The Andrew Lloyd Webber classic- Cats has been around for years now. When it was originally on Broadway, it made history as the most shows to ever play- having 7,485 performances when it closed in September of 2000. Now, it is right behind The Lion King, Chicago, and The Phantom of The Opera as the fourth longest running Broadway musical. Currently, Cats is giving the magic of live theater to various countries.
What is the musical Cats all about? Well, many people tend to complain that there is no true storyline to this musical. They claim that it is just a bunch of cats singing and dancing in a junkyard. However, that is not the case. The musical Cats is based off of T.S. Elliot's book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and is about a group of cats (called Jellicle Cats) who come together for one night (known as the Jellicle Ball) in hopes of being chosen by their leader, Old Deuteronomy to ascend to the Heaviside Layer to be reborn and come back in a new Jellicle life.
To make that explanation shorter, the musical is basically about a group of cats who come together for one night in hopes of being selected to go to Heaven and be reincarnated into another cat.
The songs the cats sing about themselves is them introducing themselves in hopes of them being selected to go to the Heaviside Layer. The rival gang which features Macavity and his group of rebel cats despise the Jellicles and want to ruin the night by kidnapping (or should I say- catnapping) Old Deuteronomy. The musical features several entertaining songs such as "Rum Tum Tugger", "Mr. Mistoffelees", and the infamous "Memory".
After seeing the musical live on Broadway in December, I realized how beautiful the show is. Storyline aside, the junkyard is pieced together beautifully with moving set pieces, hanging lights that stream throughout the house (aka the audience), and have tiny details that extend beyond the stage to make the audience feel as though they are in the junkyard as well. I'm not one to completely pay attention to sets but I know a good one when I see it and this set is one of them.
The dancing has the most beautiful choreography. It's so impressive the amount of stamina these actors/actresses have to dance (and don't forget to sing) for two hours and 20 minutes. There were turns, leaps, backflips, partner work, and tap dancing. The talent that is broadcasted on stage is something only certain dancers and singers can pull off and if you've seen the show live- you know what I mean.
Live music is something that is completely underrated. With this musical, there is no dialogue which means it is all music for two hours. Imagine having to play an instrument for two hours straight with only having a 15-minute intermission. In the Chicago 1984 production, Cats had an orchestra of 21 musicians. If you listen to the Overture (overture meaning an orchestra piece at the beginning of the show) of the musical and then realize how small the pit is, it is so impressive to think that a small group of people can piece together beautiful music.
This musical may not be for everyone, but I totally recommend you at least check out the movie version of Cats. Whether you like it or not, appreciate all the hard work that the cast, crew, pit, and Andrew Lloyd Webber put into it.
