#Live-Action Macavity

[thefinalbracket]

WE'RE MAKING HEADWAY! ONTO GROUP THREE!

IT'S BEEN AMAZING! THE LAST TWO GROUPS HAD TWO OF OUR SEMIFINALISTS, AND THIS ONE IS NO EXCEPTION! BUGS BUNNY HEADLINES THE ROUND, but he isn't the ONLY ONE to watch out for!

SEVEN VETERANS TOTAL, which means this round has ELEVEN NEWCOMERS! WHO WILL WIN AND GO INTO THE NEXT ROUND?! Will it be ANOTHER BUGS BUNNY SWEEP?! How will we know... UNLESS I SHOW YOU THE BRACKET?!

BUGS BUNNY vs VIEWERS LIKE YOU

CARLTON BANKS vs LEO GEN LEONIS

BLUE THE PUPPY vs MIETTE

BETTY BOOP vs MARGE SIMPSON

LIVE-ACTION MACAVITY vs BRITTANY MATTHEWS

CREEPER vs GROMIT

DOLLY PARTON vs SHINJI IKARI

XENOMORPH QUEEN vs NORVILLE "SHAGGY" ROGERS

THESE ARE SOME STAR-STUDDED MATCHES! WHO WILL GET TO THE NEXT ROUND?! YOU DECIDE! LET'S GO!!!!

[semper-legens]

197. Over Sea, Under Stone, by Susan Cooper

Owned?: Yes Page count: 175 My summary: On holiday in Cornwall, the three Drew children are bored on a rainy day when they discover a long-forgotten secret hidden in the attic. With their great-uncle Merriman, they are soon pulled into a world of legend, when great kings walked the land and did battle with their foes. But there are enemies after their secret. Will the children find the holy grail, or lose it forever? My rating: 4/5 My commentary:

Another year, another reread of the Dark Is Rising sequence. Look, I know that a limited number of people are interested in this series, or even have heard of it, but I love it. It's Arthuriana, it's impossibly earnest, it's experimental and mystical, and it features a bunch of weird little autistic children doing magical quests. What's not to love, really?

The thing that strikes me in this particular reread is how Merriman really, really should not be allowed near children. No, but for real, I was thinking about this, and I have a theory about Merriman's actions in this book. Merry brings the kids to the Grey House in the hope that they'll stumble over the plot, because he's not going to find it on his own. He then decides that it's their quest, and his part in it is to be their guardian, to help them from the sidelines but not to be involved. And then he runs off following an obvious trap and only comes in at the end to help the kids out. Now, in the next book, we see Merry and Will going back to the day when Merry's ward/servant Hawkins betrays him. Merry knows this, but cannot in the moment do anything about it, because it's what happens. I wonder if something like that is happening here? Merry lives out of time, he knows the past, the present, and the future all at once. He knows that the kids find the grail, so he can't do anything about it, all he can do is give the help he can. I'd call it Merriman almost trusting the kids' maturity, except he goes and nonconsensually erases their minds at the end of the series anyway, so what the hell man.

Speaking of the kids, it still makes me laugh how Susan Cooper does a reasonably good job at portraying three very credible children, but it's still the 1960s and they're posh, so it seems so weird to me. Did kids ever say 'golly!'? Like, actually? That said, Simon, Jane, and Barney are wonderfully characterised, it always amazes me how well they are distinguished from each other, to the point where you can still tell who is speaking even in dialogue without tags. And they're all just shitty kids at the end of it. Barney is autistic about Arthuriana and kind of out of it, Jane is a little stuck up, Simon is proud and thinks he's hot shit. It's cute, is what I mean.

Really, I think the Dark comes off the worst here. They can't stop three children? Hastings has Barney in his clutches at one point and not only fails to get any good info from him, but Barney gets snapped out of it by a literal actual dog. They can't outsmart kids? These are just normal kids! It's not like Will and Bran, who are magic, these are just three normal posh children! Come on, the Dark, you could totally have just murdered them and called it a day. The kids are unsubtle about having found a map, and the next day they find that the house has been ransacked. Did the Dark never...think to look in there before? A little breaking and entering? Do the Dark obey the fucking laws of the mortal world? Even Macavity doesn't do that, and he's a cat. Get it together, lads.

