Helen Baker was on as Jemima. Personally I preferred her to Lindsey Wise, she seemed more cat-like and more convincing as the character. Although I thought her voice was better than Lindsey’s, she still seemed a bit weak in Jemima’s high solos.
Julie Barnes as Bombalurina seemed to have improved from the last time I saw her. Her dance moves were executed accurately, and with conviction and she seemed more feline. However, I am still not too fond of her voice. I thought that in Macavity especially her voice sounded nasal and strained, and it was sung with a really harsh London accent. Saying that, I still enjoyed her performance.
Jacob Brent as Misto was fantastic again. He has the characterisation perfectly! His dancing was breathtaking and enthralling to watch. He also looked great in the costume- really feline! His singing was also impressive; a really deep, strong voice. I also liked his interaction with the other cats, especially Seb’s Alonzo: Awww! So cute!
Lynsey Britton as Rumpleteazer didn’t really capture the character for me. Her misbehaving cockney act seemed to forced and her accent was not right. I thought that her dance moves were alright, but she still seemed a bit uncertain and timid.
Julie Carlton as Victoria was sweet. She looked good in the costume- really cute and kittenish! Her leg lift wasn’t as impressive as Emma Kerslake’s, but it looked good. She had some nice moments of interaction with the other characters, but she didn’t really grab my attention (ahem…Jye!).
I love Adrian Edmeades! His Mungojerrie is really good, both cheeky and funny! He had improved immensely from the last time I saw him. He looked adorable in the costume, but the tank top was waaay too short and had SO much shoulder fluff- urgh! His dancing was great- a real pleasure to watch. He chose to do a more posh London accent, and his singing was great, it sounded perfect for the part. It was a lovely portrayal of the character.
Ross Finnie’s Skimble is SO good! I loved his interaction with the male kittens; letting them tease him and then suddenly having a big stress! He was great in his song. He put so much effort and energy into it, it really came alive and he clearly enjoyed himself! He had a really nice voice as well!
AWWWW! Jye Frasca as Carbucketty- too cute! He looked just adorable as Carbucketty! He had a knack of making you look at him, and when he knows you’re looking, he stares at you, and than goes mental trying to catch your attention if you look away! ??? and I call him the perfectly formed minature man (which he is)! His dancing was impeccable, the balletic parts with Misto are so amazing to watch. However, Stori’s Bill and Jye’s Carbucketty are so mischievous that Jye made Joe Ryan as Bill look like an angel (but more about that later)!
Chrissie Hammond’s Griz was amazing. Her voice was extremely beautiful and powerful, and her characterisation is very thoughtful and accurate to how I believe Grizabella to be. She captivated the audience during Memory with her faultless singing and stage presence. She was definitely the best Griz I’ve seen on stage.
Helen Harper’s Tantomile was good, but I thought she seemed to be the less impressive of the pair. I thought she’d done the make-up well- she looked very pretty and it really suited her.
Sarah Jane Honeywell was really cute as Etcetera. Her acrobatics were faultless and really impressive. She was also brilliant at the mad, kittenish bits with the RTT, very funny to watch!
Barbara King as Demeter had improved from when I first saw her. Her voice had improved especially well whilst playing Griz. However, I don’t really like her interpretation of the character of Demeter. She was really nasty to the kittens, hardly interacting with them, and when she did, she hissed at them. I also find that the way she plays Dem is a bit too sexy. She wasn’t maternal enough, and she was more sexy than Bombalurina, and personally I think it should be the other way round.
Rebecca Lock as Jellylorum was fantastic! Her voice is amazing, so beautiful to listen to. I found her excellent in Gus, and extremely impressive as Griddlebone- which was hilarious! She looked just how imagine Jellylorum to look, and her characterisation was perfect, the best I have seen.
Rebecca Louis seemed to have really improved as Electra. I didn’t like her before, but now, she really is more kittenish, and her interaction is more frequent and convincing. I stilll think she looks scary as Electra!
John Partridge as the RTT was incredible. He had an absolutely amazing, gorgeous voice. For me, he is the epitome of the RTT; absolutely perfect and I wouldn’t change anything! His interaction with the audience was hilarious, as was his interaction with the kittens in his song. He knows just how to make the audience laugh and his comic timing is spot on. Purrrfect!
Tom Paton was so much better than when I last saw him as Victor. He was really cute and kittenish, and really funny with Andrew as Admetus! He looked great in the costume- he also did swing make-up which really suited him. Sweet! (I have a weakness for the male kittens)!
Seb Rose… GORGEOUS Alonzo! His dancing and acrobatics were faultless as usual. His Rumpus Cat Jump was extremely high (according to him it was the highest ever)! I had lots of staring matches with him as well :) His Alonzo is very cheeky, sexy and loveable. Just one thing: does anyone know why he does his "Jellicle cats are black and white" line as a monotone? It sounds like he’s been drugged! Its so funny though!
Joe Ryan was Bill Bailey. Before the show, I convinced myself not to compare him to Stori (who’s my fave Bill). It was difficult because I really missed things that he did, and Joe Ryan wasn’t half as funny. I did like him though, but he was just too nice. I missed Stori’s Bill’s bad behaviour and sulks! He looked angelic compared to Jye! He did however have the sweetest smile and looked cute. But he seemed really thin and the unitard was really loose! Eeek!
Gareth Snook was great as usual. I particularly enjoy his Growltiger. He has a fantastic voice, really powerful! Rebecca’s Griddlebone and his Growltiger complimented each other very well. His evilness to the Pirates (e.g. kneeing Munk in the groin) was hilarious!
Kate Tydman was on as Cassandra, which was unusual. She wasn’t that brilliant to be honest, and I didn’t really watch her at all. However I still think she’s the best Rumpleteazer I’ve seen and she’s also great as Tantomile.
Oliver Tydman was really good. Despite looking a bit scary and intense in the Coricopat make-up, he was superb! His voice is lovely, definitely one of the strongest male voices in the show. His Ghengis is great, he does this lisping voice which is hilarious. He was great fun to watch!
Emma Woods was on as Jennyanydots. She looked a bit strange in the costume because she’s so small, but she was sweet and smiley throughout- perfect for Jenny. Her interaction with the other cats was very good, and her tap dancing was impressive.
Dave Willets was Old Deuteromy I have one main point to him- he should be punished for cruelty to Andrew and Stori! He’s so mean! His voice is a lot nicer than Mark McK’s though, softer and less booming and harsh. But I think that his portrayal of the character is waaaay to nasty. There was one bit where Andrew’s Admetus was fooling about, and Dave beckoned Andrew towards him gently, and then hit him around the head (to which Andrew threw himself over the edge of the tyre in a shocked and mournful fashion)!
Andrew Wright’s Admetus was hilarious! He was definitely the most kittenish Admetus I’ve seen! There was one part where her was kneeling next to a hole on the side of the stage, with a walkway off the stage obscuring his legs from our view. He suddenly threw his arms in the air, opened his eyes and mouth wide in a shocked expression and pretended to be sucked down! It was extremely funny! He also made me laugh at the very start when he came out of theis hole near us and made stupid faces until we laughed at him! A very cute Admetus!
