This was my first time seeing CATS in months, as I'd been really busy with college, and I hadn't seen the new cast so I was really looking forward to it! I'm going to write about each performer individually because I find it easier to recall things that way. Just for the record, ??? and I were sitting on the front row of the moving platform in A15 and A16. Unfortuanately, I was sitting next to some rather rude people in A13 and A14, who talked throughout the first half, refused to but their bags under their seats when the usher told them too, so Rumpleteazer had to stumble over them, and then they didn't even stay for the second half. Grrrr.... (rant over!)
Swings on today were Andrew Wright as Victor (and Carbucketty, but I'll explain later!), Stori James as Carbucketty (for all of the first half and some of the second), Jye Frasca as Mistofelees, Joe Ryan as Coricopat and Carl Sanderson as Gus/Bustopher.
Caroline Bagnall - Jemima: I was really impressed my her Jemima. In my own opinion, I prefererred her voice over Lindsay Wise's as it seemed stronger on the high notes. She looked very sweet as Jemima, and danced fantastically. She also interacted really sweetly with the other kittens, especially Victoria and Etcetera.
Lynsey Britton - Rumpleteazer: She seems to have really improved as Rumpleteazer since I last saw her, and her and Adrian (Mungo) worked very well together. Her voice seemed stronger, and she seemed more confident in the role. She was really sweet when she came and sat on the floor in front of us in Macavity, grinned really sweetly at ??? and I, and was really cute and funny. Adrian swatted her when she was paying us attention, and she responded with a loud hiss!
Julie Carlton - Electra: She was good as usual. To be quite honest, I didn't really watch her, as she was not really on our side of the stage. Again, like Caroline Bagnall (Jemima), her interaction with the other kittens was sweet!
Adrian Edmeades - Mungojerrie: A lovely Mungojerrie, and he works very well with Lynsey (Rumple). He was completely hyperactive in the Macavity fight, bouncing up and down on the ramp, hissing, and swashing his tail about! He made a very rude Pollicle, who made farting sounds at the Pekes, which I always seem to notice!
Susie Fenwick - Jennyanydots: A lovely, funny, sweet Jenny. She looked great as Jenny, and I really liked her make-up, it suited her face well. She commanded the cockroaches with a very powerful singing voice, and her tap-dancing was impeccable! Also, her mock outrage when she was poked in the backside by Stori James as Carbuckety with a fork was hilarious! I also thought that she was a wonderful part of a very strong trio in Bustopher Jones.
Ross Finnie - Skimbleshanks: Ross is SO the best Skimble ever! He is so brilliant in his song, and seems to really throw himself into the role, and it is absolutely hilarious to watch! His interaction with Bill Bailey and Carbucketty is really funny as he sort of 'polices' them into behaving! His make up is always flawless, and he really suits it and the costume.
Robert Foley - Bill Bailey: A very sweet Bill Bailey! He actually really reminds me of Joe Ryan in the role, I think he looks quite like him in the make up and they seem to have quite similar figures. He wasn't bratty enough for me though! (ahem..Stori!) Obviously that is just his was of interpreting the character, and I think it does work really well for him, he looks really cute.
Jye Frasca - Mistoffelees: OH MY GOODNESS!!! AMAZING PERFORMANCE!!! He is the best Misto I have ever seen, and dare I say it (!), I prefer him to Jacob. He was really into the role, and his outstanding dancing made him mesmerising to watch. I was thoroughly impressed! Misto has never been one of my favourite characters, and I have never really paid that much attention to him, but Jye was so intensely watchable, and SO entertaining. He sang the Invitiation beautifully, and this part gave him the chance to let his lovely voice be heard. Him and Stori's dancing in the Jellicle ball was perfect, and they seemed totally in tune with each other. In Misto's solo dance, his turns were so fast and so great to watch. His performance is one of the best performances I have ever seen in Cats. I can't put it into words!
