Musicals When You're Quarantined.....

"Cats," the musical, rather than the movie-musical, will air this weekend. To get prepared:

*The original Broadway production of "Cats" had an iconic ad campaign: two cat-eyes, and instead of pupils, you see the silhouettes of Broadway human-cat dancers. No one really knew what the show was about, including the writers of the show, so the ad people chose a suitably mystifying slogan: "Now and Forever." Worked like a charm.

*"Cats" was a strange moment in ALW's career. He had parted ways with Tim Rice; he and Rice had written some fairly conventional musicals.... "Evita," for example, and "Joseph." "Cats" is not a conventional musical. It's not in the tradition of Richard Rodgers. It's more like "Hair" and "Company," with several vignettes, and the skinniest little coat-hanger of a plot....Blink, and you'll miss the story.

*We can also understand "Cats" as a new version of "A Chorus Line." But there's a problem here. In "A Chorus Line," all the people are competing to be cast in a Broadway show (makes sense). But, in "Cats," the cats seem to compete to have a chance to die and go to heaven. But several of the cats seem robust and happy. Why would these cats want to die? This is never explained.

*Mainly, people watched "Cats" to see Tony-winner Betty Buckley chew scenery--and the version we're getting Friday has a worthy competitor for Buckley, Elaine Paige. "Memory" doesn't actually use words from the "Cats" poems, but instead it gathers some scraps from other poetry, and it throws in some high notes, and that's that.

Are you blind when you're born? Can you see in the dark?

To Friday! To "Cats"--!

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