hellooo i’m verdi and i’m a big fan of cats the musical. i’m starting this blog so i can talk about cats and share my ideas.
i love this musical with a PASSION because it’s fun and always manages to bring a smile to my face, even when i’m feeling down. i love the characters, especially the kittens, and i like making up a ton of ideas about all of them. i also love it because i used to do dance and when they dance it resonates with me on such a spiritual level that i can’t explain (i’ve watched the jellicle ball an ungodly amount of times).
my main ships are alonzostrap and tumbletoria, but i also ship demelurina and tuggoffelees. my favourite characters are alonzo, tumblebrutus, george, cassandra, victoria and jemima, but really i love all of them. i consider the 1998 film the definitive version so i’ll mostly be referring to that. i’m also an artist and all of the drawings you see are mine unless i credit others.
been obsessed with “promise items” especially in fiction. e.g. in real life we have promise rings, in palia there’s romance pins, in ninjago there’s the yin-yang medallion… ahhh they’re so cute and makes my heart so happy 🥲🥲💖💖
if cats had a promise item what do you think it would be? maybe they wear a glove or some kind of other accessory like on their neck or tail?
maybe some of the collars that the cats wear symbolise commitment, for example demeter and bombalurina wear collars, and perhaps it means they’re promised to each other!
in honour of may 11th, the day that cats the musical premiered, i have sewed these two lovely cat plushes of victoria and tumblebrutus using socks
if you want to make some as well, i followed this tutorial, and crocheted the tails for the braided effect. i used regular markers for the colouring but if you’ve got fabric markers you should do it better than me 😅 also i didn’t have the materials and was too lazy to make their collars so shhhh
i’m planning to wear them on my shoulders when i go to see cats live for the first time in june! ahhh so excited 😸
i have been so eager to make this post because honestly? i don’t talk about the queens as much as the toms, which is way less than they deserve. also i really wanted to wait until i could give them some GOOD ideas. originally i was gonna make etcetera a “culinary” cat but that’s BORING and she deserves a better role >:(
i struggled with them a lot because they don’t have much canon at all, largely due to the fact that they weren’t cats that t.s. eliot created, they don’t sing many lines in the show, and i couldn’t draw any inspiration from their ‘98 actors either. all we have is their personalities, so i had to dig a bit deeper in terms of cats production lore and stuff.
these two have been sitting at the back of my mind for too long but no longer!! i finally have some fun ideas for them so let’s dive in!
etcetera :
inspired by broadway cats where “mungojerrie and rumpleteazer” was reimagined as a puppet show and etcetera doubled as teazer, etcetera is a puppeteer. she’s interested in theatre and she loves to show her puppet shows to jellylorum because of jelly’s theatre background. she even tried to recreate “growltiger’s last stand” once (jelly was super impressed).
now, i know there’s a headcanon where electra is a magic cat like misto, cori and tanto, but consider: etcetera is also a magic cat! her magic is more subtle though, as her only main power is flying, which is inspired by her trapeze role in the opening number. this makes her even harder to look after because she gets so hyperactive that she ends up getting zoomies in the AIR.
she learnt to craft puppets and dolls by herself using her magic, and she’s trying to learn how to conjure them out of thin air. she can also use her powers to manipulate her puppets and do ventriloquy, which allows her to do a wide range of eccentric voices and movements.
electra :
electra is a playwright who helps etcetera write her puppet shows. this is inspired by her line in the opening number “familiar with candle, with book and with bell?” because “bell, book and candle” is an actual play. (also i realised that they say “familiar” bc the cat was the witch’s familiar! love a good wordplay)
electra idolises pyewacket from “bell, book and candle” and she has probably watched that play/movie as many times as i’ve watched cats. sometimes she tries to emulate him.
i also like the idea that electra is a magic cat, but she has yet to discover her powers or find a witch or wizard to attend to. if we had to guess, she could have song or voice magic (like sirens for example), and that’s why she doesn’t sing much in the show, cuz her magic voice hasn’t fully developed yet. this is inspired by the fact that electra was originally meant to have a much more prominent singing role, i.e. in the gumbie trio and in bustopher jones.
