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AROUND OREGON<br />
notebook<br />
Culture<br />
written by Anna Bird<br />
Cool Cabarets<br />
Oregon Cabaret Theater<br />
HAVE YOU EVER thought your cocktail<br />
or dinner could use a little extra spice? Add<br />
a dash of cabaret in Eugene or Ashland and<br />
your meal will be anything but bland.<br />
Cabaret has roots in Europe in the<br />
1800s, becoming a prominent piece of<br />
American culture during the 1920s.<br />
Cabaret blends comedy, music and<br />
dance in a dinner theater experience.<br />
Performances often dabble in political<br />
satire or social commentary, while<br />
drinking in the whimsy and decadence<br />
of the Roaring ’20s.<br />
While cabaret was a rousing success in<br />
its heyday, traditional cabaret disappeared<br />
from the cultural landscape during the rise<br />
of television. In the late ’70s and early ’80s,<br />
cabaret experienced a resurgence. By the<br />
mid-1980s, cabaret flapped through scores<br />
of New York City clubs.<br />
A long way from New York, the Oregon<br />
Cabaret Theater (OCT) was formed in<br />
1986 in Ashland’s First Baptist Church.<br />
A natural fit in Ashland’s theatrical landscape,<br />
OCT has grown steadily over the<br />
past thirty years and now presents more<br />
than 270 performances every season. In<br />
traditional cabaret fashion, the OCT offers<br />
food and drinks. This spring, for example,<br />
you can enjoy a broiled filet mignon<br />
with oregonzola scalloped potatoes while<br />
watching Ring of Fire, a musical from the<br />
iconic Johnny Cash repertoire.<br />
“People know they’ll eat well, they’ll<br />
get live music and watch professional talent<br />
in this beautiful old vintage space,”<br />
said Rick Robinson, managing director<br />
of OCT. “It’s a good counterpoint to the<br />
offerings of the world-class theater down<br />
the street.”<br />
The Actors Cabaret of Eugene, a nonprofit<br />
performing arts organization in<br />
downtown Eugene, has been around since<br />
1978. Its winter production of Disenchanted,<br />
a musical comedy about fed-up Disney<br />
princesses, received rave reviews for its<br />
bawdy take on antiquated classics.<br />
Both shows get you more bang for your<br />
buck than the average restaurant or bar. It’s<br />
a kick in the pants … and all that jazz.<br />
CATCH A CABARET<br />
“Ring of Fire” | Oregon Cabaret Theater<br />
theoregoncabaret.com<br />
Through <strong>April</strong> 17<br />
“Priscilla Queen of the Desert”<br />
Actors Cabaret of Eugene<br />
actorscabaret.org<br />
<strong>April</strong> 1-30<br />
32 <strong>1859</strong> OREGON’S MAGAZINE MARCH | APRIL <strong>2016</strong>
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