“Cats” purrs its way into the Norris Theatre
There are musicals that most of us have never heard of, and then there are musicals that everyone has heard of. “Cats” is clearly among the latter. Scored by Andrew Lloyd Webber and based on T.S. Eliot’s “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats,” “Cats” opened in 1981 and ran for 21 years in London, nearly duplicating that record-setting feat on Broadway where it ran for 18 years. A modern-day Robinson Crusoe would have known of its enduring popularity.
But even the biggest shows lose something of their grandeur when presented in the biggest venues, as those in the nosebleed section might have realized when “Cats” was performed by Civic Light Opera of South Bay Cities several years back in the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. That’s why the upcoming production at the Norris Theatre in Rolling Hills Estates is worth looking forward to. The Norris feels cozy at 450 seats, which is over 1,000 seats less than the Redondo auditorium.
Out of the sandbox
“Cats” is being directed and choreographed by Janet Renslow, and her resume is pretty impressive. Her day job consists of being an in-house choreographer at the Disneyland Resort (she’s been with them over 10 years), and she’s one of the key people behind all of the homegrown live entertainment shows in the two theme parks. On the side she’s an in-demand director for regional theaters that stage mainstream musicals like “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers,” “Carousel,” and “Annie.” Respectable stuff for pretty much the whole family.
Renslow and “Cats” are on good terms. She’s done the show twice before, in 2011 and 2014.
The choreography has remained pretty much the same, she says, “but there’s always a slight tweak here and there. It can be because of the stage, it could be due to talent, or if I have too many cast members or not enough cast members.
“The first place I did the show,” Renslow continues, “had a small stage but a nice arced apron so I could really pull the cast members out closer to the audience and still be onstage.” That particular house also had dividers between the seating levels and so her cats could scamper into the audience–a special treat she’s hoping to replicate in the Norris Theatre.
Most song-and-dance musicals boast a choreographer and a director, but Renslow is wearing both hats.
“It’s a lot of work, definitely a lot of work,” she explains.
“With this show 99 percent of it is movement, and 99 percent of the time the cast is onstage. If they leave the stage they’ll have to make a quick change or a makeup change. Every day I’m teaching something new, and every day it’s movement of some sort. With this show, direction and choreography go hand-in-hand because every movement has meaning behind it.”
In other words, Renslow adds, her guiding hand “comes in with finding the intention as to why a particular cat is heading in that direction. Cats don’t just meander. Dancing and movement just for movement’s sake doesn’t necessarily tell a story,” although the viewer may be impressed by the physical grace and agility and so on. However, Renslow says, “If a performer puts intention and reason behind their movement then it can tell a story or it can help somebody who doesn’t watch dance that much understand a little more.”
Casting cats
Renslow, by the way, is big on digging into a show beforehand, doing research, and getting at the intention that underlines it and gives it momentum. “Even if it’s a comedy there’s always something that drives the show forward, and I love to find that line and pass it on to the cast.”
Speaking of the cast, there are 23 performers in the show, chosen from roughly 140 who auditioned. That’s a lot of meows no matter how you slice the tuna. On the other hand, all these junkyard cats–from suave Rum Tum Tugger to troublemakers Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer–have their own personality, and matching up felines to performers is what makes the auditioning process so vital to the success of the show.
“We go for voice, and we go for somebody that can act their song in an audition,” Renslow says, the “we” being music director Robert Hoyt and producer James Gruessing. There are younger cats and older cats, so body types as well as voice and movement also play into the selection process. Some people walk in, open their mouths to sing, and it’s evident right away which part destiny has in store for them. Not so with others.
“It can be tough,” Renslow says. “When you’re challenged during casting that means you have a lot of people to choose from, which is great.”
Shows that mattered
Janet Renslow is originally from California, although she ended up in Wichita for a while where she earned a BFA in ballet. She also studied in New York, and has taught dance in Germany, England, and Switzerland. Eventually she ended up where she began, although with more feathers in her cap.
As far as what piqued her interest in musical theater, and what her favorite musical might be…
“Well, I started dancing, just dancing, because my friends were taking dance lessons. We started with Tahitian and Hawaiian and tap–the loudest and fastest type of movement. And then I saw “Cats,” and then I saw “Evita.” Those were the two shows that made me just really dive in to doing theater.
“But,” she says, “I don’t know if I have a favorite. ‘Millie’ (as in “Thoroughly Modern…”) fits my body and I love to teach that show–I’ve done it five times. It’s the style. That’s one I love. Every show has a different reason to fall in love with it. ‘The Producers’ was a beast, but it was fun.”
Because of its enduring popularity, chances are Janet Renslow will engage with another couple of “Cats” productions further down the alleyway.
“It was one of the first shows that gave dancers an opportunity to dance, sing, and act versus having an ensemble split where you have just the singer and you have just the dancer. This is one where you have all three, and you have to be able to tell a story–and dance it and sing it at the same time.”
In its early days, “Cats” was indeed the cat’s pajamas.
“I know a lot of dancers, myself included back then,” Renslow says, “it wasn’t even that I wanted to do Broadway, I wanted to do THAT.”
Right up to the present, many performers want to do that, too. And audience are still ready to cheer them on.
“Cats” opens tomorrow, Friday, at 8 p.m. Also Saturday at 8 and Sunday at 2 p.m. Additional performances on these same days, same times, through Sunday, May 10, at the Norris Theatre, 27570 Norris Center Drive, Rolling Hills Estates. Tickets, $45 to $55 general; $25 youths ages 17 and under. (310) 544-0403 ext. 221, or go to palosverdesperformingarts.com.
