Revelry returns to Quad Club this weekend–in cabaret style

Professor Ted Cohen is one of the familiar faces of the Revels cast.

The lights are dimmed. The wine is flowing. And the dame with the feather boa is singing a mournful ballad of love and loss. For two nights, this is, yes, the University’s Quadrangle Club.

The transformed Quad Club will be the stage for “Cabaret,” the latest performance of the University’s Revels, with productions scheduled for Friday, Jan. 24, and Saturday, Jan. 25.

“It’s a totally new style,” said Lee Behnke, Director of the Undergraduate Latin Program and a coordinator of this year’s show, “Club Cabaret.” “Think of a Manhattan or Berlin night club in the 1940s,” said Behnke in describing the production.

The show will feature the familiar faces of the Revels–a group of faculty entertainers–but also will introduce a newly formed improv group as well as a guest star, Greta Pope.

Pope is a renowned cabaret singer who has performed with a wide range of entertainers from Dick Van Dyke and Phyllis Diller to LaToya Jackson and Boy George.

Hosted by master of ceremonies James Redfield, the Edward Olson Distinguished Service Professor in Classical Languages & Literatures and the College, “Club Cabaret” is divided into three acts. The first act features Pope and the “Cabaret” cast accompanied by pianist Tim Knauff.

The second act is what Behnke called the “surprise act. We could have a special visitor from L.A.,” she added coyly.

And in the final act, a newly formed group, under the guidance of Second City alum Dan Friedrich, will perform a completely improvised set of Second City-style comedy revolving around topical local issues and people.

Friday night’s show, which will include a complimentary bottle of wine at each table and a cash bar, begins at 8 p.m. and is $35 per person. Saturday’s show will include a dinner and a complimentary bottle of wine for $65 per person, and it begins at 6 p.m. For more information or reservations, please contact Cassandra Swift at the Quadrangle Club at 702-2550.