Next up, the Dark rises, and Will Stanton is there to meet it.

[pikaclan]

Moon 353

Season: Greenleaf

Overarching Events

PikaClan doesn't have enough medicine cats Seeking peace, PikaClan and FlightClan ponder an end to their war

Ceremonies

Loudstar has been following the progress of Galepaw for moons, and feels that it is finally time for them to get their warrior name. They are granted the name Galegrowl in honor of their enthusiasm

Other Clans

The war with FlightClan is beginning to distrupt the daily lives of PikaClan, forcing them to adapt to new routines and living situations in order to better defend themselves The tension between PikaClan and FlightClan is palpable, with even the smallest actions potentially leading to violence

While patrolling the FlightClan borders, Avalanchebeetle stepped on a concealed put trap set by FlightClan warriors. Avalanchebeetle freeze with shock and plunges into the depths, having to be flanked by other cats on the patrol once they escape

A brutal battle against FlightClan leaves Tremblemask injured

Health

Tumblekick's grief begins to lessen Loudstar wakes and finds the grief lessened Avalanchebeetle got fleas Shalenibble's nightmares have stopped Macavity got heat exhaustion Riverfish's cat bite healed Snapmuzzle got heat stroke Sparrowpaw's bruises are healed Cariboupaw's bruises are healed Molekit has heat exhaustion Oakkit keeps falling to one side, and eventually it's clear that one of the legs on that side just isn't as strong as the others Frannie rolls around in their nest, searching for a cooler spot. Their exhaustion is beyond just a little thing, and their confused brain still has enough power to recognize full heat stroke

Patrols

Cobaltnose comes up with a plan to sneak out of camp with Thrushwhistle (medium positive effect) They look for something to disguise their scent while hunting They find nothing to disguise their scent nor any prey

The patrol is checking along the border lines when they hear a startling sound - a hiss of pain? They quickly follow the sound and find a loner that appears to be injured The patrol approaches cautiosly. The loner draws themself up, but doing so causes them to let out another hiss. Pikepounce offers to bring them to camp

Saturn joins the Clan and is not fixed

[cathymorgon]

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[lie-in-a-bureau-drawer]

I saw this a few days ago and have been meaning to write my own one of these, but I can explain what's going on with macavity here because it's genuinely one of my favorite things about this show! Spoilers, of course, below.

So, to answer the main question, macavity is absolutely NOT supposed to be the villain in this production. He's one of many members of the jellicle community under old deuteronomy's leadership and tutelage, along with the rest of the jellicles.

I'm no expert in ballroom culture (would that I were able to be, I live in an area where it's not really a thing and traveled really far to see this production), but I can tell you that it shares MANY similarities with wider Drag culture - especially in that some of the people who care most about participating are underprivileged queer POC. Macavity appears to fall into this category! He takes his ballroom cred VERY seriously and wants to win, which makes him kind of aggressive and kind of a diva sometimes!

When we see him during the second scare and in the lead up to the Macavity number, we can see him carrying large garbage bags and even the top half of a department store mannequin! This is a clue for later.

During the number, we see deme and Bomba change into outfits that macavity dropped for them inside these same trash bags. We can assume Macavity's outfit came from one of these bags as well. They're awarded the prize in the "labels" category (meaning designer labels - high-end fashion that would be very expensive) and immediately the opposing team can be heard saying something about "ask to see my receipts" - they are insinuating Macavity and his teammates are wearing *stolen clothing,* an idea that is corroborated moments later when they pull from the fur coats price tags with the anti-theft devices still attached. Those trash bags were to conceal stolen goods. The implication here is that Macavity's team could not afford the items needed to win this category, and resorted to theft. It's not clear exactly when this show is supposed to to take place, but if we assume it takes place in 2024, three full designer outfits could ring up at tens of thousands of dollars, maybe more. This is a serious charge.