Tiffany Graves - Cassandra: Like Electra, I didn't watch her that much as she wasn't over our side of the stage, and there was just so much to take in! She did look good as Cassandra, and she seemed to have a nice voice.
Chrissie Hammond - Grizabella: A fantastic Griz. She sings with such convincing emotion in Memory, and she is a pleasure to listen to. I really like her Grizabella make-up, she does it really well, and not too over-the-top. She has fantastic stage presence, and really commands the attention of the audience.
Helen Harper - Tantomile: Her and Joe as Coricopat looked really good together, and they moved very well together. I think Helen really suits the part of Tantomile, and she looks really great in the make-up. She bullied Carbucketty (Stori), and hissed and scratched at him, until he finally got his revenge in The Pekes and the Pollicles, and kicked her with the shoe boxes, and she reacted in a really amusing way!
Junix Inocian - Old Deuteronomy: Yey! Finally a kind Deuteronomy after Dave Willets' evil and unkind terrorising of innocent kittens! He looked nice and friendly, and had a soft, gentle voice which was really pleasant to listen to. He had some good facial expressions too, especially in the Pekes and the Pollices, which was very funny. I think he suits the part very well.
Alexis Owen Hobbs - Bombalurina: Wow! What a great Bombalurina! Although I did like Julie Barnes, I prefer Alexis' interpretation. She looked fantastic as the red queen, and danced brilliantly. Her voice was outstanding, and it really complemented Barbara's in Macavity. She was great to watch; really entertaining, especially in songs like Bustopher Jones, Macavity and The Rum Tum Tugger. I was so impressed with her, and I could seriously compare her with Rosemarie Ford!
Sarah Jane Honeywell - Etcetera: Sarah makes a lovely, sweet and totally hyperactive kitten! She was really fun to watch, and played the part just how I imagine it. She danced flawlessly, and pulled some really sweet faces. Cute!
Stori James - Carbucketty: CCUUUUUUUUUTTTTEEE!!! Sorry I'll try not to go over the top even though he is my favourite Cats performer ever! Storge rules! This was the first time I had seen him as Carbucketty, and we were lucky to see him as he was swung on at the last minute. What can I say?! He's just so brilliant at the kitten roles, and steals the show for me! He was adorable as first Pollicle, doing some very loud high-pitched barks, and generally being adorable! He danced around in the shoe-boxes until he was hit by one of the bigger cats, to which he responded with a squeaky "Ouch!"! He was also great as a bug, but was rather attached to his glove, and it remained in his mouth for most of the song! He always seems to be chewing something as a kitten! Unfortunately it wasn't such a good show for Stori as he had to go off in the second half. ??? and I didn't really know what was wrong until we spoke to Andrew afterwards. It turned out that Stori had injured himself in the Jellicle Ball, which would explain why he ran off at the end instead of scratching Griz like Carbucketty usually does. He was on and off in the second half, but left finally just after Misto's song. Poor guy :-( Andrew did a great job of covering both roles, and took over all of Stori's important bits.
Chris Jarvis - Alonzo/Rumpus Cat: Fantastic Alonzo! *wibble* ;-) He plays him in a very sexy way; lots of sideways glances and purrs! Also just love the way he sings 'Jellicle Cats are black and white" (??? you know what I mean)! He looked perfect in the costume, and his make up was very precisely done. He's also got a gorgeous voice, it really suits Alonzo, and he's a great dancer; really great to watch! *sigh* Oh and ???...thighs ;-)
Barbara King - Demeter: She has really improved since I last saw her. She was great in Grizabella the Glamour Cat, and her and Alexis make a great pair. I really like her make-up too, it suits her face very well. She seemed to have become less mean as Demeter, and a bit more motherly, which is personally how I see the character.
Kenny Linden - Admetus/Macavity: A great Admetus. He scared the people in A17 and A18 when he popped out of the hole, and then stared at the row, which was funny and scary at the same time! He's a great Macavity, very evil and huge! Eek! He bounced around on the matress with Andrew as Victor which was cute!