both :
they are besties OF COURSE, that goes without saying.
they’re both close friends of coricopat and tantomile because of their connections to magic (and also partly inspired by the broadway puppet show, where cori doubled as mungo just like cettie doubled as teazer).
etcetera’s favourite thing to do with the twins is to go flying with them on their broomstick, while electra is very studious and loves it when they teach her about brewing potions and casting spells.
they’re really living out every girl’s magical powers fantasy </3
happy jellicle valentine’s day!! i feed thee, starved tumbletoria shippers (including myself 😄). but i tell you once, and once again: THIS SHIP DESERVES MORE LOVE 🔪🔪🔪🔪🔪
random but AUGHHH tumbletoria has got to be one of the prettiest ship names ever 😩💗💗
what!!! am i finally making an alonzostrap post for once??? no freakin way…
this is my first post about them so it seems like i don’t ship them a lot, but ohohhh, i ship them a lot.
the fact that alonzo is meant to be an unsure cat, who hides his insecurities by putting up a front and acting vain and overconfident, is part of what made him my all-time favourite cat in the show. and munkustrap, especially gruberstrap, just has this really safe and soothing aura to him. like whenever michael gruber sings, it just feels like a big brother comforting you. their complimentary personalities combined with their close relationship and BOOM it’s one of my (two) favourite ships.
i have this idea that alonzo is actually really, like really terrified of lightning and thunderstorms and electricity and stuff (it’s why mistoffelees only uses lightning powers subtly around alonzo). no one is really sure why…. maybe he witnessed his mom get electrocuted or something and that’s how he was orphaned? maybe it’s just an irrational fear? either way, he obviously hates his phobia and doesn’t want anyone to know.
and he’s even more scared of macavity because… yk.
the whole ⚡️⚡️ thing. (and that’s why he was hesitant to hands-on fight macavity only until munkustrap was badly hurt. alonzo my man you are so brave for standing up to him like that <3 even tho u got ur ass kicked)
a little story-time based on this idea: when alonzo was still a stray who wasn’t part of the tribe yet, he took shelter under a trashed bench in the junkyard during a heavy thunderstorm. munkustrap, who had met alonzo but never managed to gain his trust, was worried about him. he knew where alonzo would be, so he led his owners there (much to their confusion at first), and they found him curled up and terrified out of his wits. they gladly took him in and dried him up.
although quite startled and angry at first, alonzo eventually calmed down and warmed up to them with munkustrap’s insistent comfort. they cuddled all night long in a peaceful slumber, with munk’s long fluffy fur as alonzo’s blanket. munkustrap slept quite well that night in satisfaction that he finally got alonzo to let his guard down. and for once in his life, alonzo didn’t flinch or shudder every time he heard the sound of booming thunder.
after that, munkustrap’s owners helped repurpose the old bench to turn it into a comfortable den for the two cats.
URRRHHHHH THEY’RE IN LOVE 😩😩💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗
GUYS THE FACT THAT BEFORE “THE OLD GUMBIE CAT”, ALL THE CATS ARE THE ONES TO GO UP TO MUNK AND GREET HIM, BUT ALONZO IS THE ONLY ONE THAT MUNK GOES TO INSTEAD.
if anyone ever feels worried about trying something new, just remember that george was hesitant to join bombalurina’s section in the jellicle ball, even though he wanted to. but with a bit of encouragement from tugger he went for it and ended up having a good time.
george, i hope you know you are an inspiration.
it’s such a little detail and george is such a minor character but they cared enough to put it in. and it makes sense because george is a shy kitten and bomba’s section is full of energy and the centre of attention, so naturally he’d be nervous about stepping out of his comfort zone. AND it shows that tugger cares so much about the little ones that he’d understand how george was feeling, and sling his arm around him like “you got this”.
admittedly, i watch act 1 of cats wayyyyyy more than act 2. i’m not sure why, but it means i listen to “mr mistoffelees” a lot less, so it kinda slipped my mind that… rum tum tugger sings “mr mistoffelees”… 😬 but seriously watching and listening to it after a while of detox made me, weirdly, appreciate tugger’s character so much more than before.
if you don’t think tugger is a very complex character or someone worth delving into, let me offer this: we talk about john partridge being THE tugger, that he’s yet to have been surpassed or lived up to, and it’s true, but from what i’ve seen, i don’t think us fans get him quite right either. (not anyone specifically, just in a general sense.) and from what i’ve heard, other productions are great, but there’s just nothing quite like his 1998 film portrayal. i don’t just mean the swagger, but also the gravitas that he gives off. it was really lightning in a bottle. that’s how difficult it is to get his character truly right. (such is the case for a lot of cats in my opinion, but i’m being picky.)
