Estelle Reiner on Cabaret
Cabaret is a unique form of entertainment because the audience is up close and reacts to the performer very directly. And if the performer is giving and honest, powerful feelings can flow between the performer and the audience. The intimacy of the room makes it possible for an entertainer to feel comfortable enough to reveal herself. Seeing a person free of pretense is a pleasurable thing for an audience to experience, and both audience and performer have a good time. "More than innate musicality, more than skillful phrasing of lyrics, more than seductiveness of voice, it is Estelle’s undisguised, unequivocal, unabashed, unmistakable love for the songs that she sings, which makes her irresistible to an audience." (David Chasman)