Cats
Music & lyrics by Andrew Lloyd Webber;
directed by Trevor Nunn
Opened July 30, 2016
Neil
Simon Theatre, 250 West 52nd Street, New York, NY
catsthemusical.com
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| The cast of Cats (photo: Matthew Murphy) |
Sure, it’s cheesy and dated,
but something about Cats keeps it from becoming wincingly awful: whether it’s the
large, lively cast of human felines; the eye-catching direction of Trevor Nunn;
the clever, even witty, sets and costumes by John Napier; Natasha Katz’s luminous
lighting; or the famous score by Andrew Lloyd Webber, who already had Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita under his belt when Cats premiered in 1982 (and still had The Phantom of the Opera in his future).
It’s partially all of those,
but it’s mainly what happens at the end of the first act. After an hour of
synthesizer-pulsating songs (even the catchiest, like the opener “Jellicle Songs
for Jellicle Cats,” are afflicted with the disease) that sound like bizarre
Emerson, Lake and Palmer outtakes, suddenly a sumptuous melody wells up and
Grizabella sings “Memory,” one of the greatest Broadway ballads and one of
those instantly memorable tunes that Webber had to hand: at least in his early musicals.
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| Leona Lewis (photo: Matthew Murphy) |
Like “I Don’t Know How to
Love Him” from Superstar and “Don’t
Cry for Me Argentina” from Evita, “Memory” bowls over the rest of the score and show, something which even Webber
realizes: in Act II, we not only get two reprises but also variations on and
hints of that hummable melody throughout. Webber, knowing he’s written his own
“Yesterday,” unapologetically milks it for all it’s worth. British pop star
Leona Lewis sings the hell out of it during its final incarnation at the end of
the show, but the rest of her performance is stiff and wooden, which says more about
her stage inexperience than about Grizabella’s aloofness.
Best of the rest of a
harmonious cast are Quentin Earl Darrington’s dignified Old Deuteronomy, Eloise
Kropps’ agily tap-dancing Jennyanydots and Ricky Ubeda’s astoundingly athletic
Mr. Mistoffelees. It’s too bad that choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler merely
spiffs up Gillian Lynne’s original choreography, which survives in the cast’s
cat-like poses and movements. Why bring such an inventive—and award-winning—choreographer
on board only to handcuff him?
That ultimately is the curse
of this new Cats: despite Trevor
Nunn’s protestations to the contrary, this is old fur in new bottles, and however
entertaining, there was a missed chance to make it resonate for a new
generation of theatergoers, not simply traffic in nostalgia for the older ones.
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