Christa/Bomby TRC
I got to the theatre (after much nagging to get me there earlier at my dad) at about 7:45. The first thing I saw were just a bunch of people rushing through the rain to get through the theater (though they were just a blur because *I* was rushing past *them.*) Then the first thing I heard when I got inside was this guy yelling 'CATS programs! $10!!" except it was more like CATS PROGRAMS!! $10!! because he was yelling so loud.
We showed our tickets to an usher at the door where everybody seperated to go to their different seats. She showed us to go up the stairs at the left (Let me tell you about the stairs at the Fox!! they are so cool. THey're red velvet with a rug-like design and they're really wide though they're not that tall a stair.) I was surprised 'cause my mom and I both thought we had front row seats on the ground floor. At first I was kind of pissed cause I thought we had specified that when ordering our tickets, but I decided I couldn't really do anything else than wait it out. The seats turned out to be even better than that!! We got to be in front row balcony on the left side!! NO heads in front of you, and no craning your necks up at the stage. Just watching! C'est facile.
I thought there was just gonna be a bunch of junk and then the stage would be bare. But the stage was laid with a floor design like in the video, the big tiger and the newspaper and all the rest of it. It was so cool! Other things I remember were a huge shopping cart, a lamp with fringes on the shade, and a high-heeled shoe.
Finally the lights dimmed. I stopped bouncing in my seat. Everything seemed to be so still. I sighed as a light came on in the back of the stage and a lady's voice, seeming harsh compared to the overture I expected to hear, announced the substitutes for that evening.
Finally the stage was dark again. Then in perfect sync with the overture (finally!!) these cat eyes that looked like orange circles with black pinpoints in the middle for eyes started popping up all over the stage. I had chills the whole time.
First Demeter came out. She just looked so catlike and graceful, even just running!
Then Munk. His voice was great.
everybody else came out and it was overwhelming!! I don't remember individual things. Just that there was great dancing the whole time.
solo dance: I never thought anyone would be good as Phylida-Crowley Smith just because she looks so inhumanly good while dancing. Well this Vicky was every bit as... inhuman!! OK she didn't raise her leg quite as high. But she was pretty cool anyway. Misto came out (OK so I admit it I was really watching him in the pipe the whole time:)) and I was waiting for him to sing the Invitation but MUNKUSTRAP BUTTED IN AND STOLE HIS SONG!!!!!!!!!!
RTT was so funny!! I loved his voice. It was so... conceited. You could just tell from listening to it. When he dropped Bomb before he did it he took a big sniff of her arm. (more like snort!) For his dance, he picked a lady with a leopard-patterned shirt. He kind of twirled her around a little, ran back on stage, and blew her a kiss.
Bustopher Jones was really cute. Everybody laughed when he came out cause he was just so fat!!
Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer were really funny. They had nice voices.
THE JELLICLE BALL!
It was really cool. The dancers got a chance to show off their skills, and they certainly had them! There were Christmas like lights strung through the Fox and they kept blinking on and off during the whole thing.
Grizabella- I forgot to mention her so I will now. I guess you could say she had the best voice. It was very strong and powerful, but she didn't overdo it. Her tail was really long, it was the longest tail in the show! She did her part really well too, you could tell tehe different things she was feeling.
INTERMISSION
I wanted to include it because I felt like it was one of the important parts of my experience, though not part of the show...
We got out of our seats into the main part of the theatre. My mom and I just let ourselves go with the flow of people that were coming out from all of the stage doors. I was so excited 'cause I kept hearing names that I haven't heard spoken except in the video (cat names i.e.). Then I spied the souvenir stand!! My mom and I eventually made our way over there. When I finally got to the front, I got out my money to pay but Mom got hers out first. A cats T-shirt, and it was free! What more could I ask for!
Then Mom pointed out a girl dressed in a Bombalurina suit. "Is that one of the actors that came out to mingle with the fans?" I turned and looked. It was Christa/Bomby TRC! Some fans might know she's on the catsart list and runs a site called Blueberry Grove. I tapped her on the shoulder and said, "I like your costume!" I asked if she was Christa and she confirmed it, so I said I was Rina. We talked about the show for a while, then it was time to go back.
ACT TWO
Old Deuteronomy had sat there the whole intermission! As far as I could tell he hadn't moved a muscle. Some people were talking about how that couldn't be a real person and it had to be a statue. Then the act started again and he started singing "Moments of Happiness."
