Cats / New London Theatre (London)

...story to tell of, really. CATS is based on a collection of poems written and bound together in ‘Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats’ by T.S. Eliot.

The show begins with an empty junkyard with oversized newspapers, beer cans, bottles and all sorts of other rubbish. As the overture begins, cats eyes appear around the stage and the tribe of the Jellicle Cats reunite on a very special night to celebrate their own abilities and quirks.
...different names. Ever wondered why cats seem lost in thought? It is because they are contemplating their secret names…

A young white cat by the name of ‘Victoria’ dances to show the beginning of the Jellicle Ball, whilst ‘Munkustrap’ explains that the Jellicles meet up once, every year, for this very Ball. They are waiting for their leader, ‘Old Dueteronomy’, to arrive and chose which cat will journey to the Heaviside Layer and be ... more

I have finally succeeded in my attempts to pass on my love of theatre to my incredibly good and tolerant wife. In October 2003 she took me by surprise with following statement:

“CATS is at the theatre in Oxford over Christmas. Shall we go and see it on Christmas Eve?”

And with that – a rather loud and emphatic ‘YES’ from yours truly – I set about purchasing tickets for our Christmas treat…

***THE STORY***

Not much of a story to tell of, really. CATS is based on a collection of poems written and bound together in ‘Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats’ by T.S. Eliot.

The show begins with an empty junkyard with oversized newspapers, beer cans, bottles and all sorts of other rubbish. As the overture begins, cats eyes appear around the stage and the tribe of the Jellicle Cats reunite on a very special night to celebrate their own abilities and quirks.

The Jellicles seem nervous of the human audience at first and yet explain how they are named, each cat with three different names. Ever wondered why cats seem lost in thought? It is because they are contemplating their secret names…

A young white cat by the name of ‘Victoria’ dances to show the beginning of the Jellicle Ball, whilst ‘Munkustrap’ explains that the Jellicles meet up once, every year, for this very Ball. They are waiting for their leader, ‘Old Dueteronomy’, to arrive and chose which cat will journey to the Heaviside Layer and be ‘reborn’ into a new Jellicle life.

Several different cats make a case for themselves to be given the honour of being reborn. We are introduced to the fat Old Gumbie Cat, ‘Jennyanydots’ and the ‘Rum Tum Tugger’ – heartthrob to the female, feline population.

‘Grizabella’- the glamour cat – arrives on the scene and is shunned by the rest of the tribe as she had left to explore the outside world and longs to find acceptance and return to the family.

More cats put forward their case for being chosen before ‘Old Dueteronomy’ finally appears and the ball can begin in earnest. ‘Grizabella’ reappears, wanting to rejoin her tribe and be a part of the celebration, but the other cats reject her yet again.

After the ball has ended the Jellicles reflect and contemplate their lives, before yet more felines are introduced. ‘Gus’ the old theatre cat and ‘Skimbleshanks’ the railway cat are celebrated before the evening is spoilt by the villainous ‘Macavity’ who kidnaps ‘Old Dueteronomy’.

‘Macavity’ returns in disguise but is found out and enters a battle with the male cats of the tribe before, tired and almost defeated, he rigs an electrical explosion that puts out all the lights and leaves the Jellicles in the dark, with ‘Old Dueteronomy’ still missing.

The ‘Rum Tum Tugger’ calls in his old friend ‘Mister Mistoffelees’, the conjuring cat, and asks him to use his magical powers to reinstate the lights and find ‘Old Dueteronomy’. The magical cat succeeds and the time arrives for ‘Old Dueteronomy’ to decide which cat will be reborn into a new Jellicle Life…

***THE SONGS***

I really like all the songs from the show, but here are some of the highlights:

THE NAMING OF CATS – sung, or rather, said by the entire company as one. It explains how the cats have three different names.

“The Naming of cats is a difficult matter, it isn’t just one of your holiday games.”

There’s the name the family give the cat such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo or James. There’s also the name that’s particular, peculiar and more dignified such as Munkustrap, Bombalurina or Jellylorum. And finally there’s the name that no human research can discover and only the cat himself knows and will never confess.

THE OLD GUMBIE CAT – a wonderful little ditty to the old gumbie cat who has managed to teach the mice music, crocheting and tatting and organise the cockroaches into a band of helpful boy scouts.

“I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots,
Her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and lepard spots.”

OLD DUETERONOMY – an ode to the leader of the Jellicle tribe:

“He’s buried nine wives and more, I am tempted to say ninety-nine”.

MEMORY – Grizabella’s song about her memories of her past life before she left the tribe and her desire to rejoin them.

“Touch me! It’s so easy to leave me! All alone with the memory of my days in the sun.”

***THE CREATIVE TEAM***

Thomas Stearns Eliot – AUTHOR. T.S. Eliot was born in St Louis, Missouri on 26th September 1888, he was educated at Harvard, The Sorbonne in Paris and Merton College in Oxford. He settled in England in 1915. ‘Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats’ was first published on the 5th of October 1939 in an edition of 3,005 copies priced at 3/6d (17 pence). He became a British Citizen in 1927 and died in London in 1965. He was awarded posthumously the 1983 Tony (American Theatre Award) for the book of Cats.

Andrew Lloyd Webber – COMPOSER. Composed Joseph, Jesus Christ Superstar, Jeeves, Tell Me on a Sunday, Cats, Starlight Express, The Phantom of the Opera, Aspects of Love, Sunset Boulevard, Whistle Down the Wind and The Beautiful Game. Currently working on a musical based on Wilkie Collins’ novel The Woman in White and a feature film version of Phantom to be director by (oh dear) Joel Schumacher.

