Breaking News: CATS to Return to Broadway This Summer; Andy Blankenbuehler Joins Team- Page 2

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:16am

Unfortunately the original simply didn't age well. Like so many other shows that have long runs, the original cast was great, but the longer it ran, the more pedestrian it became. It was no longer a novelty. The choreography became dated, the sets were no longer impressive and the casts became bored. I was surprised how lazy it looked when I saw it years after the opening cast.

I'd say the same thing about Phantom. The original production was thrilling with Maria Bjornson's glorious sets and costumes, but when I took someone years later, it seemed dusty and boring. The cast seemed to be going through the motions.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:17am

worst Broadway revival news of the week by far. Who do they think wants this???

[RW3]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:20am

The good news is that the Neil Simon will finally have its first musical hit since Hairspray.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:21am

Unfortunately the original simply didn't age well. Like so many other shows that have long runs, the original cast was great, but the longer it ran, the more pedestrian it became. It was no longer a novelty. The choreography became dated, the sets were no longer impressive and the casts became bored. I was surprised how lazy it looked when I saw it years after the opening cast.

 

I saw it on Broadway twice. First with the full original cast, then almost 16 years later (about 6 months before it closed) with Liz Callaway as Grizabella. That cast was great. I had heard about the "lean years" (just like  A Chorus Line) where the show was low on energy and everyone looked bored. That will kill a show like "Cats" because it relies pretty much solely on the shoulders of the performers. No plot to drive it forward. It's a poetry reading and dance recital set to music. A "mood piece." And without the right mood, it doesn't work. So in that regard it's not an easy show to pull off eight times a week.

 

I'm still happy to say that the two times I saw it, it was great. And the original cast was fantastic.

Updated On: 1/21/16 at 10:21 AM

[ozjust4]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:27am

Well this is the worst show related news ever.

[Jshan05]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:27am

CATS was the first professional production I saw, mind you it was a touring production. For that reason alone I have a special place in my heart for this quirky show. While I'm not crazy about much of the score, the dancing alone will be worth the ticket price. 

[uncageg]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:34am

I did not see the original but owned the OBCR. like most of the music. Finally saw it on gour somewhere around 2008-2009. It was awful. The set was like a blow-up thing, which I heard about before seeing it. I will give it another chance as this new production has to be better. Still not a favorite but I want to at least see a decent production of it.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 10:52am

I'm not getting all the hate for CATS either, but whatever. It's not the worst show on the planet...not by a long shot. I agree with everything tazzy wrote. I'm definitely looking forward to it's return and I really do hope Nicole "Loosen Up My Buttons" Scherzinger gets to "do her thing" on the Main Stem.

 

See y'all at the Simon!

 

....or not! LMAO!

 

 

Updated On: 1/21/16 at 10:52 AM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:03am

PThespian wrote: "I respect the opinion of those who don't enjoy it, but an eighteen year run suggests that you are in the minority."

 

Ha! There it is! Two thumbs up to you PThespian!

 

 

[MichelleCraig]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:11am

Who do they think wants this???

Probably the descendants of the same people that kept it running on Broadway for 18 years the last time around...

I think what's really exciting about this is that Broadway will continue to get a lot of mainstream attention again with HAMILTON still going gangbusters and productions like HELLO, DOLLY!, MISS SAIGON, SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE, and possibly GYPSY and BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS pulling in the tourist business. Gotta' have those tourists! Everyone wins...great for a lot of the businesses in the area, too. 

[silent]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:12am

I hope Nicole is a part of the cast.

[Ranger Tom]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:20am

While not an ALW fan, I will agree there is obviously an audience for this.  If it helps Broadway, I'm for it.  The "blue hairs" will love it.  And if they bring their grandchildren, maybe we'll have a few more young ones dedicate themselves to love of theater. But would much rather see any number of other shows come back.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:21am

I would be so excited about this if Webber hadn't rewritten some of the songs and changed the Tugger to a rapper. If that's also how they'll stage it here I'll probably just ignore this revival as best I can.

