CATS...In Concert!
CATS...In Concert!
#0CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 1:38pm
With the trend towards doing "classic" musicals in concert, a friend of mine and I joked a few years ago about shows that would NEVER be done in concert... CATS was one.
No joke.
Last night in Toronto the cast of the 1985 Toronto production of CATS held a one-night only 20th anniversary reunion concert version to raise money for Out in the Cold. (I did not attend. My feelings on CATS are well documented.)
Is there ANY show now that absolutely could NOT be presented in concert??
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
Matt_G
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/1/04
#1re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 1:40pmContact
"Noah, someday we'll talk again. But there's things we'll never say. That sorrow deep inside you. It inside me, too. And it never go away. You be okay. You'll learn how to lose things..."
JeffG
Leading Actor Joined: 12/28/03
#2re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 1:56pmContact could definitely be done in concert. It obviously wouldn't have dancing, but the music is the music. I think you'd be hard pressed to find a musical that wouldn't work as a concert. Granted, many would be ineffective.
#3re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 1:58pmCONTACT is NOT a musical!
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
Matt_G
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/1/04
#4re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:00pm
Exactly.
But frontrow, I could say the earth is round and JeffG would say it's flat, so I'm not surprised.
"Noah, someday we'll talk again. But there's things we'll never say. That sorrow deep inside you. It inside me, too. And it never go away. You be okay. You'll learn how to lose things..."
Over_the_Moon
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/22/05
#5re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:03pm
How is Contact not a musical?
(Forgive my ignorance)
"what have we learned? Don't smoke... don't do drugs and don't sing 'Defying Gravity'." -CATSNYRevival
JeffG
Leading Actor Joined: 12/28/03
#6re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:03pm
Give the victim act a rest. If anyone had said Contact my response would have been the same. I happen to love the music of Contact and would quite happily pay to hear it "in concert."
Matt_G
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/1/04
#7re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:05pmyawn
"Noah, someday we'll talk again. But there's things we'll never say. That sorrow deep inside you. It inside me, too. And it never go away. You be okay. You'll learn how to lose things..."
#8re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:07pmOuch! Jeff..once again you've proven your oppositional defiance against Matt_G. I swear if he started a thread called "JeffG is a Genius," You'd chime in and say "No...he's an idiot."
"Y'all have a GRAND day now"
JeffG
Leading Actor Joined: 12/28/03
#9re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:38pm
Talk about predictable. Matt_G's "boyfriend" chimes in.
You both can feel free to test your theory. You both might be able to "bully" or fool others into thinking you're either the victim or the good guys, but some of us know better. I, for one, will not watch where I post just to avoid disagreeing with anyone who has a differing opinion. I believe that's what message boards are for.
#10re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:38pmCATS? in concert? What's the point?
http://community.livejournal.com/ltd_brands_suck/
BSoBW2
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/8/04
#11re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 2:45pm
Movin' Out...
Oh, wait, it's been in concert - years and years and years before the show even opened....
#13re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/15/05 at 3:40pmHmmm .... if there's no value to a concert version, then why bother to have a cast album, which in essence is a "concert" version?
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#14re: CATS...In Concert!
Posted: 3/16/05 at 2:25am
Over_the_Moon wanted to know:
How is Contact not a musical?
(Forgive my ignorance)
Nothing to forgive. CONTACT is a series of dances done to pre-recorded music. None of the characters sing: there is no vocal score. The recordings chosen are fine but you could substitute other recordings and achieve the same effect. The recordings that are used are a mix of classical, jazz and pop by a variety of writers.
The confusion stems from the fact that in 2000 the Tony Awards had not created the "special theatrical event" category, so CONTACT (with little competiton) took the Tony for the season's Best Musical. It was a brilliantly staged piece, but it is not a musical.
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
phantom_tenor
Leading Actor Joined: 1/11/05
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