Trevor Nunn – DIRECTOR. Ex-director of the National Theatre most famous for his credits on Cats, Les Miserables, Starlight Express, Oklahoma!, My Fair Lady and Anything Goes!

Gillian Lynne – CHOREOGRAPHER. Amongst other things she has staged many of ‘The Muppet Shows’ for TV and her latest production is ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ at the London Palladium.

John Napier – DESIGNER. Credits include Starlight Express, Les Miserables and Miss Saigon. The car number plate in the Cats junkyard reader ‘NAP 1’ – a reference to the designer!

***THE CONCLUSION***

This is the second time I have seen Cats – the first time being in London, and I can honestly say it was as good as I remember it being.

I know it won’t be to everyone’s taste – if it were, life would be so boring – but the whole design of the show from set to costumes and make-up to choreography is stunning.

Most of the cast wear leotards of varying colours and shades, with matching legwarmers and shoes. I know this probably sounds like a bad episode of ‘FAME’ but they are so effective and especially so when seen with the wigs and make-up that continue the colour of the cats coat from head to foot. Bits of fur around the shoulders and a long, wavy tail add to the illusion further. It must take them hours to get ready for each show.

The choreography is stunning too and this is a musical as much about the dancing as it is about the lyrics. The cats curl, jump and tap around the set in a flurry of activity from start to finish, singing as they go. I couldn’t single out one actor who was the better than anyone else – they all put 110% into the show.

Tip of the day is to sit as closely to the front as you can, or at least in aisle seats as the cats come out into the theatre auditorium to meet their human audience. We were sat on the front row of the stalls (bottom level!) so had a wonderful view up front of what was happening on stage. I even got tickled by one of the felines! The cast also spent a lot of time interacting with the children in the audience when they left the stage also - some of the kids got a little bit scared and bewildered!!

I have only one criticism of the show. One of the songs goes back into the past of ‘Gus’, the theatre cat and is so out of pace with the rest of the show that it feels a little too tacked on as if the running time needed bringing up a little. It’s still entertaining and I can see why it’s there, it just felt so out of place.

Overall, Cats is a fantastic show for all the family – much better than ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ in the West End and allows more interaction with the cast. Be sure to get your little one up on stage in the interval to get their programme signed by ‘Old Dueteronomy’ himself!

***THE TOUR***

Cats is no longer playing in the West End, but it is touring the United Kingdom at the moment, find out if it is coming near you and go see it!

HIS MAJESTY’S THEATRE, ABERDEEN.
20th January – 7th February 2004.
Box Office: 01224 641122
Groups: 01224 650700

KING’S THEATRE, GLASGOW.
10th – 28th February 2004.
Box Office: 0141 240 1111.
Groups: 0141 240 1122.

ROYAL CENTRE, NOTTINGHAM.
2nd – 20th March 2004.
Box Office: 0115 989 5555.
Groups. 0115 989 5534.

DE MONTFORT HALL, LEICESTER.
23rd March – 10th April 2004.
Box Office and Groups: 0116 233 3111

MAYFLOWER THEATRE, SOUTHAMPTON.
13th April – 8th May 2004.
Box Office: 023 8071 1811.
Groups: 023 8071 1812.

BRISTOL HIPPODROME, BRISTOL.
11th – 29th May 2004.
Box Office: 0870 607 7500.
Groups: 0117 929 9758.

MARLOW THEATRE, CANTERBURY.
1st – 19th June 2004.
Box Office and Groups: 0122 778 7787.

THEATRE ROYAL, NORWICH.
20th June – 10th July 2004.
Currently Not On Sale!

ALSO…

LIVERPOOL EMPIRE, LIVERPOOL.
20th September – 9th October 2004.
Box Office: 0870 606 3536.

WIMBLEDON THEATRE, WIMBLEDON, LONDON.
2nd – 20th November 2004.
Box Office: 020 7316 4709.

Prices vary from theatre to theatre – check with box office before booking. I got front row seats in Oxford for £24.50 each.

A booking fee will be added to the ticket price if you book over the telephone or over the internet. Avoid these fees by visiting the Box Office in person.

It's cheaper than seeing a show in the West End so go and support your local theatre when they get hold of a big show like this! It can only mean more will come!!

***FACTS AND FIGURES***

• Cats opened in London’s West End on 11th May 1981 and closed on it’s 21st birthday on May 11th 2002.
• The Broadway cast sang and danced their way through 7,485 performances.
• It has grossed over $2.5 billion worldwide.
• It has played in over 300 cities in 26 countries around the world including Argentina, Austria, Australia, Hong Kong, Iceland, Japan, Korea, Mexico and Russia.
• It won 7 Tony awards in 1983.
• It was the first major Western musical to play Singapore and Southeast Asia.
• Judi Dench was three weeks into rehearsals to play Grizabella when she tore her Achilles tendon and had to pull out of the production. The role went to Elaine Paige and made her a worldwide star.

I hope you have found this review both helpful and entertaining.

Many thanks for reading and for your continued support.

Take care,

C :o)

PS: The only specific criteria that doesn;t really match is the location one as this is in the West End section... Maybe one day Ciao will realise show tour the country too and just give plays/musicals etc a category of their own without locking them to a location!
 

...less