaby, Represents The Vulnerable Minds Of The German People Being Mesmerized By The Idea Of Hitler's Promise To Them (By Means Of Propaganda Which Is Played With In The Repetition Of Phrases), To Stabilize The Government, As Well As Their Fixation On Owning Money Which Is Crucial To Their Survival. [money Makes The World Go Around..] It's Interesting To Note That The Currencies Mentioned Are The Axis Powers Of Germany And Japan, And End With Their Rivals America And Britain. It Can Almost Be Interpreted As A Menacing, Spiteful Taunt That They Will Be Invading These Countries Mercilessly To Assist With Their Own Economy. [A Mark, A Yen, A Buck, Or A Pound..A Buck Or A Pound, A Buck Or A Pound''] The Emcee Takes On The Persona Of A Wealthy German, Who Believes That The Power Of Money, Will Overcome The Power Of Love, Tying In Darkly With The Idea Of ''Buying Love'' And Investing In Prostitutes, Who Will Do Anything For Money To Ensure Their Own Survival. [''If You Happen To Be Rich And Alone And You Need A Companion, You Can Ring Ting-a-ling For The Maid''] This Song Also Highlights The Self-obsessed, Pretentious Attitudes Of The German People, Whether They Actually Had Money Or Not, They Feared Being Anything Less Than Extraordinary. [''Of That We Can Be Sure..(...) On Being Poor!'']

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXjN9UKZwLE

The Most Frightening Part Of This Number In My Opinion Is The Section In Canon Which Highlights The Horrific Conditions Suffered By The German People During The Great Depression. The Canon Symbolizes The Fast-Acting And Effective Propaganda Which The Germans Believed Obliviously. [If You Haven't Any Coal In The Stove..] The Description Of The Pastor As ''Fat'' Plays On The Idea Of Greed, Which Could Be Linked To Hitler Never Being Satisfied, But Needing More And More Control And Power Over Germany. [''He Will Tell You To Love Evermore, But When Hunger Comes A Rat-ata-tat-ata-tat At The Window..Whose There?..Hunger!''] Here, It Plays On The Idea That Love Nor Religion Will Save You When The Famine Comes. Money Is A Far Bigger Entity And It Will Take More Than Prayers To God To Stop You From Starving To Death. The Kit Kat Girls Pleas For Money Become More And More Persistent, Almost Savage-like Towards The End. They Are Representative Of The Lower Classes, Those Who Struggled The Most During The Famine. They Are Cast Aside By The Emcee, Only To Be Exploited For Sex In Exchange For Money. It Can Be Argued That They Are A Metaphor For The German Mark And Echoing Hyperinflation, As They Are Considered Worthless And Disposable. Or, They Can Be A Metaphor For The Crumbling Economy, And Their Desperate Pleas Are For Loans, Foreign Trade Or A Superior Power To Restore Faith And Save Their Country.

The Opening Number Of Act II ''Tiller Girls'' Is Performed By The Kit Kat Girls And The Emcee, As What Starts Off To Be A Stereotypical Cabaret Can-can Line. However, The Music Alters Halfway Through To The Style Of A Military March, Foreshadowing In My Opinion, Hitler's Imposition Of ''Wehrmacht'' In 1935, Which Was The Unifying Of Armed Forces Within Germany (Army, Navy, Luftwaffe), And Later The Re-introduction Of Conscription. The Girls And The Emcee (Disguised) Dance With Canes, Which Are Later Endowed As Guns, As Soon As The Music Shifts, Suggesting A Link To The German Re-armament. Act Ii Is Much Darker, As The Songs Grow More Sinister In Propaganda, Representing The Growth In Support Of The Nazi Party, And Their Evolving Power And Stance Within Germany. The Kit Kat Girls We Are Introduced To In ''Willkommen'' With Individual Personalities And Traits, Disappear. They Become Nameless, Faceless Products, Robotic And Puppet-like In Movement, Brainwashed To Conform To An Idea Larger Than Any Of Them. They Are Like Pieces Of Hitler's Puzzle, Each Individual, But Necessary To Complete The Bigger Picture. Once Hitler Has Them Exactly Where He Wants Them, They Join Together And Become One Entity, At The Expense Of Losing Their Unique Edge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRTmvjXs1i0