I thought Jemima's voice was a little nasal. But Old D's voice was really deep and rumbling, perfect for his character!
Gus was SO CUTE!!!!!!! He was really feeble-looking and frail, but did he ever undergo a metamorphasis into Growltiger!! That was the first time I'd ever seen Growltiger, and I was laughing the whole time. I loved Jellylorum! When she came in everybody was throwing themselves at her but she just kind of teased them with her tail and went on to more important matters, i.e. Growltiger.
Mistoffelees was SO COOL!! RIght when he jumped down from his rope he started dancing. His costume was really sparkly and it looked awesome. I wish the dance sequence had been more like the video; it didn't seem like he was really doing anything so much as pretending to. He did a pirouette for almost two minutes!! It was SO cute when he had brought Old D. back. He had his back on Old D. the whole time but he turned around when Old D. did to try and see him. He hesitated for a second but then he just ran at him and jumped into his arms. It was so cute!!
Of course Memory was just as it should have been: the star song of the show.
Addressing of Cats was cute.
Then it was over. :(
But it was just onto the credits!!
Everybody clapped hardest for Misto, Munk, Gus, Mungo & Rumple, Tugger, Demter, and of course Grizabella.
At the end of the credits, Bomba beckoned to Tugger with her finger. He looked pretty doubtful at first, but came over anyway. She shoved him on the ground and literally walked all over him! Then she exited the stage. She got a lot of applause for that.
AFTERWARDS
As soon as it was gone I dragged my mom along with me as fast as I could to try to find an usher. We couldn't find one for a while but when we did he was really nice and told us there was no way we'd be able to recognize the actors without there makeup. His suggestion was to stand by the stage door and yell "Who's a cat!?"
When we got to the stage door there were already a bunch of fans, many in costume, who had beaten us to it. Among them that I knew were Christa/Bomby TRC, Erikonil, Reeza, Molly, and Pansaar.
I talked to my mom for a few minutes about miscallaneous stuff. Then I was looking at one of the fans who was with one of her parents too and I realized I knew her from stage door pictures on her site, it was Reeza! So I went and asked her, in layman's terms, "Are you Reeza?" She responded "Indeed I am!" We talked about, what else, the show for a while, and introduced eachother's parents. Then everything kind of got quiet again.
It was like this for about 5 minutes before I told my mom, "OK. I'm going to go talk to them." I nodded towards the group of Cats fanatics that mostly consisted of ones in costume. My mom raised her eyebrows at me, because before I had tried to talk to them and they just looked at me. Not exactly with wildly joyous recongnition, either. I suppose that could be cause I didn't introduce myself... This time I did, and the general response was 'Oh, hi, yeah!" So I was able to wait in the rain with other cats fans. Basically I did that for about 30 minutes until somebody finally came out! It was David Blonn, the Pouncival of the show. Right away I could tell he was really nice. Everybody greeted him and Erikonil showed him her drawing, which was really nice. Then tour Mungojerrie (Bryce Bermingham) came out and he got an enthusiastic greeting too. Pouncival went back inside for a while. When he came out again a Nice Fan (stilldon't know her name) called him over for me, the thing I was too shy to do, and I handed him my drawing of the tour Misto and asked him to pass it on to McCree O'Kelley. He was really nice and even thanked me for the drawing :) Eventually tour Jennanydots (Julie Garnye) came out too. By the time they were all there I'd gotten all of their autographs! Then all of the rest of the fans had to leave so I did too. My mom and I walked back to the front of the Fox to wait for our ride. Guess who was waiting there too!!!!! Another tour member!! At first I thought it was just one but then I found it was two! Jellylorum and Tumblebrutus. I got both their autographs and congratulated them on their awesome performance. THen they left for a hotel across the street of the Fox before any more rabid fans attacked them at their whim.
After that the day was must like any ohter, except for tthe fact I kept looking at my autographs about every hour during it.
PICTURES
Christa/Bomby TRC
David Blonn (Pouncival) and... David Blonn!
Erikonil and David
David Blonn and his drawing again
OK here we go. From left to right, I don't know, I don't know, Pansarr(the one in the Mungo costume), Jennyanydots (Julie Garnye), me (right beside her haha!). On the bottom: Erikonil, I don't know.
you can figure it out,right?
On the left is Bryce Bermingham, Mungojerrie, and being caught off his guard is David Blonn, Pouncival.
All pictures are courtesy of the amazing photographic skills of Pansarr.
I highly recommend the Cats Tour, it is made up of amazing people with amazing skills.