MR. MISTOFFELEES AND RUM TUM TUGGER PROPAGANDA! [ For @catboy-showdown ] ✨️
I didn't expect to have the energy to make very good propaganda, but considering how sucked into it I've gotten, I was thankfully wrong!
⚠️ Warning for a long post with gifs and FLASHING LIGHTS below the cut! ⚠️
Let's start with Mr. Misteffelees, since he's already up for votes!
His song and the poem it gets its lyrics from are SO much fun. Like, the way they adapt the traits of a cat into this distinct magician character is so good.
The poem treats him like a masterful magician and illusionist for being sneaky, for moving about and moving things about without notice.
"He is quiet, he is small, he is black / from the ears to the tip of his tail / he can creep through the narrowest crack / he can walk on the narrowest rail"
"He can play any trick with a cork / Or a spoon and a bit of fish paste / If you look for a knife or a fork / And you think it was merely misplaced / You have seen it one moment / And then it is gone / But you find it next week / Lying out on the lawn"
These are the attributes of a quiet, nimble, and all-around skillful little cat! But the poem takes these traits and compares them to that of a magician, which is then expanded on in the musical. Mistoffelees uses his abilities to rescue the Jellicle Cats' leader, Old Deuteronomy, after he is kidnapped by the villainous Macavity.
Aid from Mr. Mistoffelees is suggested by Rum Tum Tugger, who's quite popular amongst cats. He's a bit of a rockstar, a flirt with a big ego and a flamboyant persona, with the female cats fawning over him during his song.
Tugger is another great example of a cat of a cat! The poem is about a troublesome, indecisive cat who always wants the exact thing he doesn't have, then wants the other thing once he's got that. Who likes to cause trouble just for fun.
The musical uses these traits to personify him as an immature, prideful cat who loves to show off and get attention, living it up in the moment and having FUN! He's curious, he's indecisive, he is who he is, and nothing can be done about it!
"If you set me on a mouse then I only want a rat / If you set me on a rat then I'd rather chase a mouse / The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious cat / And there isn't any need for me to shout it / For he will do as he do do / And there's no doing anything abou-a-wow-t it / The Rum Tum Tugger is a curious beast / My disobliging ways are a matter of habit"
"If you offer me cream, then I sniff and sneer / For I only like what I find for myself / So you'll catch me in it right up to my ears / If you put it away on the larder shelf"
"The Rum Tum Tugger, doesn't care for a cuddle / But I'll leap upon your lap in the middle of your sewing / For there's nothing I enjoy like a horrible muddle"
Now I'd like to finish setting the stage (hah) for his support of Mistoffelees. In some productions, such as the 1998 film of the show, another cat named Quaxo remarks that Tugger is "a terrible bore." He is the only cat in the number to notably NOT sing Tugger's praises. Quaxo, in certain productions, Quaxo IS Mr. Mistoffelees! Mr. Mistoffelees is his stage persona.
This makes Tugger's suggestion to seek his help all the more interesting, as not only has Mistoffelees called him a bore, but the song Mr. Mistoffelees, Tugger leads the cats in singing Mr. Mistoffelees's praises. The only other cat who Tugger praises through solo portions of a song, aside from himself, is Old Deuteronomy, who all of the cats think highly of (though Tugger's solo in that song highlights a softer side to him that really gets me when I listen to it)
Due to Rum Tum Tugger's praise for Mistoffelees and other aspects of their dynamic, many fans of the show interpret the two of their dynamic as being very gay. The giant rainbow fabric circling around Tugger in the 1998 film highlights this so beautifully.
I believe this is something some actors who have played them have acknowledged and embraced, or at least one of them. I don't remember where I found a quote about that, so take this part with a grain of salt.
So yeah! That's my propaganda for two gay cats from Cats the Musical! This musical holds a very special place in my heart, as it's the musical that got me into musical theatre! I remember being little and being absolutely mesmerized by the show, and Tugger and Mistoffelees's numbers were big highlights even then. Skimbleshanks the Railway cat was another, and it's my father's favorite number, so I plan to create propaganda for him too if I have the time and energy!
I doubt these three will make it far given who they're up against, but if I can get even one person to give Cats a chance (even if you don't end up liking it), I'll take it!!
For I will do as I do do, and there's no doing anything abou-a-wow-a-wow-t it! 🐈 ✨️ 🐈⬛️
(P.S.: If you've only seen the 2019 versions of these numbers, I HIGHLY suggest the 1998 versions! They're far better from what I've seen, especially Mr. Mistoffelees. But PLEASE be warned that there's a lot of flashing lights!)
