Cabarets: Much More Than Song & Dance

Behind cabaret's racy sagas lie veiled political satires and caustic takes on norms. A glittering orchestra, using bawdy punches and raising unsettling questions, the traditional cabaret has travelled around the world to morph into new themes and styles in every place and era that it was brought into.

- Triya Ghosh

Known as La belle époque, the pre-war period of 1871 to 1914 is widely held to be the time when the French cultural and artistic prosperity was at its peak and led to creation of numerous masterpieces in literature, music, theatre and visual art.

This golden age of French culture saw the completion of the iconic Paris Opera, the building of Haussmann's Paris, the construction of the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur on Montmartre, the arrival of Paris Métro and several other landmarks that continue to define Paris even today.

It was in this epoch that construction of the Eiffel Tower began, in 1887, just a year before the birth of another Parisian cultural icon that continues to remain one of the key landmarks of the French cultural landscape.

Back in the 1880s, in the artistic Montmartre district, cabaret sprouted as a form of frivolous entertainment over drinks and discussions. It started with amateur acts, portraying the elation of Parisian Belle Époque mainly through song and dance routines, held together by a Master of Ceremonies.

Cabarets were frequently performed inside small, informal clubs, where societal figures got together to try out their creations. In 1881, young Rodolphe Salis created the leisure establishment of Le Chat Noir which hosted the first modern cabaret shows. Essentially, this early cabaret featured a cat that could sing, dance, be a mystic and a teller of broad tales.