I couldn't tell who (if anyone) called the police or if they were just waiting nearby for an excuse to raid the venue, but the cops arrive to arrest Macavity for the theft. In the commotion, macavity, demeter, and Bomba hide, leaving old deuteronomy to handle the cops. As the leader, Old D isn't about to rat to the pigs about any of his community members. As the owner of the establishment, however, he is responsible for harboring them, which is also a crime. He gives himself up to be arrested in Macavity's stead. This is why Macavity looked so distraught when the other jellicles recite the final line "Macavity's not there" - they're quoting what Old D said to the cops before being arrested, and Macavity is devistated that his actions have brought harm to someone so integral to the lifestyle he - and all the other jellicles - hold so dearly. This is also why they change the line "we have to find old deuteronomy" to "we have to save old deuteronomy" - they know where he is, he's in jail. The hard part is going to be getting him back out.

This really spoke to me for a number of reasons. Firstly, queer communities have been victims of over policing and police violence for as long as there have been cops and queer spaces for them to invade. The reality of having to protect their communities from cops is something a lot of queer elders, especially those who become leaders in their communities, face far too often in real life. Bringing that struggle into the narrative felt a lot more true to me than some "evil cat" would have in this context - which leads me to the second thing I love about this decision. It brings Macavity into the tribe in a way that feels so real without sacrificing his personality. Macavity in Jellicle Ball PAC NYC is not a nice cat. He hisses and spits. He cheats in competitions. He steals. He dissappears when the consequences come knocking. But here, his community doesn't turn on him for it. They see that he is the product of his circumstances and, while they don't always appreciate his antics, they protect him when the going gets rough. They'd rather side with a mean queer than a cop, and with the division going on in the queer community today, I think that's an important message.

When I saw this production, I was at one of the cabaret tables at the end of the catwalk - literally right next to the stairs actors were using to access the stage. Those cops walked old Deut right past me. When I booed at them, they scowled back at me. I don't think any moment in Theatre has ever felt as real to me as that scowl did. A lot of thought and care went into this show, and into making it real and relevant to the lives of the people it endeavors to represent, and I think the Macavity sequence is the crowning achievement towards that goal.

OKAY SO CATS: THE JELLICLE BALL!!

i watched it with my cousin and like i said in a previous post, it was so fucking amazing.

basically, its a ballroom competition where each cat is basically competing (through their character songs) to receive a trophy. then at the end, old deut chooses the one "cat" who will become the jellicle choice and ascend to become "reborn"

a side note, don't watch it with young kids LOL. some adult innuendos here and there especially with jenny's song (and of course tugger) haha, but very good!

okay let's begin (AND YES SPOILERS):

overture

i almost bawled my eyes out during this. the overture never fails to make me cry. its such an ethereal feeling.

pre playing overture - the dj comes out first and pulls out a couple vinyl, representing influential poc icons and then pulls out cats. he opens it and glitter sparks out. he then walks up to his turntable and starts the overture. in the front theres a projection of the cat eyes which has victoria's original white cat choreography dancing! then it turns into a silhouette of cassandra who starts doing vogue ballroom moves! so cool!

jellicle songs for jellicle cats

characters appear from all aspects of the theater. this show is hella interactive. they only had a few of the cats cast but it was still so very good. all of the outfits are so gorgeous. i honestly dont remember much bc i was so infatuated and i think i blacked out while watching. the part where they all gathered in the middle of the runway and did their catwalk was so fucking hype

naming of cats

macavity stared dead at me when doing the "theres a man over there!" but the cast disperses out the runway on the sides and munkustrap is the one mainly saying the poem like an mc (thats basically his role) from a microphone attached to a mic stand. the rest of the cast is also speaking with him and the spotlight flashes to the certain "cat" if they say their name

victoria the white cat

GIRLY POP WAS SO FUCKING GORGEOUS WITH HER MOVES I WAS IN FUCKING AWE SHE WAS SO BEAUTIFUL AND HER MOVES WERE SO AHHHHHH like i cant even describe it i dont even think i blinked once for real!!! her hair was gorgeous, outfit slayed, and HSIXKDKDKDK HER DANCING HER DANCING!!! AHHHHH

invitation

again, introducing munkustrap as the master of ceremonies. misto sang his usual thing (my god his hair was so long like SILK gorgeous long so smooth). munkustrap introduced it like a show. but it was so funny because they put it like "jellicle cats COME OUT tonight!" as in like actual queer coming out, they all carried signs and hung it up for everyone to see.

