Every day is opening night.

This time of year, it’s always a struggle to keep up with the onslaught of new shows opening on any given week. I took a pause from digesting 2024/25 contenders on Wednesday, though, to attend a very special performance of Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club. The evening performance marked the 58th anniversary since the original production of the Kander & Ebb masterpiece opened on Broadway, and John Kander himself was in the audience to help mark the occasion.

What even he didn’t know was that the Olivier Award the production won for Best Revival of a Musical had finally made its way to New York, and was waiting for him in the (proverbial, as this version uses a platform stage) wings.

At curtain call, Bebe Neuwirth invited Kander onstage as she waxed poetic about Cabaret’s six-decade long legacy, its “always transcendent” score, and its “timeless” themes. Quoting Albert Camus, she said, “If the world were clear, art would not exist.” She continued, “What John [and his collaborators] created with Cabaret is a sublime work of art that makes the world crystal clear.”

Then she presented him with his Olivier (he was unable to come to London the night the Rebecca Frecknall production swept The Olivers), and let him take the mic. If the pointedness of the moment was lost on anyone, Kander drove the message home with his signature Camusian clarity, saying,  “In 1933 Adolph Hitler became the chancellor of Germany and as we all know elections has consequences. Every time there is a production of Cabaret, people ask me, ‘Isn’t it amazing how pertinent it seems?’ and I always answer ‘Isn’t that terrible.’ And now we’ve just had an election. And elections have consequences, but that’s not going to spoil my good time tonight.”

He also remarked on how beautifully the production had evolved since he last attended, and I have to agree! The new members of the cast — most especially Adam Lambert as the Emcee — are all absolute dynamos, and yet managing to blend perfectly with the exquisitely calibrated performances rendered by the original cast members. I want to go back a dozen more times, and not just for the complimentary champagne a generous admirer keeps sending to my seat every time I attend.

And, finally, a hearty congratulations to the cast and creators of the most audacious musical on Broadway: Swept Away. Opening night was a blast, and the party – at the most downtown Cipriani (to be closer to New York Harbor?) was chic and fun. I Bellini’d with the likes of Alexander Sarsgaard, Amanda Seyfried and Thomas Sadoski, Jennifer Carpenter (wife of composer Seth Avett), Clive Davis, Jennifer Nettles and Adam Zotovich, Jonathan Groff and Lea Michele, Sara Bareilles, The Lazour Brothers and the legendary Cindy Adams (who told fellow columnist Roger Friedman that, while harrowing, she thinks Swept Away is the best musical of the year.)

Tidbits from around town…

Spotted Jason Momoa shopping for lighting fixtures at Artemide.

Overheard Anthony Anderson debating the health benefits of kombucha with a suit at the NBC visitor center at 30 Rock.

Caught Piers Morgan yelling at a server at Strip House after his credit card was declined. “I’m on television!”

As always, a toast of something sparkling to you and yours!

Kisses,