Long Island Cabaret Theatre to take the stage at Temple B’nai Torah

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Seaford-based theatre group Long Island Cabaret Theatre will bring happy haunts on-stage at Temple B’nai Torah in Wantagh next week at their first-ever Halloween-themed performance, the Haunted Cabaret.

The show will begin at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 30 at the synagogue on Jerusalem Avenue.

Long Island Cabaret Theatre was founded by stage director Gary Dana in 1984 and has hosted shows across Long Island in synagogues, churches, libraries and parks ever since. The group consists of about 30 volunteer singers and dancers, and brings with it an orchestra of paid, professional musicians.

“There are so many incredibly talented singers and dancers who have grown up practicing their skills but have no venues to perform at,” Dana said. “Basically, they have nothing to do with their talent. This is an opportunity for so many of those people to showcase their talents to and for them provide some great entertainment for the community.”

The storyline of the Haunted Cabaret is as follows: cabaret members get trapped in a haunted mansion overnight and meet many talented apparitions along the way. These ghosts include historical figures, singers and more who come back from beyond the grave. There will be various backdrops on the stage that will represent different rooms of the haunted mansion. The performance will be narrated by hosts Eric Iacono and Barry Greenfield.

Aside from being a performer and host, Greenfield is also the director and founder of Hicksville-based Mix Masters DJs and KJs and will provide music after the show until 1 a.m. Greenfield has been a member of the Long Island Cabaret Theater since 1994.

“I look forward to doing our shows every year,” Greenfield said, “it gives me a chance to get on stage and perform in public. It’s like having a high without drugs.”

The show’s musical director, Sid Cherry, is an award-winning musical director, composer and lyricist. He worked as a composer for the award-winning original musical, “The Molly Maguires.” Cherry has worked on various Broadway and off-Broadway shows, and in most of New York’s major cabaret venues, such as the Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center. Cherry is also the musical director of the Theater Arts Center at the Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center.

Some congregants also appreciate the LI Cabaret Theater’s shows, including former Temple B’nai Torah president and longtime board member Rita Hofer of Wantagh.

“The Cabaret’s shows are socially great, both for the temple and for the Cabaret group themselves,” Hofer said. “Many of the temple members attend the Cabaret’s events, including myself and my friends – we’ve attended many shows and have always enjoyed the dancers, singers, musicians and the elaborate costumes.”

The Haunted Cabaret will provide Wantagh adults and seniors the opportunity to celebrate Halloween in a mature, fun manner, Dana said: “This is a perfect Halloween event for adults of all ages. … We’re not going to be trick or treating anymore at our age, so instead, this is our way of celebrating Halloween with music.”

Tickets for the performance are $25 each and can be purchased online at LICabaret.org or by contacting Dana at 516-946-7207. Guests must show a negative Covid-19 test result or a Covid-19 vaccination card upon entry.