gumbie cat

off the BAT she is like...humping cassandra (who doubles as skimbleshanks) and theres a lot of sexual innuendos going on here and there LOL. she was so funny to watch tho and this was like the first part of the competition where it was "virgin vogue" first. i honestly forgot what was happening because SO MUCH was happening. but basically three cats were dancing and showing off their move, one cat won the trophy (it was cass) they all had a rainbow pride aspect to their outfit. i think jenny also won a trophy? i forgot.

tugger

dude was holding a fucking MCDONALDS HAPPY MEAL (i cant remember if it was right before his song or during his other songs). but jellylorum was holding a tugger fansign the entire time as he sang. his voice was UGH SO GOOD and my fucking god my cousin and i were flabbergasted over his moves like BRO we were gushing for realll. misto the entire time was just hovering around the runway as tugger was doing his usual flirting thing. of course dude attempted to strip. he won a trophy. but the last part (yknow the last part), he stood on the table (misto was mocking him as he did his riffs), sillabub was the one squealing and fainting. but mans is gorgeous. i forgot what his ballroom theme was tho. it definitely involved the guys like walking down the runway in different outfits trying to get his approval.

grizabella

ugh demeter's vocals were so gorgeous. but i looove the way grizabella's story was integrated with this show. she's washed out and wants to return, she wants to perform again. and sillabub had so much importance to grizabella's story. she was always the one reaching out to her while everyone looked away. her vocals were also gorgeous

bustopher jones

NONBINARY BUSTOPHER JONES!!! i loved how they did this number. their vocals were so powerful and their belts were so strong i was in shock??? also, the best part was the dance break when it was basically misto vs tugger (luscious body vs muscular body). bro...cheeks were OUT. literally tugger was only in like underwear spandex just flexing muscles, my cousin and i were like "OH MY GOD" and misto on the other hand was so fucking gorgeous oh my lord???? the hair and the sparkly outfit and the poses??? dude power couple FOR REAL!!

first macavity scare

demeter was like "macavity?? 🤨🤨🤨" her character is very different from normal productions but it was hilarious.

mungojerrie and rumpleteazer

I LOVED THEIR FUCKING JERSEY ACCENTS. IM FROM JERSEY AND IT WAS GREAT. even in the playbill, it said they came from victoria grove, new jersey I WAS AGHAST LMAOOO. but the theme for this one was duos! so it was mungo/rump vs victoria/tumble. their beginning outfits with matching jumpsuits was so cute and then they changed into these green fits that were so slay! they were basically going toe to toe with vic/tumble trying to outdance them. vic/tumble actually won the round but mungo/rump stole the trophy from them.

old deut

this part was hype!! munkustrap was doing his usual singing (through his handheld mic) and everyone was listening. when tugger's part came on, tugger was off the runway, so munk was crouching and putting the mic towards tugger. it was like a "your turn to sing now buddy! 😊" and tugger was like "okie :3" they both ended up on the runway and sang their duet. the cast held up "ALL RISE" signs and it was even projected on the stage, so we were all standing for old deuteronomy. he appeared from the curtain and we were all cheering for a long time until he silenced us. then he sang and held a note for like....maybe a minute long??!??? we were all cheering. he sat at his throne that was at the end of the runway. bc my cousin and i were sitting in normal orchestra seats, we couldn't see what he was doing half the time

