Do Cats Have Relationships
Yes, and its so much more complicated than you might assume. In Act 1 theres a sequence called The Jellicle Ball, which is a nine-and-a-half-minute dance sequence. Its a notoriously difficult sequence thats broken into many short sections. One of these is commonly known as sensuals or the pas de deux, or to fans, the mating dance. In this section, Victoria does a sensual dance with one of the male cats, generally Plato, Admetus, or Tumblebrutus .
This digs into the Cats deep lore: Depending on the staging, different cats appear to pair off. In the headcanons section of the Cats Musical Fandom website, fans have spun out a truly impressive amount of theories based on who interacts with who during the show. For example, Plato and Victoria are often seen together, but Mr. Mistoffelees is the only cat to watch her solo dance, and he touches her leg during Invitation to the Jellicle Ball.
And depending on the choreography of a specific production, interactions can change entirely! Oh, well, I never!
Cats: It’s All About The Jellicle Ball
While Cats might be a somewhat confusing moviegoing experience, the plot is actually simple. Just like the Cats musical, once a year the Jellicle Cats assemble for the most exciting of days– appropriately named The Jellicle Ball. It’s a grand contest, where one cat is chosen for the Jellicle Choice. See a theme here?
In the Cats musical and movie, the winner of the Jellicle Choice is given a new life. That lucky kitty ascends to the Heaviside Layer, where it transforms into everything it ever wanted to be. The stakes are high for the cats of Cats, and plenty of colorful characters show up to compete for the affections of Judi Dench’s Old Deuteronomy. O.D. is the one who makes said Jellicle Choice, and picks the most deserving candidate from the group of cats.
That’s it. Every cat wants to win, and only one will. The runtime of Cats is made up of various cats showing up to join the competition, and hopefully go to the Heaviside Layer. Each of the starring cast members pop up and sing a song, allowing for the Cats movie to function as a true ensemble project. But every competition has its winner, and for Cats that is Jennifer Hudson’s Grizabella, the glamor cat.
Asparagus The Theatre Cat
Played by: Sir Ian McKellen
Nicknamed âGus,â this elderly, trembling tabby has an impressive acting history, which he recounts at length during his song . Who better to play one of the Jelliclesâ most well-respected thespians than one of the humans’ most well-respected thespians, Sir Ian McKellen?
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Ok But Honestly Can We Talk About The Cgi Why Not Do Makeup
For what its worth, the traditional Cats makeup isnt exactly a walk in the park. Both Gooden and Pazcoguin tell Teen Vogue that, during their Broadway run, the actors were tasked with applying their own feline makeup a process that took an inordinate amount of time. We all used to arrive at the theatre two hours before the show just to paint on our cat faces and give them time to settle and dry, Gooden remembers, joking that shes jealous of the film actors who don’t have to paint their own cat features. Each and every cat face is designed specifically to each cat in the show, she adds. Some are more intricate than others, but all require extra time to paint on, while making sure you had time to warm up your body and voice before curtain up.
For Pazcoguin, that extra effort was part of the artistic process. It was almost a rite of passage learning how to bring your cat to life through the application of the individual features, and the daily transformation really helped me get into me character.
Those Royalties Were Put To Good Use
The musicals team wasnt the only group to benefit from Cats. At the T.S. Eliot Foundation, Valerie Eliot showing a sense of humor created the philanthropic Old Possums Practical Trust with the millions her husbands estate had been gathering in royalties from Cats. The foundation also purchased the poets New England house in 2015 its now a retreat for writers and artists.
Not bad for a show that, as Lloyd Webber said, is just about cats.
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Cats Is Based On A Ts Eliot Poetry Collection
In 1939, T.S. Eliot published his collection, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. In 1981, Andrew Lloyd Webber used the poems as inspiration for his musical Cats. Most of the songs in the musical are inspired by individual poems from the collection, except for the iconic “Memory” which is based on another of his poems, “Rhapsody on a Windy Night”.
The book is a good place to start when trying to understand the plot of the show and it may also explain why some believe that there’s no set plot, as the story follows the poems. But what Andrew did was take the basis of the poems for this music and fill in the plot around it.
This Show’s Performances Are Over
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Duration is 2 hours 20 minutes INCLUDING a 10 minute intermission
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Established in 1969, the Marcus Performing Arts Center is the premier performing arts community gathering space in Southeastern Wisconsin, bringing high-quality arts and cultural programming to the region. As a mission-based 5013 nonprofit organization, MPAC strives to act as a bridge between cultures and an energizing force for collaboration and advocacy in the community.The touring Broadway Series, sponsored by Johnson Financial Group, is recognized as bringing the best of Broadway entertainment to Milwaukee since 1996. As a presenter, MPAC offers its own diverse arts and cultural programming and outreach. Additionally, the Marcus Performing Arts Center is home to a variety of resident arts partners.MPAC is proud to be a dedicated War Memorial facility, honoring those who bravely served our country.The Marcus Performing Arts Center is supported in part by grants from the Milwaukee Arts Board and Wisconsin Arts Board with funds from the State of Wisconsin, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Arts Midwest.
