Review: Cats at the London Palladium starring Nicole Scherzinger

Antoine Murray-Straughan as the Rum Tum Tugger

Cats

London Palladium

Reviewed on Friday 12th December 2014

★★★★

The biggest marmite musical of all-time, Cats, has returned to the West End and completely taken over the London Palladium. Based on T.S Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical is set on a special night of the year when all Jellicle cats meet at the Jellicle Ball.

Gillian Lynne to miss Cats opening following accident

Writing on Twitter, the legendary Gillian Lynne has explained that she will not be able to attend tonight's official opening of Cats at the London Palladium due to a "horrid accident". Lynne has broken her ribs in ten places.

She tweeted the following:

Horrid Accident:broken ribs in 10 places&even after the superb care @RoyalFreeNHS ,unable to attend my Opening: @CatsMusical - heartbroken
— Gillian Lynne (@Gillian_Lynne) December 11, 2014

We send Gillian all our love and wish her a speedy recovery!

Editor's Blog: Changes to Cats, improvements at Scoundrels & excitement about Kids Week

Yesterday (Monday 7th July), Andrew Lloyd Webber officially launched the West End revival of Cats which opens in December. 

Cats will run at the London Palladium between Saturday 6th December 2014 and Saturday 28th February 2015. The revival will see the original creative team, including Director Trevor Nunn, Associate Director and Choreographer Gillian Lynne, Designer John Napier and Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, reunited.

Discussing the show's return at yesterday's press launch, Lloyd Webber explained, "The four of us have been discussing looking at Cats again for what must be about a year. We wanted to rework the material and examine the show which really, literally changed our lives. Then I found we had this extraordinary opportunity over Christmas at the Palladium!"

Lloyd Webber is currently in the process of re-writing the music for two of T. S. Eliot's iconic poems which will see the Rum Tum Tugger transformed. Speaking about the changes and revisions to producer David Ian during the Q&A section of the launch, Lloyd Webber said, "I never was very happy with 'Growltiger's Last Stand'. It was never my favourite moment in the show, I have to admit, because I thought I got it a bit wrong - so I've completely rewritten that!"