*they removed pekes and pollicles*

jellicle ball

macavity scare again. well, actually, macavity appeared. he didn't seem to have a villain role? im honestly not sure what his role was but he seemed to be a jellicle. he also carried garbage bags (if someone could explain macavity more that would be great!!) nobody was like hiding (as in going offstage), but old deut was saying his usual thing and everyone was saying their parts of the poem. the jellicle ball was a showcase presenting different moves, it was so fun to see. for the fast part of the ball, misto made the "jellicle moon" appear (which was a disco ball!!) and the entire theater was just gorgeous. more showcase of moves! i was really jamming out during this part. grizabella was standing on the balcony area, watching.

memory

grizabella had now appeared on the ground floor, everyone went away, old deut was walking away too but stopped at the staircase to watch grizabella. sillabub also came back into view and watched her. i really did love her voice, it was gorgeous. and at the end, sillabub tried to get her back into the group by showing her a sparkling dress, but grizabella ran offstage. however, she did leave behind a scarf which now sillabub wore for the rest of the show

act 2 - moments of happiness

they brought out a screen and projected images of past history. i really loved how they did this. all the other cats were around to watch, but it was mainly all about old deut and sillabub. the older generation speaking to the new young generation. they presented the different "houses" and the last one was "grizabella of the glamour house"

gus

looooooved gus's look in this. and looooooved jelly's blue wig. gus's song was pretty much kept the same, with jellylorum singing about what he did in his past and so on and so forth. apparently they were taking out playbills from a bag and one of them was 2016 broadway revival cats (according to my cousin), but they were also flipping through a photo album. (to be honest, i was distracted by tugger and misto sitting together on the couch so close to each other) but all the cats eventually settled on the runway stage as gus performed. they had the "and once i played the rumpus cat" part (but no pekes and pollicles), so there was a cat as "gus as the rumpus cat from the past" and gus mimicking his moves. i really liked how they did this

*there was no growltiger*

skimbleshanks

FEM SKIMBLE!!!!! my cousin and i were so fucking hyped during this WE LOVE SKIMBLE IN THIS HOUSEHOLD!!! number one, the wig was fucking OH MY GOD SOOOO GORGEOUS???!??? so skimble is the train conductor of the mta! so they were mimicking being on the subway IT WAS SO FUNNY. she fr pulled out a metrocard and they played the "please stand clear of the sliding doors" announcement pfft. but the most surprising part was that she sang some of the lyrics in spanish??!??!??! TOTALLY ATE FOR REAL!!! my cousin and i were so shocked it was such a fun sight to see!!! she slayed so hard along with rumpleteazer. they were literally going toe to toe with each other dancing! (i think the theme for this was old way vs new way?) and also misto and skimble were also going toe to toe with each other ugh they were so goooood

macavity

again, i was still confused on macavity's role in this (someone please explain!!) but old deut was not taken away yet. he did however fucking flashbang a flashlight at all of us. he was taken away after the song and during the fight. but i LOVED how they did this. the theme was "labels" and UGH the demeter and bomba were such a good mix. they were basically wearing high end brands for the runway (like louis vuitton and prada), going against victoria, tumble, and mungojerrie?? i think?? macavity showed himself during the climax of the song in such a cunty outfit it was amazing. they were all showing off to old deut. mac/deme/bomba won the trophy i think, but then it was discovered that their outfits were fake? i think? i honestly dont know, but the police barged in and old deut sacrificed himself for macavity. this is when he was taken away

mistoffelees

tugger sat at the end of the runway, contemplating, thinking in distress, as everyone was trying to figure out how to save old deut. and then an idea hit him and thats when he starts the song. bro i was literally shaking in my seat. tugger was trying to hype everyone up for misto, but they were all like "you're crazy bro" however when misto showed up in that GORGEOUS BEAUTIFUL EXTRAVAGANT SPARKLY OUTFIT AND CROWN bro we were all so shook OH MY GOD its the magical mister mistoffelees. the theme was runway! so people were walking down the runway like a fashion show and misto was taking an aspect of their outfit away from them (this is also when misto basically rips off tugger's underwear HAHA). misto also fucking SNATCHED demeter's wig it was so funny (this was all during his "dance break") but yes of course, misto did dance and UGH IT WAS SOO GOOD I LITERALLY COULD NOT STOP CHEERING. a covered box was taken out as misto kept doing some more moves and posing, then removed the blanket to reveal old deut! (posing some more, literally ate and left no crumbs) everyone cheered as misto continued to dance, doing another version of the conjuring turns. old deut returned to his chair and everyone was encouraged to sing along! we were all standing and cheering! and YEP at the end! as tugger is giving misto the trophy, THEY FUCKING KISSED. TUGGOFFELEES SO REAL. THEY KISSED GUYS.