(p.s. i meant this as in “it’s insanely difficult to capture john partridge’s essence”.)
…… yes, i know tugger is meant to be vain and rebellious and a sexy, indecisive flirt, and i do realise that the three words are just “in general” to help actors perform better, BUT, you cannot tell me that this description doesn’t water him down to a puddle :
his three words are apparently “vain, perverse, inconsequent”. “vain”? you mean the one whose first instinct was to call upon someone else more competent to help when old deut was in danger? the one who pleaded for the jellicles to listen to him, and gladly gave reasoning while hyping up misto, instead of just saying trust me bro? the one who is clearly extremely grateful and proud to be old deut’s son? and “perverse” is only true if they mean “contrary”. otherwise, his whole song shows him rejecting all the hot girls who all want him. “inconsequent”? firstly, i’m pretty sure that they’re using this word wrong. second, if they mean “not caring about consequences”, then tell that to the cat who stopped his entire party instantly just to alert the tribe of grizabella’s appearance. (and he clearly looks very disappointed when nobody liked his bagpipes gag!)
tugger is attractive, admired by many, influential, high-status and charismatic. yet, he only ever uses his prominence to do what’s best for the jellicles or what would make them happy, both individually and as a whole. in misto’s number, he steps up completely soberly when the jellicles need him the most. he hypes up misto because he knows his influence will make the cats believe in him. he gives the cats some much needed levity during times of crisis. he entertains etcetera, his biggest fan, like a singer inviting a child on stage and it shows that he cares.
i wanna talk about tugger’s design as well in terms of his character. tugger’s presence is the perfect balance of cool and warm. he is stylish and impressive, a self-assured and level-headed cat with an assertive aura, who easily keeps his composure, but at the same time, he’s inviting and open, a dutiful and shrewd cat with an incredible sense of humour, who is able to lift the hearts of those around him. this is reflected in his design, as his top half has a huge fluffy mane, but the rest of him is sleek black, yet done in a way that’s complimentary and not conflicting.
beneath the show-off, the swagger, and the sex appeal, he’s a mellow and mature tom cat who just loves to put on a good show and give the crowd exactly what they want. he’s just as serious and responsible and caring and full of love for his tribe as munkustrap is, while still being able to retain his thrilling and unruly side (which somehow makes him seem even more responsible, since he has the capacity to balance levity and soberness to the fullest extent).
people try to give him sad backstories or make him seem softer and that’s fine, but it’s a rare thing that we get such an ineffably complex and nuanced character without needing things like a drastic arc or sympathetic traits. through tugger, i’ve gained a newfound admiration for this sort of adamantine character, and this qualia of his shines through, however subtly, in every number he’s in.
i did my best, but my words probably don’t do him justice either. maybe during your next watch of cats, try to search for this feeling!
(and i think, in this way, he really embodies rock music so well. so fun and exciting and rebellious, but still able to sound so classic, solemn and heavy.)
so i was listening to one direction and i realised that their song “hey angel” basically sums up how i feel about phyllida crowley smith and her as victoria, so here’s a collage of phylltoria :
her beauty is ineffable. she is the heaviside layer incarnate. she is the epitome of mystical divinity. she shines brighter than the jellicle moon. she is THE victoria.
previous post here, and the jellicle ball section names here. and also for this post the 1998 film jellicle ball & white cat solo. (i wanted to add the audios here individually but tumblr doesn’t allow that so sorry 🥲. if you can, speed the video up to 1.05x for the original speed.)