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Differences With The Stage Show
Directed for television broadcast, this production was restaged on a new set and was not filmed with an audience. Significant cuts were also made, with the film having a running time of slightly under 2 hours, compared to the 2 hours and 40 minutes running time of the stage show. The entirety of “Growltiger’s Last Stand” was cut, along with parts of “The Jellicle Ball”, “The Old Gumbie Cat”, “Mr. Mistoffelees”, “Macavity: The Mystery Cat”, and “Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer”.
What Did The Cats Look Like
In the stage musical, the performers dress in tight fur-patterned suits with fuzzy collars, arm warmers, leg warmers and fuzzy headpieces with ears. They wear cat face paint. These extremely tight catsuits are the source of much childhood confusion or distress surrounding the Cats VHS.
In the film, there are no catsuits or face paint! The cat fur, tails, ears, and whiskers are added digitally.
It was one of the coolest things Ive seen, Taylor Swift, who plays Bombalurina, told Entertainment Weekly. I want to know what else Taylor Swift has seen.
Its not animated, Swift said. And its not motion capture. Its somehow this new way that hasnt been done before. And theyre giving us a tail that moves naturally, and ears and whiskers.
Andrew Lloyd Webber himself appeared on Good Morning Britain and confirmed that theyve got this technique which isnt like CGI, but it turns you into a cat.
So you know its Taylor Swift … but shes a cat. He said that Taylor Swift wanted to see that part of the trailer 10 times.
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How Is Cats’ Ending Different From The Musical
Cats director Tom Hooper clearly has love for the original musical, as his movie is a fairly accurate adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s record-breaking show. Yet, there are a few changes made to the source material. The most obvious is that the director attempted to give the film adaptation more of a linear narrative than the musical. The cats no longer break the fourth wall, with their stories all told through Victoria’s eyes. This choice makes sense to give Cats a more film feel, although it is startling when Judi Dench finally addresses the audience in the closing number. It was a moment that got an audible reaction from the audience during my Cats screening.
As for for Judi Dench, her role is actually gender-swapped from the usual casting of Cats the musical. Old Deuteronomy is usually played by a man, with a high baritone voice. Dench’s songs were adjusted to fit her voice, and she sounded killer in the role. If you didn’t already know Cats, you wouldn’t know any change was made. She has the necessary gravitas and wisdom for the role, and has had a long tenure in the theater.
Let The Memory Live Again
Andrew Lloyd Webbers record-breaking, award-winning musical CATS comes to a city near you as the tour continues, direct from its sell-out seasons at the London Palladium.
Adapted from TS Eliots Old Possums Book of Practical Cats, this groundbreaking musical comes together in a sparkling fusion of music, dance and verse, and has now taken on a new life for a new generation.
On just one special night of the year, all Jellicle cats meet at the Jellicle Ball where Old Deuteronomy, their wise and benevolent leader, makes the Jellicle choice and announces which of them will go up to The Heaviside Layer and be reborn into a whole new Jellicle life With timeless music, spectacular sets and a superb cast , breathtaking choreography and of course the unforgettable Memory, CATS is a magical musical like no other.
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How Long Was Cats On Broadway
Cats once held the record for the longest-running show on both Broadway and the West End. It made its official Broadway debut in 1982 and won seven Tony Awards before closing 18 years later in 2000.
The 2016 Broadway revival ran for a little over a year, and featured new choreography from Hamiltons Andy Blankenbuehler. And make no mistake taking on the role of a cat several times a week is no easy feat. The show is so challenging vocally, physically, and spiritually. It truly is a test of your endurance, skill, and passion, Gooden recalls, describing Cats as the Olympics of Broadway shows.
Judi Dench Should Have Been The Star Of The Original
This dame was one of the first stars found for the London premiere. Her Sally Bowles in Cabaret was a triumph around town, and she could lend the amorphous Cats some cachet as Grizabella. But she fell and injured herself while rehearsing The Old Gumbie Cat.
A rumor began to circulate that her accident was an excuse to escape a show that was showing signs of a pending catastrophe. She did eventually return to rehearsals, though on crutches and clearly not able to carry on. Now, though, she is in the new movie as a scene-stealing Old Deuteronomy.
