Cats is a sung-through musical with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It is based on the 1939 poetry collection Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot. The musical tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make the "Jellicle choice" by deciding which cat will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life. As of 2022, Cats remains the fifth-longest-running Broadway show and the seventh-longest-running West End show.
Betty Buckley is an American actress and singer. Buckley is the winner of a Tony Award, and was nominated for two Daytime Emmy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and an Olivier Award. In 2012, she was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame.
Valentine Ruth Henshall, known professionally as Ruthie Henshall, is an English actress, singer and dancer, known for her work in musical theatre. She began her professional stage career in 1986, before making her West End debut in Cats in 1987. A five-time Olivier Award nominee, she won the 1995 Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Amalia Balash in the London revival of She Loves Me (1994).
Grizabella the Glamour Cat is a main character in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Cats. Lonely and decrepit, Grizabella seeks acceptance from the other Jellicle cats but is initially ostracised. She sings the most famous song from the musical, "Memory".
Old Deuteronomy is a character in T. S. Eliot's 1939 Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and its 1981 musical adaptation, Cats. He is a wise and beloved elderly cat, further serving as the Jellicle patriarch in the musical. The role of Old Deuteronomy originated by Brian Blessed in the West End in 1981, and by Ken Page on Broadway in 1982. Judi Dench plays Old Deuteronomy in the 2019 film adaptation.
"Memory" is a show tune composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Trevor Nunn based on poems by T. S. Eliot. It was written for the 1981 musical Cats, where it is sung primarily by the character Grizabella as a melancholic remembrance of her glamorous past and as a plea for acceptance. "Memory" is the climax of the musical and by far its best-known song, having achieved mainstream success outside of the musical. According to musicologist Jessica Sternfeld, writing in 2006, it is "by some estimations the most successful song ever from a musical."
Mr. Mistoffelees is a character in T. S. Eliot's 1939 poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats and its 1981 musical adaptation, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats. Mistoffelees is a young black-and-white tuxedo cat with magical powers that he cannot yet fully control. He is a featured dancer and his signature move is the "Conjuring Turn", consisting of 24 consecutive fouettés en tournant. His chorus identity is sometimes named Quaxo.
Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer are fictional characters in T. S. Eliot's 1939 poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. The Jellicle cat duo are mischievous petty thieves who often cause trouble for their human family. Although originally published as part of a collection, the poem "Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer" was published as a standalone book by Faber and Faber in 2018.
Laurie Hope Beechman was an American actress and singer, known for her work in Broadway musicals. She also had a career as a cabaret performer and recording artist. After her death, the West Bank Cafe Downstairs Theater Bar in New York was renamed the Laurie Beechman Theatre.
Jennyanydots is a fictional character from T. S. Eliot's 1939 poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. She is also a principal character in the 1981 Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Cats, which is based on Eliot's work. Jennyanydots is a seemingly lazy Jellicle cat who sits around all day, but at night, she becomes very active as she rules the mice and cockroaches, forcing them to undertake helpful functions and creative projects to curb their naturally destructive habits.
Cats is a 1998 direct-to-video musical film based on the 1981 stage musical of the same name by Andrew Lloyd Webber, itself based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats (1939) by T. S. Eliot. Lloyd Webber oversaw orchestration and called on Gillian Lynne, the show's original choreographer, to train the cast members. David Mallet served as the director of this production.
Jemima is a principal character in the musical Cats, written by Andrew Lloyd Webber based on the poetry of T. S. Eliot. The youngest member of the Jellicle cats, she is idealistic and very accepting of others. She becomes the first cat to accept the outcast Grizabella back into the tribe.
Jellylorum is a principal character in the musical Cats. One of the Jellicle cats, she is usually portrayed as a motherly caretaker and is principally a vocalist. The musical is based on the 1939 collection of poems by T. S. Eliot from Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, and Jellylorum is named after the poet's own cat.
Demeter is a main character in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Cats. The musical is an adaptation of T. S. Eliot's 1939 poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, and the character's name is given in the poem "The Naming of Cats". Demeter is a very troubled and skittish female Jellicle cat. The role was originated by Sharon Lee-Hill in the West End in 1981, and by Wendy Edmead on Broadway in 1982. Daniela Norman played this role in the 2019 film adaptation.
Bombalurina is a principal character in the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Cats. The musical is an adaptation of T. S. Eliot's 1939 poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, and the character's name is given in the poem "The Naming of Cats". Bombalurina is a flirtatious, confident female and mischievous cat with a distinct red coat. The role was originated by Geraldine Gardner in the West End in 1981, and by Donna King on Broadway in 1982. In the 2019 film adaptation she is played by Taylor Swift.
Jellicle cats are a fictional type of feline from T. S. Eliot's 1939 light poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats.
Celina Consuela Gabriella Carvajal, known professionally as Lena Hall, is an American actress and singer. She originated the role of Nicola in the Broadway musical Kinky Boots and won the Tony Award for her performance as Yitzhak in the 2014 revival of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, which also earned her a Grammy nomination for the musical's official album. She made history by becoming the first person to play both Hedwig and Yitzhak in the same production during the national tour of the musical in 2016. Her other Broadway credits include Cats, 42nd Street, Dracula, the Musical and Tarzan, the Musical. Hall has also starred in Off-Broadway productions such as Radiant Baby, Bedbugs!!!, Rooms: A Rock Romance, The Toxic Avenger, Prometheus Bound, Chix6, Little Shop of Horrors, and the 2017 original play How to Transcend a Happy Marriage.
Cats is a 2019 musical fantasy film based on the 1981 stage musical of the same name by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which in turn was based on the 1939 poetry collection Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot. The film was directed by Tom Hooper, in his second feature musical following Les Misérables (2012), from a screenplay by Lee Hall and Hooper. It features an ensemble cast, including James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Taylor Swift, Rebel Wilson, and Francesca Hayward in her film debut.
Francesca Hayward is a Kenyan-born British ballet dancer and actress. She is a principal dancer in the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden in London. In 2019, she starred as Victoria the White Cat in the musical film Cats, an adaptation of the stage musical of the same name.
Georgina Pazcoguin is an American ballerina. She is a soloist with the New York City Ballet, and is known for challenging racism in ballet, and for performing on Broadway.