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jellicle ball appreciation posts :
character themes
i love how you can tell what kind of cats the cats are just by listening to the music that plays when they’re the subject of a dance. it’s like you can HEAR their characters. and we get the most of this during the jellicle ball, so i’ll list the tune and then how their character traits correlate with the music. exhibits below :
before we talk about the ball, we have the white cat solo for victoria’s theme.
victoria’s solo : simple, sweet, sincere high notes. delicate and unassuming. elegant; not needing to be elaborate.
now, listen to the “ricochet” section of the jellicle ball. you can hear traces of her in the music as she dances! it reflects how the white cat is always peeking out and catching your eye through the crowd.
now let’s look at the fugue section. unlike the second part of the ball, where they’re all basically considered ensemble cats, here we get the most individual characterisation through the different portions and their subjects. (hence, fugue.) starting from “fugue” itself all the way down to “bombalurina’s section”.
listen to the contrast between the two monochromatics —
mistoffelees begins “fugue” : soft, lower and duller notes that evoke the sense of fluffy paws creeping along the floor. has an air of mischief and mystery.
alonzo’s entrance : loud, sharp, brighter brass that only gets more and more intense, a testament to his bravado; a theme designed to impress and intimidate.
and if you listen for a bit longer you can hear them playing in tandem with each other as they dance, especially when alonzo does his hand thing at misto during what’s supposed to be “tours”. this isn’t just an orchestra, it’s the cats themselves.
now the queens —
cassandra cartwheels in : a solitary tune that chimes high and proud, and doesn’t stoop down for anyone. clearly a cat of high status and prestige.
bombalurina interrupts : jazzy, passionate and warm woodwinds. a bold and vibrant melody that goes straight to the point and screams “life of the party”.
moving on to the “boys ballet” - “sways” section, there are actually three subjects, mistoffelees, tumblebrutus, and victoria, and there’s kind of a call and response going on (which i love). as we already discussed victoria and mistoffelees, we can infer that the strings heard here are tumblebrutus, while the brass is misto, and if you listen very closely, the even higher pitched “whistles” (woodwind i think) are victoria. tumble is the call, while misto and vic respond.
the cats talk with each other through the music! how magical is that? and if you listen closer to moments like bomba and tugger, you can hear even more of these conversations! (you can hear a bit of tugger’s rock during “slithers”. also i love how tugger’s electric guitar comes back whenever he leads.) there are also moments where you can hear what the cats are saying, doing or feeling like with tumble and alonzo, or alonzo and bomba or cassandra. it’s one of the reasons that the jellicle ball is so memorable.
music is truly magic.
anyone who hates on cats just because of cats needs to realise there’s more to this show than meets the eye, or ear.
Do you have any theories or hcs you don’t think others share 👀
not usually but i’ve got one here!! thanks for asking! you’ve helped me resurface a thought.
i believe that grizabella used to be a red cat. not ginger or brown with a tinge of red or anything you would see in real life, i mean like red. maybe a deep, romantic, velvet red, or a stunning, vibrant, strawberry red.
this is because of the song “daylight”. at the time this song is sung, it’s nearing grizabella’s final chance to rejoin the jellicles. jemima knows this and she laments the possibility that grizabella will fail.
while she tells the tribe that dawn is nigh, at the same time, she discreetly tells us her thoughts and worries within the folds of the song. she sings that she is the sunflower awaiting the day, but she also sings about another character, the rose.
grizabella is the rose that is fading. she used to be a gorgeous rose red, but has since then faded to grey, and now, she is on the cusp of withering away forever.
looking deeper into this idea, jemima sings the line “see the dew on a sunflower”. as jemima is the sunflower, the dew could refer to her tears. she’s secretly telling everyone how sad she is about the fading of grizabella, and imploring the rest of the cats to see as she does.
i love this little song with all my heart and helen massey’s flawless singing just ties it all together. “daylight” is nothing short of a poetic and musical masterpiece.
hello everyone!! happy feburary and welcome to my “jellicle ball appreciation posts” series where i discuss my favourite part of the whole musical! specifically about the 1998 version because, oh boy, my love for this recording of a 10 minute dance break knows no bounds. refer to this video for the names of the different sections of the jellicle ball aaaand let’s begin!!!
