Few musicals have quite the peculiar staying power of Cats. More than 40 years after it first prowled into the West End, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s feline fantasia continues to exert a curious hold over audiences. This latest UK tour, direct from Regent’s Park Open Air theatre and arriving at Manchester’s Palace Theatre, makes a convincing argument for its continued relevance, giving the familiar spectacle a sleek, modernised makeover without losing the eccentricity that made it such a phenomenon in the first place.
First staged in 1981, Cats was something of a theatrical revolution. Based on TS Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, with music by Lloyd Webber and original choreography by Gillian Lynne, it dispensed with many of the conventions of musical theatre, replacing a traditional plot with a procession of vividly drawn characters, elaborate movement and theatrical invention. Its influence has been considerable, even if the question of precisely what happens during the evening has always been a little harder to answer.
Directed and choreographed by Drew McOnie, this production gives the show a welcome injection of freshness. There is a real sense of movement and energy throughout, while Sami Fendall’s gorgeous set, complemented by Jessica Hung Han Yun’s atmospheric lighting, create a richly imagined world that feels both contemporary and suitably otherworldly. Visually, it is a treat, with the staging providing plenty to feast on without becoming weighed down by nostalgia for previous incarnations. The choreography is a constant source of pleasure, too, with the company displaying the physical precision and feline playfulness the material demands.
Some characters inevitably leave a greater impression than others. Matthew Caputo’s Skimbleshanks is a particularly lively and memorable turn, bringing infectious energy to one of the show’s most entertaining numbers. Danny Nattrass and Briana Craig make a tremendous double act as Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer, their mischievous partnership providing a welcome burst of comic theatricality. Jet Yau’s Mr Mistoffelees feels thoroughly revitalised, his number delivering the magic and spectacle it deserves.
And then there’s Rachael Wooding as Grizabella. Few musical theatre songs have become so firmly embedded as Memory in the cultural consciousness, yet it retains its extraordinary capacity to stop an audience in its tracks. In a production so preoccupied with movement, colour and spectacle, its emotional stillness is particularly effective. It is a reminder that, beneath all the theatrical trickery, Lloyd Webber’s score remains the show’s most enduring asset.
For all its considerable pleasures, however, Cats still has the same fundamental problem it has always had: the book, or rather, the absence of one. The parade of personalities and individual set pieces rarely coalesces into anything resembling a compelling narrative. There is plenty happening on stage, sometimes almost too much, and when key moments become lost in the sheer busyness of the choreography and staging, the already tenuous narrative thread can disappear altogether. It is difficult not to wish for just a little more to hold everything together.
Nevertheless, there is plenty to admire here. This is a production that understands the importance of refreshing a classic without sanding away its eccentricities. It looks terrific, moves beautifully and gives audiences ample reason to fall under its spell. The storytelling may remain elusive, but Cats has always operated on its own terms- and, more than forty years on, those terms still have considerable charm. A sleek, spirited revival that proves there is plenty of life left in these old cats yet.
Playing at Manchester’s Palace Theatre until Saturday 21st November. Further information and booking details can be found here.
Tickets received in exchange for an honest review. #AD
