Cats The Musical

This post is brought to you by Nuffnang and Cats The Musical.

I remember back in Year 7, we studied the poetry of T.S. Elliot and some of the music from the musical Cats. I recall the poetry being slightly quirky, and our drama teacher went as far as to give us a task to create a performance around one of the poems. It was a lot of fun, and one of my few memories from my first year of high school. Fast forward a few decades, and T.S. Elliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats has been adapted to a stage musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and has come to Melbourne for a strictly limited season.

I was lucky enough to be invited to go and see the show just before Christmas and needless to say, I was just a tad excited. Whilst, I knew the trademark song, Memory (who doesn’t?!), and I had a vague memory of some of the poetry, I really had no idea what to expect from the show. This was just the way I liked it though, no expectations and all anticipation is the perfect formula to enjoy most things for me!

After a delicious burger at Grand Trailer Park Taverna (more about that in another post), we made our way to the Regent Theatre. The Cats production which is in Australian is the 2015 Olivier award nominated hit revival, which was reworked for the most recent season in the West End by the original creative team. It received excellent reviews and extended its season due to overwhelming demand, so it was quite a privilege to be able to see it in my home town.

Sitting in the grand Regent Theatre, the stage was set up in an elaborate manner, and as the lights went down and the music started, a stream of cats flooded the aisles, purring to audience members, jumping on the seats, and generally creating a hushed excitement through the crowd. It was one of the few times I have been grateful for an aisle seat!

The show begins by introducing the Jellicle cats who are preparing for the Jellicle Ball. Who or what are the Jellicle cats? You will just have to watch the show to find out! Amongst the Jellicle cats are a variety of characters, and as the show progresses, we get to meet them and learn about their characters.

The dancing in the show is one of the highlights. From acrobatics, to tap dancing, the dancers are all high class, and the co-ordination and timing is impeccable. As a dancer myself, I always pay particular attention to dancing of any kind, and on this occasion I was more than impressed. Two of my favourite dancing cats were Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer. They performed as a fun duo, and as they co-cartwheeled off the stage the audience broke into rapturous applause.

Delta Goodrem was cast as the ostracised, old cat, Grizabella. Her first song, Memory, coincided with the half time interval, and the theatre was awash with an eerie solemness as the power of her voice filled the space. She had, by far, the most impressive voice in the whole cast, and the part suited her perfectly.

Cats the Musical is playing for a strictly limited season at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre, and the touring to Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth. For further information, or to purchase tickets, you can visit the Cats The Musical website.

Disclaimer: I attended Cats The Musical as a guest of Nuffnang and Cats The Musical, however all opinions are my own.