jellicle ball appreciation posts :
perfect timing
anyone who’s danced before knows that doing all those moves, especially for more fast paced dances, takes exceptional strength and control to execute them well. in order to have that control, and of course because moving your limbs and getting from one place to another takes time, you sometimes have to sacrifice one extra second to perform the last move before moving on to the next one. for example, watch bombalurina after “arabesque” as she’s getting into place for “warsaw (ecstasy)”. unlike most others, she raises her arms a little late because she has to run into position from the back. although it’s a pretty minor issue, when this happens your performance can appear delayed and you often end up rushing the following move.
so one of the most satisfying things for me to watch as an ex-dancer (besides straight up satisfying dancing which we will talk about in the future) is someone hitting their mark on a dance move perfectly or even a little early. one example of this is, during “slow paws” jemima’s arm movements are completely in time with the music, and she raises her arms perfectly on cue during “arabesque”.
but absolutely nothing scratches this itch more than watching tumblebrutus, or fergus logan, dance. seriously, who gave this man the right to be THAT graceful???? i cannot even express how euphoric it is to watch him during the jellicle ball and i sometimes open the film just to watch him. i genuinely love the “boys ballet” section so much because of him and fergus logan has become one of my favourite dancers in the show, or ever, if not my favourite. and for the same reason (but not the only one) tumblebrutus is also one of my top favourite cats.
when tumble and misto stand up and do their windmill thing during “spikey”, fergus is completely focused on dancing. you can see it on his face. as a result, tumble is eager and ready to do the next move, and it shows because he hits the mark perfectly and my gosh, i hope you guys know how much i wish i could absorb that moment into my soul. and the way he “windmills” is just like, he swings his arms so freely and effortlessly and elegantly and so in time with the music, it’s just so pleasing to watch. compared to jacob brent, who’s more focused on staying in character, which i absolutely don’t blame him for since he has a very important role, but as a result he ends up windmilling a little bit late and rushes the next one. mistoffelees’ dancing has more of his flavour and spark, but tumblebrutus’s movements are just so freaking refined and graceful and everything, and i highly doubt this will be the last time i talk about fergus logan in these posts.
as much as i love these “perfect timing” moments though, i also happen to care a lot about the moments like i mentioned in the first paragraph, because there’s something beautiful about seeing the humanity behind a piece of art, especially in the case of dance and professional dancers. it shows that no matter how fantastical this world is or how impressive the cats’ feats are, these are still actors, human beings, and they make mistakes on stage sometimes too and that’s ok. it just shows how much effort is needed to pull this off and put on a successful show. cats the musical is one of the only pieces of media that i know of, where it can break the immersion in a serious manner (or even unintentionally) and have it make the experience even more magical.
i actually like the fiery kitten portrayal of plato (like in the film) more than the easygoing young adult version of plato, because i think this version of him has tonnnns more personality! his background moments are so silly, like he looks so appalled when misto makes a mistake at the start, he bows all the way down to bustopher jones, and of course he’s absolutely thrilled to participate in tugger’s number. here are two plato ideas :
1. inspired by the fact that bryn walters had a broken hand while shooting the film (mad respect), plato has some kind of disability that hinders his right paw. jellylorum gave him a splint to help him walk, and the splint was worn by gus back when he had an injury during his acting career.
he’s embarrassed of this and gets mad when someone expresses concern about it. he insists that “it isn’t that bad”, and a tiny part of the reason he stepped up for the pas de deux was to show everyone he could still do lifts.
2. he and george are best friends, making the male duo parallel of electra and etcetera (also TALL BOYS WHO DOUBLE AS A MORE PROMINENT CHARACTER). george learned to act as tugger and will occasionally cosplay as him for plato, knowing how much of a fan he is. though, plato thinks george is too endearing to play a convincing tugger (he will haphazardly get cuteness aggression for the boi). plato is very protective of him, especially because of his timidness, and george looks to plato for emotional support.
as for the girls, plato and electra often quarrel and enjoy challenging each other to battles of wits, while he and etcetera bond over their enthusiasm for tugger. the four kittens are the ones who play together most frequently, perfect for team games!
