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Disclaimer:
The reviewers' opinions are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of TheatreLouisville.org. |
Peer Reviews CATS
Well, it's time for a confession. Though this musical has been around for 27 years, though any major event in the world of theatre, music, dance or literature has always made my ears perk up, and though I actually came close to going to veterinary school to specialize in felines, I've never seen CATS until just this summer. Where have I been? I've spent time in a good number of major American cities frequently visited by Broadway touring companies, not to mention in Budapest, where CATS has been playing continuously (in Hungarian!) since 1983, but I seem to have remained out of the loop nevertheless. Maybe I was wary of all the hype; maybe I simply thought there was no rush because another opportunity to see the show was bound to present itself. Thanks to Broadway at Iroquois, this month in our own fair city it did, and I pounced. From start to finish, this show is visually breathtaking. Words cannot do justice to the costumes, designed by Julianne Johnson, which cover the actors' bodies with a dizzying array of textures and patterns suggestive of all manner of felines. Calicoes, tabbies, Siamese, even what look to be Maine Coon cats cavort together; the variety is astounding, and yet they create a lively, harmonious effect viewed all together. No less than 26 performers sport tails, ears, and in some cases prodigious heads of hair, yet the cast is able to move about freely and to dance to their hearts' content. Makeup is phenomenal as well. Binoculars come in handy to appreciate each elaborately painted face during the show, but audience members have the opportunity to admire the cast's costumes and makeup face-to-face once the performance has concluded.
The curtain doesn't open per se on this production because it is already open as the audience is filing in, all the better to allow one to study the set before the cats make themselves known. Scenic Designer Brenda Ellis has created what looks like an oversized junkyard or alleyway seen by the light of the moon, a secret world where cats commune when there are no people about. It took a moment to dawn on me that of course the trash cans, discarded appliances, packaging and sundry trash are oversized — if human performers are playing cats, it only makes sense to make their surroundings to scale, of course! The local touches in this junkyard of a KFC box and a crumpled old Kentucky license plate, as well as a shipping box clearly marked UPS which falls from up above in the first act, brought a smile to my face. Director Suzanne Costello is responsible for the show's choreography, assisted by Christephor Gilbert. Their work is imaginative and riveting, every bit worthy of Broadway. The fluid, graceful movement of cats is brought out with the utmost creativity, down to the convincing mimicry of gestures familiar to anyone who has ever observed the species. Through the ingenious use of développé penché (essentially a dancer's leisurely unfolding into the vertical splits) the choreographers have come upon a striking likeness of the way a cat stretches. I was mesmerized, and it was not difficult to believe that I was looking at felines on stage. This was true in the case of some performers more than others, however. Clearly, there are varying degrees of dance training and experience among the cast. At no time is this unevenness more evident than when the entire ensemble is called upon to execute movements simultaneously; some bodies move with the grace of seasoned professionals, while others are noticeably off. Will Geoghegan, who has just completed his sophomore year at Louisville's Youth Performing Arts School and is majoring in dance performance, is breathtaking as the magical cat Mr. Mistoffelees. He performs sleight-of-hand while executing an aerial ballet which concludes with an impressive series of fouetté turns, challenging under any circumstances let alone after having just flown every which way above and around the stage! Some performers are stronger singers and actors than others, too, but those in the principal roles are all highly talented and well cast. With everyone's face fully covered in makeup, the photos in the program are not much help in identifying the people on stage, and as character names are not always easy to grasp from the singing, it can be rather challenging to know who's who. I can say with a good degree of certainty, however, that Troy Bell is outstanding as patriarch Old Deuteronomy, possessed of a rich, warmly commanding voice. If Munkustrap and Growltiger are who I think they are, Tony Smith portrays them both with great dramatic ability and is likewise a pleasure to listen to. Jill Sullivan has got to be the most ebullient, winsome Gumbie Cat Jennyanydots ever, and Denzel Edmondson is a cool Rum Tum Tugger, a (leather-clad!) cat with an attitude if there ever was one. Doug James plays a distinguished yet jovial Bustopher Jones, the spats-wearing Cat About Town, and Mungojerrie (Luke Wise) and Rumpelteazer (Kate E. Reedy) make a winning pair of mischievous cat burglars. As Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat, Chad Zimlich displays the stage presence and sparkle of a consummate performer. (Aspara)Gus the Theatre Cat (Sam Rueff) occupies the limelight toward the beginning of Act II and is accompanied by Jellylorum (Ellen Kahne), who narrates Gus's many exploits and is remarkable for both the quality and clarity of her voice. I understood every syllable of what she sang, which is more than I can say for some of the other performers. The Iroquois Amphitheatre boasts state-of-the-art sound equipment since its 2003 renovation, but I noticed some distracting feedback and instances of the sound fading in and out, either because performers were not singing directly into their microphones or for some other reason. At times, individual microphones were un-muted a hair too late such that the first few syllables of a singer's song were lost. At other times, the singing was simply too loud from where I sat (the sixth row) and not comfortable to listen to, especially in the higher registers. Notwithstanding, the orchestra, directed by Craig Swatt, was spectacular in its own right and provided perfectly balanced accompaniment for the vocalists. Plot takes a definite backseat to exposition in this show, but it would have been helpful to include in the program a brief synopsis of the action, which has to do with the disappearance of Old Deuteronomy at the hands of the malevolent Macavity (Keith Wilson), his subsequent reappearance, and his selection of Grizabella (Dana Jo Adams), a Glamour Cat of a certain age, to ascend to the Heavyside Layer (presumably, heaven for cats). Likewise, to print not just the order of the musical numbers but the principal characters who perform them would have been invaluable. It's a huge undertaking to put on a production of this scale, and Broadway at Iroquois does a commendable job. Their production of CATS is a must-see if you're among the few people on the planet who has never experienced the musical, and worth seeing even if you have. When this run concludes, the company is planning to mount two more musicals this season, The Wiz opening August 1st and Mame in September. If you're looking for a summertime spectacle al fresco, by all means, check them out.
CATS July 11-13, 17-20, 2008 at 8 p.m. Posted July 16, 2008
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