CATS Young Actors' Edition

CATS Young Actors Edition is an exhilarating piece of theatre, purrfect (sorry for the pun!) for a young and energetic cast.    It begins on the night of the Jellicle Ball and the cast belt out ‘Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats’ and by the end of it, we needed a paws (pause) to catch our breath before the Meow-sical continues as we were introduced to the cast of characters from Old Grumble Cat, Rum Tum Tugger, Grizabella and many more!

The costumes were excellent and each character was enhanced by their fur, whiskers, ears and face paint.    They were colourful, vibrant and where necessary, worn and dishevelled in appearance.  Each cat’s outfit told a story.  The make up was expertly applied, by the cast themselves, following a special workshop.         

The production was in the round, with multi levels and the cast made great use of all the space including steps and aisles and gangways.      A big, crescent moon was suspended from the ceiling.     There were very few props including a walking stick and …but generally, cats don’t use things. They use their bodies!

The sound was good with voices clear and in tune.  The lighting was good, atmospheric when needed to be and bright.  There was good use of bursts of confetti. 

This was a quality show with all performers fully engaged at all times.  There were some magnificent solos including a touching ‘Memory’ from Grizabella which gave me goosebumps, and on a more humorous note, Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat made me smile.    There were burst of energy, high notes, low notes and masses of movement.  All the performers embodied cats with paw movements, arching backs, slinking and siding along and at all times they were engaged and engaging as they belted out the well-known songs.       This was an outstanding production and the audience were totally captivated and entranced – I know I was.    This was an excellent combination example of committed story telling and team spirit that resulted in a magical, unforgettable evening.         

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