See it if you've never seen it on stage before and you love seeing inventive choreography and brilliant stagecraft.
Don't see it if you have seen it before and you know you don't like it. Not sure if it's for you? Try it and see! Chances are, you'll love it.
See it if You love music. It is nostalgia and moving, while still refreshing for kids
Don't see it if you find old music boring
See it if you want exceptional dancing, singing & staging. I hated original-loved this. Somehow without reimaging, it feels full of life, new & fresh.
Don't see it if you've just GOT to have a plot. For all it beauty & charm there is still 0. Leona Lewis is no Betty Buckley, but who is! She's worth seeing!
See it if I went for I love cats, but you do not need to like cats to see this. The makeup and staging are great.
Don't see it if No real story line, base on poets
See it if you enjoy Andrew Lloyd Weber's music and imaginative staging with masterful dancing as people imitate feline movements.
Don't see it if you would not like a disjointed story based on a series of poems about cats.
See it if If you love a great dance show.
Don't see it if If singing and dancing cat aren't your thing
See it if you want to see a classic Broadway musical that deserves all the hype
Don't see it if you have to be thoroughly engrossed every minute of the production
See it if you loved the show before and want to see it staged slightly differently, if you want to see great dancing and have a memorable experience.
Don't see it if if you don't like ALW's music.
"The show, which has been fairly faithfully reproduced by original director Trevor Nunn, has the same love-it or hate-it qualities it always did. For me, the plusses, led by the extraordinary choreography (danced by one of the finest ensembles ever assembled for Broadway), don’t outweigh the minuses, especially the thin plot and often nonsensical lyrics...As for those performers, they are a slightly mixed litter...We could do worse (and better) than this one."
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"The first Broadway revival of 'Cats,' which is neither wholly reimagined nor an exact replica of the original, is unlikely to turn off 'Cats'-lovers, nor win over 'Cats'-loathers. It works best as a showcase for the energetic young cast and what it does best – which is dance...If the lyrics are largely lost in the swirl, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score holds up. The performances, though, are uneven."
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"The revival, again directed by Trevor Nunn, is absolutely as entertaining as initially it was...New choreographer, Tony-winning Andy Blankenbuehler, has been respectfully true to Gillian Lynne’s seminal work while beautifully enhancing it...There are so many astonishing aspects to 'Cats' that it’s a challenge to decide where to continue the praise. The cast isn’t a bad place...The moving bodies are mesmerizing, and Blankenbuehler makes certain the movement rarely slows."
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"Leona Lewis’s star-wattage is strong – but she needs to lose some of her sheen…Her singing voice is loud and clear, but a touch too serene, needing more of a hint of the gutter…The supporting cast are terrific…This 'Cats' remains an evening of fluff and nonsense, really, with leg-warmers and cutesy costumes that should be risible to a cynic’s eyes. Yet such is the innate confidence and innocent zest of this bizarre, feline spectacle that all cynicism just moults away."
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"This is above all a spectacle with appeal to those who get theatergoing kicks from costumes, lighting, cast members roaming the aisles to sing to spectators, and assorted scenic stunts...This show, again directed by Trevor Nunn, is among the most steadily choreographed productions on Broadway at the moment...The show is enlivened by individual turns that are appealing by any standard."
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"Much like the animals that inspired it, 'Cats' is divisive...It is also hands-down the most openly bizarre piece of entertainment to ever be so popular...The cast assembled here delivers 110 percent. There’s something marvelous about a chorus line of expressive cats eliciting applause simply by moving downstage. No smoke and mirrors or clever rap lyrics, just heavy makeup, unblinking stares, and bodysuits with tails."
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"Unlikely to disappoint...fans...For the resistant rest of us, it remains an overblown kiddie show...Director Trevor Nunn has put together a first-rate cast of singers and dancers, who prowl the aisles and crawl onstage through sewer tunnels with tireless enthusiasm. The exception is Leona Lewis, oddly shrill and steely as Grizabella...Best of all is the refreshed choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, who has replaced Gillian Lynne’s compilation of stock moves with variety and invention.”
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"It’s kitschy and fun, sometimes quite touching, and marvelously well done. It’ll likely be very nostalgic for anyone who saw the show before, and, I’m guessing, a treat for people who haven’t, and don’t go expecting a profound theatrical experience. 'Cats' is a one-of-a-kind entertainment, and I can’t imagine a young, budding theater-lover, in particular, not being entranced."
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