Cats

Venue: Lyric Theatre, Darling Harbour, Sydney
Dates: To 13 June 2010

They say all cats have nine lives; well the jesting Jellicle Cats of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s masterpiece have had twice as many. The magical extravaganza that is Cats has successfully made its way around the world numerous times for more than two decades. Performed, undoubtably to standing ovations in the West End, Broadway and Mexico to name a few Cats has finally returned to Australia for yet another knock-out performance.

Composed entirely of poetry, Cats is a majestic tale based on Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats by T. S Eliot. Eliot’s witty and jeering descriptions of a variety of cats were transformed by Webber into a lyrically bewildering play that exposes the masked calibre of this feline race.

Webber associated Eliot’s writing with a happy time from his childhood as he set about composing music to existing verse in 1977. ‘Very luckily Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats contains verses that are extraordinarily musical…’ This being said, Webber described the rhythm of the book as being frequently irregular and challenging for a composer like himself. Webber’s animated composition did not happen over night and only came to be after Valerie Eliot presented more of her husband’s verses, one being ‘Grizabella the Glamour Cat’ to Webber in 1980. With help from work colleague and director Trevor Nunn, Webber brought to life one of the most memorable musicals of all time.

The show opens in a vibrant and raucous scrap-yard covered with electric colouring, oversized tyres, scrap bins and cars. As the cats pounce on to the stage the audience is immediately clawed by each performer as they manage to hold their focus right through to the end of this highly entertaining and bewildering tour de force. Audience members can’t help but feel that they are nestled inside a cat’s cradle as performers’ prowl throughout the theatre whispering, giggling and playfully pawing onlookers in a bid to command their full attention, as almost all cats’ do. The Jellicle Cats are inviting the entire audience to celebrate with them on this one special night; a night when they sing, dance and rumbustiously reunite to commemorate what it means to be part of the Jellicle lineage.

Munkustrap, The Rum Tum Tugger, Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer are just a handful out of this energetic cast that intensify the action on stage and successfully enliven original crowd-pleasers such as Mr. Mistoffelees and of course Memory. The sentimental moments throughout the performance are gracefully delivered by Delia Hannah as Grizabella and John Ellis as Old Deuteronomy. Hannah’s rendition of Memory is beautifully delivered and harmoniously peaceful. The dynamic duo award should definitely go to Brenton Wilson and Justine Puy for their comically crafted skit as Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer. Neither of these Jellicle’s had a whisker out of place as they swept across the stage in a fast and nifty topsy-turvy tumble. John O’Hara deserves an honourable mention for his riotous portrayal of The Rum Tum Tugger; an artful hellcat that sent his female counterparts into a frenzied state of desire, all the while entertaining audience members to no end.

Having run for well over two decades says something about this phenomenal performance. Do venture out and see the crazy characters and cult chorus lines that are littering the stage at Sydney’s Lyric Theatre now.

Haylie Pretorius