Anyone think that with ALW mounting a "limited" (aka inevitable open ended ) run in the West End this Christmas, that it may transfer to Broadway in spring 2015 and reclaim the Winter Garden theatre once Rocky concludes its run this January? This is shaping up to a redux of Broadway in the early 90s with Les Mis, Phantom, Miss Saigon transferring over, and now potentially Cats, not that there's anything wrong with that. My only hope is that they go back to the original intent of Cats which had a darker less kiddie approach that the show took on over the years and subsequently on tours in order to cater to families. Back in the day, the original show was beautifully dark and haunting and less bright and whimsical...
Words don't deserve that kind of malarkey. They're innocent, neutral, precise, standing for this, describing that, meaning the other, so if you look after them you can build bridges across incomprehension and chaos. But when they get their corners knocked off, they're no good anymore…I don't think writers are sacred, but words are. They deserve respect. If you get the right ones in the right order, you can nudge the world a little.
I love Cats and would welcome it to come back, BUT I want a new production, not a remount of the original production. However, I know that's a big part of the selling power with its iconic look so it's not gonna happen.
Updated On: 6/26/14 at 09:30 PM
I think "Cats" was a "lightning in a bottle" phenomenon. I'm one of the few around here who saw the OBC and thought it was brilliant. But it was so unusual to have Elliott's poetry set to Webber's music in a junkyard with dancers dressed as cats. On paper, it shouldn't have worked, but a 16-year run, many awards and enough glowing reviews proved otherwise. It felt like "experimental theatre" had gone mainstream.
I just don't see a revival of it capturing anything close to the original production. In fact, I think the only way to consider it would be to re-think the concept and try something completely different with the material. Then, of course, you're risking everything, which the original concept and production(s) did as well.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
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...with the composer even altering two of the numbers for the latest West End incarnation. Lloyd Webber said: "today Rum Tum Tugger should be a street cat and so that gives us a great dance opportunity and I must say that I never liked what I did with Growltiger’s Last Stand...so we’re having a go at that."
The Gus / Growltiger segment was my favorite part of the whole thing. The only cat I thought deserved to be the chosen one over the Memory kitty.
Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE
I remember the whole Growltiger scene with the pirate ship on stage. They cut that later in the run, right? It was a wonderful flashback to his "glory days."
(Or am I remembering it wrong after 30 years?)
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
I saw Cats for a second time on Broadway late in the run, at least 14 years after I had first seen it, and I'm pretty sure the pirate ship raked set was gone. I remember the thing coming forward, tilting out, and the sails rising from the first time. It was very impressive. That was gone. Maybe it kept breaking down? Who knows. But it wasn't there.
... or so I recall.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
I saw the US tour a couple of years back, and the Growltiger segment was still in there. The part that was not included was the "Peaks and the Pollicles" song with the dogs that we see on the DVD.
"Was uns befreit, das muss stärker sein als wir es sind." -Tanz der Vampire
I saw Cats for a second time on Broadway late in the run, at least 14 years after I had first seen it, and I'm pretty sure the pirate ship raked set was gone. I remember the thing coming forward, tilting out, and the sails rising from the first time. It was very impressive. That was gone. Maybe it kept breaking down? Who knows. But it wasn't there.
... or so I recall.
Are you sure it wasn't on tour? The tour set for Growltiger was certainly a lot more modest and adapted for travelling purposes.
Maybe someone who was more familiar with the last days of the Broadway run can confirm this but I thought the number was there with the same set until the end.
Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE
Well, it is what it is. People will always love CATS no matter what. I think there are 3 songs in the show that set this one apart from the majority of ALW's work (POTO and EVITA notwithstanding), but the production of this show always seemed too tacky for me to really enjoy it. I think a minimalist revival could work really well, but this doesn't seem like it will be like that.
Anything regarding shows stated by this account is an attempt to convey opinion and not fact.
Obviously I'm all for this but I wish Webber, with his constant need to fuss with his past scores which worked just fine the first time around, had nothing to do with the production or the decisions being made. The man is senile.