“Cabaret” usually means a type of live entertainment show with music, singing, dance, comedy, or other acts, often performed in an intimate venue like a bar, restaurant, or nightclub where the audience sits at tables, eats, and drinks during the performance.

Basic meaning

  • In modern English, cabaret most often refers to:
    • A restaurant/nightclub that serves alcohol and presents live musical or variety acts.
* The entertainment itself: a show of songs, dances, or short acts, often done close to the audience.

More detailed sense

  • Dictionaries describe cabaret as:
    • A place serving liquor and providing entertainment such as singers or dancers, similar to a nightclub.
* A performance of popular music, singing, or dancing, especially in a restaurant or bar.
  • Historically, it could also mean a small wine shop or tavern, but that usage is now archaic.

In theatre and pop culture

  • In theatre history, cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama in a small venue like a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or club, with audiences seated at tables rather than dancing.
  • The atmosphere is often informal, sometimes edgy or adult-oriented, and can include burlesque, drag, or other variety acts, depending on the culture and venue.

TL;DR: “Cabaret” can mean both the cozy nightclub-style venue and the intimate, often musical variety show that happens there.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.