John Partridge - Rum Tum Tugger: A great RTT as always, with an excellent voice that really suited the role. It seems that the part is made for him! There was an 'interesting' exchange on the car boot between him and Joe (Cori) too, which was funny.
Jack Rebaldi - Munkustrap: What an amazing Munk! He did the Naming so well, and he really added his own style to it, which was very good. His voice throughout the show was flawless, and he had fantastic stge presence, which was essential for the character. He looked brilliant in the costume, and had done his make-up in a really nice way which suited his face. I was so impressed with his characterisation, which is really how I imagine Munkustrap to be. He remained in character and convincing throughout the show. He also seemed to enjoy whacking Stori on the head in the Pekes and the Pollicles when he got the barks wrong, and also later on when Storge was on all-fours! Awwwww! :-)
Joe Ryan - Coricopat: Him and Helen as Tantomile worked really well together, and it helped that they were a similar size. Joe had a nice voice which projected really well. It was strange to see him in an 'adult' role after Bill Bailey! He gave us lots of sweet grins too, and stared at us whilst singing 'I belive it is Old Deuteronomy'. A friendly Coricopat for once!
Carl Sanderson - Gus/Bustopher Jones: He was a hilarious Bustopher, making little noises throughout the song, which was really funny. He was great with the kittens too, smaking Etcetra with the spoon! His Growltiger was brilliant, both funny and scary! His voice in all three roles was excellent and well varied; a very strong performer and very good understudy for the part.
Louisa Shaw - Jellylorum: I really liked her as Jelly. I think I slightly preferred Rebecca Lock's voice, but it just seemed a slightly different style of singing. In Gus, she made some great facial expressions, and characterised it really nicely. Carl Sanderson and her made a hilarious Growltiger and Griddlebone, and I really enjoyed their song.
Sorrel Thomas - Victoria: The Invitation was done flawlessly, and it looked very good with Jye as Misto. I don't particularly like her make up; she put lots of pink make up on her jawline, and did very thick eyebrows, which didn't really compliment her elfin features. Despite that, she gave a good performance.
Andrew Wright - Victor: Brillaint Victor, he was clearly having a lot of fun in the role. He had a close encounter with the hat in Bustopher Jones, and stood in the line looking a bit dazed afterwards! He was so hilarious to watch as always, just don't mention winkles or shrimps! ;-) A certain Victor seems to have an inferiority complex! He did a magnificent job of covering for Stori when he had to go off. Howver, in Growltiger's Last Stand, Victor was absent from the stage until right just before his solo line, much to the worry of the other pirates. He lept over the car boot just before just in time to save the day! All will be explained in a minute!
The Stage Door: We were greeted after the show by many of the cast members, which was really nice. Adrian came out and had a very brief chat. When we said how much we had enjoyed the show, he said "You two seemed to be the only ones enjoying it!". It was a bit of a lousy audience, you see. ??? even was "shushed" by the woman next to her for cheering in the encores! Jye was very tired after having played Misto, and was pleased when we told him he was the best Misto we'd seen (his eyes went all wide and he looked surprised!). He's very modest! When Chris Jarvis came out, he thought that he was alone in the street, and was singing loudly to himself. When he saw us, he looked very embarassed and stopped immediately! He said hi and asked if we'd enjoyed the show. He was very polite and sweet. Andrew was really kind when we spoke to him. I commented that he was playing Carbucketty and Victor, and he explained how he was "Victor with an identity crisis"! He was kind enough to tell us what was wrong with Stori too. When we asked why he was so late on as a pirate, we thought it was something to do with him covering for Stori as Carbucketty. However, he explained that he had some difficulty in changing into his pirate costume. Without the light of a torch, Andrew had put his leg into an arm hole! He was apparently very confused! (Maybe he thought he was trying to put on Jye's pirate costume)! Finally, Barbara said hi to us as we were on the way to Holborn station.
