CATS WAS MEMORABLE!

Being a young theatre practitioner, I know there are some plays I must watch b4 I die. And I don't mean watching it on film or some recordings. I mean watching it live before my very eyes. These plays include Shakespeare's work (As you Like It, A Midsummer's Night Dream, Much Ado About Nothing, The Tempest, Romeo & Juliet), Andrew Llyod Webber's compositions (Sunset Boulevard, The Phantom Of The Opera, Evita), Stephen Sondheim's musicals (Westside Story, Into The Woods, Sweeney Todd) and my gosh the list goes on and on and on...argh...!

Last Friday, I was really fortunate to be able to catch Cats at The Esplanade Theatre in Singapore. Boy, that place was pulsing with life, situated in a posh shopping centre next to the marina...urgh!

The moment I stepped into the theatre, I was already captivated by the glowing set which is designed to look like a dumpster (piak). Then I realized they had red and yellow lightbulbs running from stage all the way to the stalls and balconies all over. I was ready for something spectacular and I was definitely ready to be bombed left, right, back, centre!

The show started exactly on time, 8pm (something you rarely experience here in K.L!) and we were lured onto the stage with the opening number (Jellicle Cats, Jellicle Ball). I felt it was weird to have this ufo lighting thingamagic descending on stage and then ascending back up during the prelude!

Once this particular cat appeared, the rest was history as we were bombarded by crazy-ass gymnastic dance routines that is uniquely catlike, powerful monologues/testimonies that are delivered through song numbers and cats appearing all over the auditorium. The entire theatre became the cat's playground.

To be honest, I didn't really get what was happening throughout Act 1 as I wasn't used to a musical without a clear narrative. I was certain Cats was not just about the dance, make-up and costume. I knew it was larger than that. So during intermission, I began to digest what I heard rather than what I saw and certain things begin to make some sense. But it was during Act 2 I finally got a revelation of the entire production and that really touched my heart. Even the set made loads of sense to me and bam...the song Memory wasn't just a melodic song to my ears, but a epilogue to the message of the musical. And yes, Cat's are very much just like you... and me.

It's a story about these various individuals (err, I mean cats) that once lived a very happy and splendid lives. They've lost that zest, that passion which is now gone and they are waiting to be reborn into a new life, where they can experience that glory once again. The cats that we see on stage are all broken by the adversities of life. Unfortunately, only ONE cat is granted that gift during the Jellicle Ball (when the moon is full). Start humming, Memory, all alone in the moonlight... So from Act 1-Act 2, we see these various cats appearing, singing the story of their lives to us under the full moon (slashed by sharp clouds).

Cats will definitely stay in my memory for the longest time. Is a heart-warming musical that reminds me of the happy times and that if we know the meaning of happiness, then a new day will arise!

Adrian out!