Cats
There was so much nostalgia in the air at the opening night of the 40th anniversary production of Cats, that it felt like the ghosts of Bob and Hazel Hawke were in the foyer.
The Prime Minister and his wife famously attended the premiere in 1985, ahead of a two-year run.
The musical felt like it had returned home to the Theatre Royal, with the stage strewn with rubbish for the Jellicle Ball and felines creeping up through the audience.
Sure, the costumes feel a little dated, and there have been return tours and community theatre productions galore since it opened, but what makes this remount worth seeing is the scintillating athleticism and charisma of the cast.
As someone breathlessly said to me at interval, they forgot how good the choreography was.
A cracking pace is set in the opening number as the felines dash across the stage to the pulsing rocking score.
There’s one knock-out dance performance after another. Stealing the whole show was Des Flanagan as the sexy Rum Tum Tugger. He was like Elvis with a thousand bolts of electricity up his proverbial.
Claudia Hastings set the standard early as the elegant ballerina tippy toe White Cat. The twin tiger like felines Coricopat (Joshua Gordon) and Tantomile (Sarah Bourke) were like spinning wheels.
Leaping and somersaulting across the stage Mr Mistoffelees (Alex Alvarez) dazzled.
The more mature members of the cast and non-dancers had their own moments to shine.
Todd McKenney might have been under a lot of make-up but was still easy to recognise.
He played the role of Gus – a thespian cat remembering his days on the stage – like a violin. It was charming and entertaining alongside Lucy Maunder as Jellylorum.
Adding impressive ammunition in the voice stakes was Mark Vincent as Old Deuteronomy and Gabriyel Thomas as Grizabella singing Memory.
Andrew Lloyd Webber worked the poems of T.S Elliot into a loose narrative that touches on exclusion, belonging and memory. The patron next me was loving the show but admitted she could not follow the story.
Cats remains an enigma – but it works.
David Spicer
Photographer: Daniel Boud
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