Myles Bullock, Keren Lugo and John Bambery are three of Chautauqua Theater Company’s 13 conservatory actors in 2015. They and their colleagues will present the annual Bratton Late Night Cabaret at 10:30 p.m. tonight in Bratton Theater. (Ruby Wallau | Staff Photographer)
Chautauqua Theater Company’s one-night only Bratton Late Night Cabaret is always full of surprises.
A combination of singing, movement, dance and even juggling, this is the last time all 13 members of the 2015 conservatory will grace the Bratton Theater stage.
The popular Bratton Late Night Cabaret is at 10:30 p.m. tonight. New this year, the Cabaret will be a ticketed show; free tickets will be available, two per person, at the kiosk from 8 a.m. until the show is at capacity. At 9:30 p.m. tonight, patrons without tickets may visit the kiosk to add their names to a waitlist, though admittance is not guaranteed.
CTC directing fellow James Dean Palmer, who recently directed the CTC After Hours production Church, is putting together the show. Because this is his first summer on the grounds, he believes local Chautauquans know more about this CTC tradition than he does. Gillian Goldberg, CTC’s company management intern and Chautauquan, will assist him.
Goldberg’s family has been coming to Chautauqua for 22 years and bought a house on the grounds about five years ago.
“My mother and I get to stay for the whole summer, and because of that, I began volunteering with the theater company,” Goldberg said.
She started off as an audience member, moved on to volunteer and now is an intern and assistant director.
Titled “Our Chautauqua,” the Cabaret will be a “walk-through of our experience here, from the day we show up and showed them our gate pass to the time we say our thank yous and goodbyes,” Palmer said.
The show includes single pieces and group numbers.
“We asked the conservatory to think of their other talents and how those can be presented to the audience,” Goldberg said. “The show has fun elements like juggling, but unlike the shows in the past, this year is more of a statement, more of a conversation, and holds a mirror up to Chautauqua to reflect on our time here.”
Palmer admits not being a “cabaret person,” but he does love experimenting.
“We have built a vessel and will keep working to refine it on the night,” he said. “We just go and perform, and anything can happen. We are creating some pieces that reflect back on our experiences of being in Chautauqua.”
The show is going to be one of a kind, he and Goldberg said.
“We have one gesture in there for the Chautauquans which is quintessential to Chautauqua, the pride of Chautauqua,” Palmer said.
However, he refused to give away this “quintessential moment.” Audience members will have to see for themselves.
The Chautauquan Daily 
