The Mirror
The very first image and very last image of the films are two views inside the Kit Kat Klub that are distorted by the mirror. In the opening, the distortion is much greater. In fact, it is difficult to tell what, exactly, the audience is looking at. Until, that is, the face of the M.C. suddenly pop up, with what may be a malevolent grin on his heavily made up face. The reflection at the end is far different: the M.C. is gone and the images, though still grotesque, are definitely more recognizable. The Kit Kat Klub is now filled with Nazis. As a symbol, the mirror almost seems to be daring the audience to say “it can’t happen here.” The mirror is providing an image of our own society at the beginning while projecting a nightmare scenario at the end. What makes the symbolic especially chilling is that the future is much clearer than the present.
“Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome”
The opening song heard inside the cabaret is one of multinational welcome. The choice of English and French in addition to the native tongue of German symbolizes how the rise of the Nazis is going to tear Europe apart and pit the native against the foreigners. The song acts a symbol of foreshadowing of the ominously unwelcoming shadow lurking over the characters.
The Kit Kat Klub
The title song promises that life is a cabaret where no prophets of doom can ruin your day. . The Master of Ceremonies promises that the cabaret is a place life is beautiful and you can leave your troubles behind. The final shot of Nazis filling up the seats inside the Kit Kat Klub seems to contradict and disprove that notion. The Kit Kat Klub can therefore be seen as a symbol of two things at once. It can be said to represent the notion of a utopian ideal where everybody is equal and conflict never penetrates. Or it can be seen as a place where ignorance prevails and the oblivious optimism it engenders creates dupes just waiting to be victimized. Or it can even be both at the same time.
The Girl in the Gorilla Costume
The musical number, “If You Could See Her” might well be somewhat confusing to some as familiarity with World War II drifts farther and farther away from the consciousness of audiences. Some might be moved to ask why is the M.C. dancing with a girl in a gorilla costume even if they understand the chilling final line “She wouldn’t look Jewish at all.” Why a gorilla? Why not a Scandinavian blonde? After all, isn’t the point of the song about Nazis seeing a Jewish girl as the guy in love with her sees her? And wouldn’t it make sense to make the girl look as far away from Jewish and as close to the Aryan ideal as possible? Yes, in a sense, that would a good decision. But according to Nazi ideology, the Jewish race were no better than animals. The song is asking the Nazis to see the girl through his eyes which means they are already looking at her through her eyes. The gorilla thus is a symbolic of the Nazi view of Jews as animals, but it also touches upon their rejection of Darwinian evolution a master race such as theirs could possibly have evolved from an ape. The Jewish race, sure…but not their “supreme” race.
The Distorted Mirror
The young blonde singer who turns out to be a Nazi and who gets nearly everyone at the outdoor beergarden all worked up into a fascist frenzy is an actual symbol of Nazi propaganda. Look through Nazi posters and you will see the image of an offensive, almost angelic young blonde youth representing the Party. Especially in the early days before they had gained complete control. The innocence of the boy is a symbol of the positive attributes the Nazis used to project their image. Who could possibly suspect such depths of inhumane horror when looking at such a tender young face?