One Of The Fewer Non-Diegetic Numbers That Happens Outside The Kit Kat Klub Is The Reprise Of ''Married'' Between Herr Schultz And Fraulein Schneider. What Seems To Be A Sweet And Honest Moment, One Of Which Are Few In The Expressionistic, Decadent Era Of Weimar Berlin, Between Two Newly Engaged Lovers, Is Ear-Splittingly Disrupted By A Loud Crash As The Emcee Sinisterly Throws A Brick Through Herr Schultz's Shop Window. I Sincerely Believe That Herr Schultz's Role As A Jewish, Fruit Vendor Is Extremely Symbolic, And That He Acts As A Metonym For The Jewish People Whose Properties And Workplaces Were Destroyed And Burned During Kristallnacht (Night Of The Broken Glass) In 1938. This Was When Nazis Were Given The Order To Ransack And Vandalize Jewish Businesses, Where 91 Jewish People Lost Their Lives, As Others Were Herded Up And Sent To Concentration Camps. The Poetic Term Kristallnacht, Is Supposed To Represent The Final Shattering Of The Jewish Existence Within Germany.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CoeJ_aiSTYI

It Is Not By Chance That Kander And Ebb Interwove This Concept Into The Married Reprise, As It Was From This Moment On, The Nazis Made Jewish Survival Almost Impossible, Therefore, Making The Marriage Of Schultz And Schneider A Doomed One. It Was The Beginning Of The End Of Their Marriage. It's Interesting To Consider That The Brick Is Thrown On The Word ''Marriage'', Highlighting The Idea That The Nazis Are Not Only Breaking Schultz's Window, But Also Breaking The Future Of His Marriage. This Can Also Be Linked To Foreshadow The Implementation Of The Nuremberg Laws, Forbidding The Marriage Of German's And Non-Germans. The Brick Thrown Is A Metaphor For The Harsh And Forceful Measures Hitler Would Use Mercilessly To Break Into Power And Form A Totalitarian Dictatorship. Schneider Is More Aware Of The Hazard Their Marriage Will Be Amidst The Rise Of The Nazis Than Schultz. She Is Extremely Important As A Character As She Represents The German People Who Didn't Support Them, Yet Stood By And Said Nothing, Assisting In Their Rise To Power. However, Schultz Can Also Be Considered A Metonym For The Nation Of Jewish People In Denial About The Dangers Of Political Progression As He Decides To Overlook The Incident, And Unintentionally, His Looming Future. [It's Nothing! Pfft..Children, On Their Way To School! Mischievous Children, Nothing More, I Assure You...You Understand?'']

Although It May Seem Strange That I've Chosen To Refer To The Opening Number ''Willkommen'' To Conclude, There Is A Structural And Political Significance As To Why.It Welcomes Us To The Show, To The Club And To The Overtly Sexualized And Expressionistic Era Of 1930's Berlin. It Mirrors The First Scene Outside Of The Kit Kat Klub, As Cliff Bradshaw Arrives At The Train Station And Into Berlin For The First Time. The ''Willkommen'' Reprise Occurs At The Very End Of The Show Acting As The Finale And Closing Number. It May Seem Unusual That A Song Titled ''Welcome'' Is Ending The Musical, But It's Political Message Is Immense. Although It's The Same Song From The Opening, The Orchestra Are Out Of Tune, Emphasizing Minor Chords, Creating An Ominous And Unsettling Linger Throughout The Music Symbolizing Political Unrest, And Cleverly Sound Painting The Hovering Of The Luftwaffe. The Emcee Is In Fact Welcoming Us To A New Era. A Nazi Regime, A Dictatorship. However, I Like To Interpret The Unfinished Note As A Metaphor For Anschluss In 1938. (hitler's Uniting Of Austria With Germany). It Symbolizes Hitler's Greed, And His Desire Of Fulfilling The Idea Of A Greater Germany. During The Finale, The General Incompleteness, Can Be Interpreted As Devastation Looming As The Character's Stories Are Not Quite Yet Over (But Foreshadows An Unhappy Ending As Most End Up In Concentration Camps, Including The Emcee Who Electrocutes Himself On A Barbed Wire Fence Of A Camp), A Feeling Of Insufficiency Amidst The Jewish Community Versus The Idea Of The Aryan Race, Or Even The Geographical Inadequacy Preventing Hitler's Plan For A Greater Germany. The Ending Is Atypical For A Musical Finale, With The Lingering Silence, Speaking Louder Than Any Other Song In The Show.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2ETsQ-DveY

The Emcee Fails To Finish His Lyrics ''Auf Wiedersehen..A Bientót..'', Leaving Out The English Goodbye That Previously Matched The Trilingual Greetings At The Start.   Metaphorically, As Cliff Explains ''It Is The Beginning Of The End.'' It Can Be Argued That Because The Emcee Never Said The English Farewell, That Cliff Went On To Write The Novel That He Sought Inspiration For In Berlin, And Told The Story Of Sally And The Kit Kat Klub. As An Author, He Metaphorically Prevented The Characters From Ever Dying And Therefore, Said The Last ''Goodbye''.