[hork]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:21am

I've never actually seen Cats. I'm both excited and scared by the opportunity to finally do so.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:42am

So CATS vs Saigon? 

I hate Cats. It's one of the only musicals that I've completely regretted seeing. Maybe in the production with its thrust stage, and cool environmental production, it might have held my interest. But on tour, I found it to be the most boring thing I've ever seen. 

Curious to see how this works. I wonder if they'll ditch the whole 80s looking Cats costumes, or what? Is it an actual revival, where it's being redesigned, etc, or just the original all over again? Wonder if they'll do the thrust stage. 

[MichelleCraig]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:44am

There's a Blu-ray of CATS that came out several years ago. You can get it from Amazon.

"Boasting an all-star cast headed by Elaine Paige and Sir John Mills, breathtaking visuals and the full digital sound of an eighty piece orchestra, this Ultimate Edition Blu-ray will lead you deep into the mysterious world of Cats. This is Cats as you've never seen it before: more mesmerizing and magical than you could possibly imagine."

[PalJoey]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:46am

 

I foresee a brilliant marketing campaign:

 

 

 

CATS.

 

NOW AND FOREVER.

 

AGAIN.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:47am

Sadly, this new generation will not be able to experience CATS as it was intended and how it was experienced in its original Broadway home: the Winter Garden Theatre which in 1982 was gutted and transformed into an interactive intimate space just for CATS.  The stage blended into the audience, who sat in sections of oversized garbage.  The "cats" would dart out from holes in between seats so you never knew where they were coming from.  The ceiling of the Winter Garden Theatre had sparkly lights so when the show began you felt as it you were outside looking up at the stars.  Due to the semi-in-the-round stage, there was no orchestra pit so they were hidden.  You weren't reminded that you were seeing a Broadway musical - it was just the audience and that huge junkyard with huge oversized garbage.

 

Unfortunately, many only saw the touring version never knowing how the show was performed on Broadway.  I always say that's why the show ran 18 years on Broadway - because they spent so much money transforming the entire theatre to suit CATS.  It was indeed an experience seeing the show on Broadway, regardless of the show's content.  No one really cared how cheesy the score was including the early 80s choreography.  It was a beautiful visually spectacular ride.  

 

And yes, when CATS finally closed in 2000 it took them a full year to transform the Winter Garden Theatre into its regular proscenium stage form for its next tenant: the British import MAMMA MIA!

[tazber]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:52am

There were some numbers left off the Blu-ray, although I can't recall which ones at the moment.

 

I think Billy McCaw maybe?

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:56am

BrodyFosse123, thanks for reminding me how special that original production was. I was in high school when CATS premiered at the Winter Garden, and my high school was (actually it's still there) on 49th Street between 9th and 10th Avenues and when I got out of the subway I was always greeted by that ginormous billboard with the CATS logo looming over the Winter Garden marquee.

 

 

 

 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 11:59am

See, that version I would LOVE to see. That sounds incredible and interesting, and like you said, an experience. But the show in a traditional space is just blah. 

[theatregeek6]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 12:02pm

Never a huge fan, since I like plot driven musicals.  That much being said, I am looking forward to seeing who is cast - the dance talent in NY is stronger than ever and can't wait to see what Blankenbuehler does with it.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 12:06pm

I loved when Grizabella ascended to the Heaviside Layer on the tire and it floated her up.... :: tears ::

Updated On: 1/21/16 at 12:06 PM

[Cupid Boy2]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 12:07pm

I wonder if previews beginning as early as mid-July will impact Nicole Scherzinger's involvement. I'd imagine she'd want to remain in the company through the end of Tony season, but that seems like a pretty lengthy run when compared to the typical "star" contracts we've been seeing. 

[Phantom4ever]

Posted: 1/21/16 at 12:15pm

I only saw Cats on tour, and I did not enjoy it at all. Still, I am fascinated by the original Broadway production and I am disappointed that I never saw it. I just can't imagine what it must have looked like, especially when people use words like "gutted" and "transformed" to describe how different the Winter Garden looked.  Does anyone have any pictures they're willing to share of the original Broadway production?