Cats, the Musical

Even if you don’t care much for musicals, there are probably a half dozen or so you’ve at least heard of. Starlight Express. West Side Story. The Lion King. The Phantom of the Opera. Les Miserables. And, of course, Cats.

Cats premiered in London in 1981 and was to become one of London’s longest-running musical ever. Cats was created by Andrew Lloyd Webber (the hands-down most well-known name in musical), who based the musical on a book he loved to read as a child; “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats” by T.S. Eliot. Here’s a verse from that book:

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;
Her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots.
All day she sits upon the stair or on the steps or on the mat:
She sits and sits and sits and sits – and that’s what makes a Gumbie Cat!

The most popular song from this musical, however, is almost certainly Memory (listen to it, or watch it).

In the musical, which plays in a night setting on a junkyard, one cat after another is introduced with a song. There are lazy cats, attractive prankster cats, banned glamour cats, an aged stage actor cat, or the wise old leader cat.

Certainly, that’s more entertaining when you watch it live. Here are some things to keep in mind though while watching – a list of behavior the Cats officials disapprove of, so to speak:

• Do not sing along (the reason is that if you were a singer, you’d be on stage, getting paid by people)
• Do not dance along (same as above)
• Turn off your phone, and don’t chat with your neighbor

Note there are special rules for the die-hard fans who dress up in costumes themselves upon visiting the show:

• Do not dress exactly like a member of the show
• Do not sign autographs if people mistake you for someone in the cast (this could be fun, tho)
• Do not use Flash photography as this might confuse those stage cats who are about to perform a dangerous stunt (hundreds of people will hate you if any of the cats breaks their legs because of you)

Sources:
Cats the Musical: About the show.
CatsMusical.com
Cats on Wikipedia

Philipp Lenssen on Monday, Jan 30 2006 reg. Cats.