Does Anyone Else Love The Slight Banter Between Demeter And Bombalurina During “macavity The Mystery

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.

part 2~~

jellicle cats are green and young

jellicle cats lived sheltered lives

jellicles dream of growing up

but jellicles are afraid sometimes

guys i made mister mistoffelees as a waffle!! :D

two minutes after tugger arrives :

hi everyone just gonna resurrect from my grave for a sec because i thought about having the gumbie trio in just dance

like… what if cats the musical but in just dance??

“the rum tum tugger” ft. his biggest fans

a modified jellicle ball with victoria as the dancer (this would be extreme difficulty)

other ideas that i was too lazy to draw :

- mungo and teazer duet obviously (extreme difficulty)

- macavity vs munkustrap dance battle (like majesty in just dance 2023)

- jellicle songs for jellicle cats quartet dance

- “macavity” duet with demeter and bomba is a must

- skimbleshanks quartet where the p1 is skimble and the rest are kittens who follow him around like a train

- mr mistoffelees solo at hard difficulty

ok see ya

I LOVE YOU TUMBLEBRUTUS YOU’RE MY SILLY BILLY

cats 2019 alternative ideas

i know some of you guys on here genuinely enjoyed the 2019 cats movie, and i’m afraid i can’t say the same, but the reason why is not what i’m here to discuss.

i think cats 2019 was a huge missed opportunity.

i can’t help feeling like we were robbed of an original, creative story, all for the sake of making another blockbuster. instead of repeating the same formula to squeeze a few more dollars in, maybe they could’ve done something different, more cats specific? movie or show, animated or live action, i wouldn’t mind. (k now that i think abt it animation would be better.) they wouldn’t even have had to put in dancing or singing, in fact, a story focused on just the relationships between the cats would’ve been amazing.

like, a spinoff!

disney’s hercules has a spinoff series and i think it’s absolutely genius. i love it, probably more than the actual movie! it’s especially fun for me because i’m interested in greek mythology too. something like that for our dear little cats would be a dream come true.

they had the money for CGI fur and an A-list cast so i don’t think a spinoff made with love, passion and respect for the musical would’ve been a super tall order. the important thing to remember would be to include and focus mainly on the cats’ relationships and interactions with each other (and not butcher their personalities ofc).

just gonna start rattling off ideas here :

coricopat and tantomile witch cat anecdotes series

rumpus cat superhero action movie with george in disguise. he faces challenges when trying to balance his secret life and maintaining his friendships. (maybe make him and plato best friends?)

sitcom series with main characters electra and etcetera as besties, and the main cast being all the kittens, kinda like victorious. (episode titles be like “electra & etcetera : jenny’s crochet workshop!”)

a coming of age (mayybe romance) movie ft. victoria and tumblebrutus

“jemima’s dreams”, a fantasy series taking place in jemima’s mind where each episode features a different flower to teach her a lesson. kinda like aesop’s fables but more with plants

a drama movie about alonzo, from being a distrustful stray to meeting munkustrap and learning to accept others into his life, facing uncertainties about himself along the way and ending with him finding the courage to protect the ones who accepted him as family

heck, make that a duology where the other movie explores demeter’s past trauma surrounding macavity or even grizabella, and her path to healing with the jellicles, especially bombalurina

pouncival the invention cat series where he invents a new thing out of trash every episode to solve a problem (my “pouncival ideas” post has more context). could make for a very cheesy finale

now tell me, fellow cats fan, that you wouldn’t watch any of these.

it seems like fan service or fanfiction (actually most fanfictions are way better than the 2019 movie), and it definitely wouldn’t be as mainstream, but there’s some real creative potential here, i think. it would’ve been the perfect chance to spend more time with the cats who don’t have many big moments in the show, or just explore their characters even further! not that this musical needs a spinoff, of course, but since they decided to make a movie on it anyway, why not have created something worthwhile?

encouraging everyone to think of and/or add their own ideas for a cats spinoff!

more serious aspects of rum tum tugger

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.

jo gibb who?? my heart belongs to philly only

(no homo tho. definitely. i think.)

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.

hope you liked my theory! :D 🌻🥀

alonzo, my favourite cat of all time!!!!!

i wanted to experiment with negative space and that sort of thing. i'm also trying to grow out of being overly dependent on lineart. :D

i love him!!!!!!!! x♾️