Orlando’s latest stars to hit the stage are a bunch of frisky felines
I’m allergic to cats so if you see me sneezing around town, here’s the likely reason why: Orlando has felines purring their way across a couple of stages this coming week. It’s enough to make a canine lover like me wish the Central Florida arts scene had instead gone to the dogs.
We start at Orlando Repertory Theatre, where “Pete the Cat” is playing. It’s a show that has practically used up its nine lives. First announced for the 201920 season, the musical opened on Feb. 24, 2020. But just a few performances in, COVID-19 shut down live entertainment — and Pete was out of luck.
“We had just started this show at the end of February 2020 and stopped on March 13 for what we thought was going to be two weeks,” recalls artistic director Jeffrey Revels in the show’s playbill.
While it quickly became clear two weeks was far too soon to plan a return, there was thought in those early, optimistic days — remember those? — that the show could be back by fall. But that, of course, did not happen either and eventually a new reopening date of March 1, 2021, was announced.
Well, that didn’t come to pass as the pandemic wore on, and the show finally returned to the Rep’s stage last month — although it looks a little different.
After two years, some of the original actors were no longer available and had to be replaced. But Pete is still strutting his stuff as the hep cat he is.
Pete, by the way, is a superstar if you are of a certain age. Created in 2008 by Kimberly and James
Dean, the guitar-slinging blue cat is featured in more than 60 books, games, toys and even had his own TV show. The stage musical dwells on the ideas of friendship, overcoming obstacles, expressing oneself through creativity and learning how other people might see things differently than you.
At the Rep, children’s activities including a scavenger hunt and dance party start an hour before weekend showtimes.
Meanwhile, we’re also saying “Hello, kitties” to the plush pusses of the touring company of “Cats,” the oddball theatrical hit that at one time was the longest-running show in Broadway history. Not only did the original Broadway production give 7,485 performances over 18 years, it boasted the tagline “Now and forever.”
That tagline, of course, became humorous when the show’s closing was eventually set for 2000, but it didn’t stop the marketing folks. The ads still proclaimed, without a hint of irony, “Now and forever. Through Oct. 10.”
A 2016 Broadway revival freshened some of the material — which really is just gallivanting cats. For one, “Hamilton” choreographer Andy Blankenbuehler added some jazz and hip-hop touches to Gillian Lynne’s original work. The tour stopping at the Dr. Phillips Center is based on that revival.
At its heart, “Cats” is a dance show. It’s the movement that sells the concept, although Andrew Lloyd Webber also wrote some memorable music — including the showstopping “Memory.” There’s almost no story to speak of; the lyrics are taken from poetry by T.S. Eliot — who rather strangely was given a posthumous Tony Award for his contribution.
The show won a total of seven Tonys, including best musical, though it would be later become something of a cultural joke — critics often used “Cats” as an example of middlebrow pablum for the masses. A more recent movie version, with its bizarre special effects, attracted even stronger criticism (and horrified laughter).
Based on the cats I’ve known — from a safe distance away — it’s not hard to imagine the average feline giving those critics a laser-focused look of disdain before slinking away to find a sunbeam. And perhaps emphasizing its displeasure by leaving behind a well-placed hair ball.