Broadway’s Cabaret Stops Mid-Performance After Actor Is Rushed to Hospital for Health Emergency (Exclusive)

An actor in the Broadway cast of Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club is recovering after experiencing a medical emergency on stage Friday night.

Price Waldman, an understudy who was on for the role of Herr Schultz in director Rebecca Frecknall’s revival of classic John Kander and Fred Ebb musical, froze during Act 1 on Sept. 12, forcing the production to stop cold.

PEOPLE witnessed the moment from the audience. It occurred more than 20 minutes into the performance, in the scene leading up to the number “Don’t Tell Mama.”

The house lights were brought up as a stage manager escorted Waldman off stage. The crowd was asked not leave their seats unless absolutely necessary, and was informed that the bar was closed.

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Waldman was taken via ambulance to a local hospital where a source tells PEOPLE he was treated and is “doing okay.” Theatergoers were informed via an announcement that he was “conscious” and “responsive” when he got into the ambulance.

An official diagnosis was not shared. PEOPLE reached out to Waldman and reps for the show for comment.

After a near 30-minute hold, Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club continued with actor Colin Cunliffe on as Schultz. Audience members were already giving the show a standing ovation when Cunliffe bowed but applause got noticeably louder during his curtain call.

This is the second time this month that Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club made headlines for something related to an actor’s health.

On Sept. 7, it was revealed that Billy Porter was withdrawing from the production after he was diagnosed with “a serious case” of sepsis, a life-threatening condition where the body responds improperly to an infection. The Tony winner, who was starring as the Emcee after playing the role in the London production, was scheduled to remain in the role through Oct. 19.

“His doctors are confident that he will make a full recovery but have advised him to maintain a restful schedule these next couple of weeks,” the release read.

“Billy was an extraordinary Emcee, bringing his signature passion and remarkable talent,” wrote producer Adam Speers, for ATG Productions. “We wish Billy a speedy recovery and I look forward to working with him again in the very near future.”

Due to Porter’s exit, producers said they made the “painful decision” to close Cabaret early. The musical, which began in April 2024, will make its final bow at the August Wilson Theatre in New York City on Sunday, Sept. 21 — wrapping up a run that ran for 18 preview performances and 592 regular performances.

For the final performances, the Emcee will be played in rotation by Marty Lauter and David Merino, the production’s longtime alternates.

Marisha Wallace, who joined Cabaret alongside Porter in July as Sally Bowles, will remain with the show through closing.

Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club is based on John Van Druten’s 1951 play I Am a Camera, which in turn was adapted from the 1939 novel Goodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood. The musical, with a book by Joe Masteroff, follows fictional American writer Clifford Bradshaw as he moves to Berlin amid the rise of the Nazi party. His observations about the eccentric characters that populate the Kit Kat Club, like the mysterious Emcee and the British singer Sally Bowles, provide the groundwork for both the musical and his future novel.

All is set to a score by Kander & Ebb, featuring songs that have become musical theater mainstays like “Willkommen,” “Don’t Tell Mamma,” “Mein Herr,” “Two Ladies,” “Tomorrow Belongs to Me,” “Money,” “Maybe This Time” and, of course, “Cabaret.”

The musical has long been a success both on the stage and screen, first hitting Broadway in 1966 before being turned into the 1972 film of the same name starring Oscar-winner Liza Minnelli as Sally. It was revived on Broadway in 1998 and in 2014, both with Alan Cumming as the Emcee.

This revival, which began in London and is still running there, opened on Broadway with Eddie Redmayne and Gayle Rankin in the title roles. Both actors received Tony nominations for their work.

After exiting the production in September 2024, Redmayne and Rankin were replaced by a trio of star teams including Adam Lambert and Auli’i Cravalho, Orville Peck and Eva Noblezada.

Tickets for Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club are now on sale.