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Forget everything you thought you knew about Cats. No, not the music! The music remains. But everything else has been improved in the off-Broadway event of the summer, Cats: The Jellicle Ballcurrently running at the shiny new Perelman Arts Center in the shadow of One World Trade.
Never before has a musical been in such dire need of reinvention as Cats. The show was a huge hit on Broadway during its first record-breaking season from 1982 to 2000, but it suffered the fate of so many successful musicals by becoming a profoundly uncool punchline. Because of both the abstract premise of magical singing cats and the repugnant CGI that made up its film fiasco, Cats was a decaying relic of a bygone era. The Jellicle Ballis, however, a refreshing change and presents the fantastic songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber without ever being swallowed up by the ridiculousness of the production.
This new revision excludes cats from Catsin the literal sense, and without changing the text, the Jellicles are reinterpreted as a house in the New York ballroom scene. This Cats is explicitly queer, much more stylish, and actually rooted in something real. It becomes a story about a community throwing a party with religious significance—one to which the audience is actively invited—and while the enthusiasm of the entire production would probably make it a success even if the underlying work was merely good, the dance scenes coupled with Webber’s classics are a nonstop sugar rush. Even for the most staunch Cats Haters, the fun should be irresistible.
Part of the absurdity of Cats is that even in the middle of the second act, new cats keep popping up for a moment to sing a song about what kind of cat they are. But by setting the show in a ballroom performance, the rotation of solos makes a lot more sense. The show never loses momentum, but particular highlights include Emma Sofia as Skimbleshanks, a railroad cat who makes the sexiest advertisement for the MTA you’ve ever seen, and Robert “Silk” Mason as Mr. Mistoffelees, an adorable skyscraper cat who wins everyone’s heart.
78-year-old André De Shields as Old Deuteronomy, the venerable leader of the Jellicles who runs the party, keeps the show grounded and makes it more than just exciting entertainment. De Shields’ presence, along with explicit references to the ballroom’s history and the emotional power of “Memory,” recall a very different time for queer people in New York City – before PrEP was introduced. mandatory and before Paris is burning was a classic and before straight people made reservations for drag brunch. Not only was it a blast, it helped me realize how much I take for granted and how much I owe to those who came and went before me. The original Cats somehow fell out of a coconut tree – it’s just a joke. But by anchoring these songs in a certain perspective, it becomes more than just a blockbuster. It’s part of the community it’s made for.
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