In many ways, cabaret is the most intimate of art forms. Even when they’re performing in large theatres and concert halls, the best cabaret artists successfully craft a sense of connection between themselves and you, the audience, which not only breaks the fourth wall but demolishes it completely – all with a song and a smile.
Trevor Jones (Dr Trevor Jones – Piano Man, 12-15 June, 19-21 June, Quartet Bar, Adelaide Festival Centre): “For me, cabaret is all about intimacy and, more importantly, connection. It’s what separates cabaret from theatre – the audience feel a part of it and they are experiencing an artist being honest, authentic and vulnerable – and ideally opening themselves up to the same honesty and authenticity. Cabaret should feel like a safe space for everyone and the performer and the environment create that. Of course, that intimacy takes a huge range of forms – whether it be drinking and singing along with strangers in a late night piano bar, being swept up in the joy of a disco medley with feathers and sequins, or being moved to tears by a vulnerable story. That’s what cabaret is, so the intimacy is essential to the art form.”
