In London, legendary for its live theatre, Cabaret is on at The Playhouse, which has been transformed into the Kit Kat Club of 1930s Berlin.

Tickets are about £100.

But if you can’t get across the pond just now, don’t fret. The legendary nightclub can be found downstairs in Picton’s grandest manor, The CAPE, where Shatterbox, with a cast of 18, a 14-piece orchestra, and a production team of 10, is re-staging the sleeper hit of last season.

If you missed it then, this is your chance. All but one of the original cast members have returned, under Georgia Papanicolaou’s direction, to recreate a pitch-perfect, wholly immersive nightclub show.

“An amazing array of talent came out when they heard about Cabaret,” says director Georgia Papanicolaou of the cast, which hails from the County, Tyendinaga, Napanee, Kingston, Belleville, Trenton and Madoc. “It’s a bucket list show for a lot of them and the band too! It’s the largest team ever for a Shatterbox show.”

Set amidst the ascent of fascism in Germany in the decade leading to WWII, the story chronicles American writer Cliff Bradshaw’s encounter with the English cabaret singer Sally Bowles, a performer at the Kit Kat Club.

“The Kit Kat isn’t just a stage — it’s a world the audience steps into. The lights, the sound, the proximity… you feel like you’re in the story. That intimacy makes it so electric — every performance feels dangerous and alive,” says Ms. Papanicolaou.

But even the Kit Kat is not safe from the rise of Nazism in Weimar Germany.

“What’s so thrilling about Cabaret is its contrast — it’s dazzling, funny, and seductive on the surface, but there’s always something darker pulsing underneath. It makes you laugh one moment and question everything the next. That tension is what makes it feel so alive every single night.”

Based on Christopher Ishwerwood’s series of short stories, Goodbye to Berlin, and John Van Druten’s play, I am a Camera, the musical Cabaret opened on Broadway in November 1966, directed by Harold Prince.

Bob Fosse’s 1972 film version, starring Liza Minnelli, won eight Oscars.

It has never been out of style.

For this return production, Shatterbox has pulled out all the stops.

“After last year’s sold-out run, we’re beyond excited to bring Cabaret back. The immersive staging at The CAPE, the energy of the Kit Kat Club, the chemistry of this cast — it all creates a complete, daring experience. It’s a thrill to reunite with this team and invite audiences to step inside the world of Cabaret once again.” 

Cabaret opens November 5 and runs to November 28 at The CAPE. See the Shatterbox website for tickets.