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Cgi Errors And Modified Release
The film’s original release contained numerous CGI errors and glitches, such as one scene in which Judi Dench’s human hand, complete with her wedding ring, appears instead of Old Deuteronomy’s cat paw. After poor reviews, Universal notified cinemas on opening day that an updated Digital Cinema Package with “some improved visual effects” would be available for download on 22 December, urging them to replace the current print as soon as possible. Studio executives and cinema owners said that the decision to release a modified version of a film already in wide release was “unheard of”.
What Is A Jellicle
The cats in the show refer to themselves as Jellicles. The term has a long history: its a contraction of the phrase dear little cats, turned into a nonsense term in poetic style for Eliots 1936 poemPollicle Dogs and Jellicle Cats. In Eliots imagination, Jellicles were black-and-white cats with nocturnal tendencies. But in the Lloyd Webber musical, they embody a broader array of colors and looks. One of their most important traditions is gathering for the annual Jellicle Ball. At the Ball, one is chosen to ascend to the Heaviside Layer a kind of cat heaven to be reborn.
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A New Life For A New Generation
Adapted from TS Eliots Old Possums Book of Practical Cats, this groundbreaking musical comes together in a sparkling fusion of music, dance and verse, and has now taken on a new life for a new generation.
CATS, one of the longest-running shows in West End and Broadway history, received its world premiere at the New London Theatre in 1981 where it played for 21 record-breaking years and almost 9,000 performances. The ground-breaking production originally directed by Trevor Nunn and featuring musical staging by Gillian Lynne was the winner of the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Musical. In 1983 the Broadway production became the recipient of seven Tony awards including Best Musical, and ran for 18 years.
Since its world premiere, CATS has been presented in over 39 countries, has been translated into 19 languages and has been seen by more than 74 million people worldwide. The Broadway cast recording also won a Grammy Award for Best Cast Album.
The magnificent musical score includes the one of the most treasured songs in musical theatre Memory, which has been recorded by over 150 artists from Barbra Streisand and Johnny Mathis to Liberace and Barry Manilow.
With universal appeal and an expandable cast of different age groups, the show has not only been presented in theatres, but also in tents in Japan and Korea, an engine shed in Switzerland and school gymnasiums across the USA.
What Happens At The End Of Cats
Since Cats is all about the Jellicle Ball, Tom Hooper’s movie ends the same time as that mythical kitty event. While plenty of cats appear to sing their songs and compete for the Jellicle Choice, there’s one cat who seems to want the victory at all costs. That’s Idris Elba’s villainous Macavity, who somehow has magical abilities the other cats do not. Macavity spends most of the movie lurking around, and kidnapping the starring cast after each actor finishes their big number.
Eventually the kidnapped cats manage to escape in the Cats movie’s third act, through some magic by Laurie Davidson’s Mr. Mistoffelees, who also has magic. The quirky characters of Cats make it back to the Jellicle Ball just in time. Judi Dench’s Old Deuteronomy decides that Grizabella is the one who deserves a new life the most, with the ensemble cats all moved by her life story. And as such she gets the honor of ascending the Heaviside Layer. Jennifer Hudson jumps into a chandelier, and flies out of the Jellicle Ball and into the sky to her destiny, bringing an end to the main story of Cats.
Of course, Idris Elba’s Macavity can’t help making one last ditch effort to steal the spot from Grizabella in the final moments of the Cats movie. He uses his magic and nearly manages to get aboard the chandelier, but comes up short. We last see him stranded on top of a statue, and seemingly without the powers he used to teleport around for the entirety of the movie. I call that kitty karma.
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Macavity The Mystery Cat
Played by: Idris Elba
The showâs main antagonist is a tall, thin criminal cat with sunken eyes and dusty ginger fur. While the Jellicles are plainly terrified of this âmonster of depravity,â they also seem eerily impressed by his ability to elude capture and conviction. Historically, Macavity hasnât done any speaking, singing, or dancingâhe only shows up briefly to kidnap Old Deuteronomy during a rousing cat fightâbut hereâs hoping that Hooper has broadened the role for the film so we get to hear at least a good growl or two from Idris Elba.
Skimbleshanks The Railway Cat
Played by:Steven McRae
Skimbleshanks is a charming Scottish cat who looks like a friendly tiger and ensures that all is in order on the night trains, which includes everything from patrolling for mice to reminding the guard to ask passengers how they like their tea. With his flaming red hair and graceful precision, Royal Ballet principal dancer Steven McRae definitely has a couple things in common with his character.
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During Marcus Centers closing, we were able to refresh the inside of Uihlein Hall. We removed every seat, added several aisles to the main floor, adjusted the layout on the second level, added new wheelchair-accessible seating, updated aisle lighting, and installed all new seats throughout the hall. This new layout makes getting to most seats in the hall much easier, but it has resulted in new seat names and numbers.
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