Andrew Lloyd Webber’s record-breaking 2015 Olivier award nominated musical Cats returns to Manchester Opera House direct from its sell-out seasons at the London Palladium, for 2 weeks only from 30 January to 13 February.
Based on T. S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, Cats first returned to the West End in December 2014 reuniting the original creative team – Director Trevor Nunn, Associate Director and Choreographer Gillian Lynne, Designer John Napier and Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber. Following a second season at the London Palladium this Christmas the production embarks on a new tour into 2017.
Cats – photo by Alessandro Pinna
On just one special night of the year, all Jellicle cats meet at the Jellicle Ball where Old Deuteronomy, their wise and benevolent leader, makes the Jellicle choice and announces which of them will go up to The Heaviside Layer and be reborn into a whole new Jellicle life.
Cats, one of the longest-running shows in West End and on Broadway, received its world premiere at the New London Theatre in 1981 where it played for 21 record-breaking years and almost 9,000 performances. The production was the winner of the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Musical. In 1983 the Broadway production became the recipient of seven Tony awards including Best Musical, and ran for eighteen years. Since its world premiere, Cats has been presented in over 30 countries, has been translated into 10 languages and has been seen by over 50 million people world-wide. Both the original London and Broadway cast recordings won Grammy Awards for Best Cast Album. The classic Lloyd Webber score includes Memory which has been recorded by over 150 artists from Barbra Streisand and Johnny Mathis to Liberace and Barry Manilow.
Cats – photo by Alessandro Pinna
The 2016/2017 tour of the Cameron Mackintosh and The Really Useful Theatre production of CATS is again presented by David Ian.
Cats is performed at Manchester Opera House from 30 January to 13 February 2016.
Cats – images by Alessandro Pinna