memory reprise

grizabella comes out again from the curtain, this time in full glam and the dress that sillabub offered, trying to make her case and perform again. the duet between sillabub and grizabella was so gorgeous oh my god. i was in awe at their voices. i really do love how they interpreted their relationship. it made so much sense. sillabub is basically a big fan of griz and wishes to see her perform again, but griz cant, so sillabub encourages her. at the end, old deut chooses griz as the jellicle choice

heavyside layer

one by one, everyone is accepting griz, giving her hugs. old deuteronomy makes a staircase appear and that is how griz ascends. the harmonies were so beautiful.

addressing of cats

old deut is singing to the audience. the cats are posing. they form the catwalk formation and drinks are being passed out as they sing. again, gorgeous voices

bows

we managed to record some of the bows! but im screaming and crying during most of it. munkustrap introduced the cats individually and they did their own stuff down the runway (including the conductor!) it was like a whole ass party. i was so lightheaded and full of adrenaline when the show ended. literally shaking.

and thats my rundown. i for sure forgot some things but ugh i really wanna go see it again. if i do, i can do a better explanation LOL. but yeah, please go see it if you can. its going on until august 11. and feel free to add stuff too! this is just what i saw.

each character was done so well and everyone ate so hard. i fucking love cats. okay good night it is 2am.

[the-cat-at-the-theatre-door]

We really could have gotten 2016 Shere Khan Macavity in the 2019 film.

You actually got *Idris Elba* and you could have gone full blown, ice down your spine villain with a vendetta and you didn't. Like???

[yehtutaunganimation]

Last year, I used Universal’s scrapped designs of Cats musical and animated to one of Macavity’s dialogue from the live action movie. 

[sillybub]

what do you think about cats movie 2019? did you enjoy it?

So the movie was my introduction to Cats, and I went to go see it ironically with my siblings since we all heard how mortifying it was.

And like, yeah I didn't like it very much? I thought it was weird and I didn't understand it, and humans are so scared of what they don't understand. Granted, I had no clue about what I was going into, and my initial reaction was mostly in part to being taken way off-guard. I remember liking Skimbleshanks and thinking that, the fur itself looked really nice even if the designs were ugly. But mostly I thought it was a bad weird movie.

Now that I've had three years to reflect on it?

It's still a bad movie, but for different reasons than I initially disliked it.

1) The character designs are just bad and uncomfortable. They all have fully human faces, hands and feet, and it does not look good. This was an initial takeaway but I still stand by it. The fur itself was rendered well, but it doesn't save the designs.

2) They just made some straight up upsetting decisions regarding Jennyanydots and Bustopher Jones. I don't care that they're different, they're just actively unlikable and uncomfortable (I don't want inaccuracy to the stage show to be a factor in my opinion; I'm trying to judge it as a standalone entity). You can tell that Rebel Wilson and James Cordon just kind of thought of their characters as a joke and had no respect for them, which is simply not a good look. I'd never cast an actor who didn't have respect for their role. And if the character isn't deserving of any respect, then it's a badly written character.

3) I'm sure we've all seen the Sideways video about what a trainwreck the music was. The way it was recorded was not flattering for the vocals OR the orchestra; rhe style of recording lends itself to realism, which just does not work with the kind of story Cats is.

Which leads me to qthe most complicated one:

4) They tried to force Cats into a traditional narrative, which...just did work. They tried to have a focal protagonist (who I feel like wasn't effective foil for Grizabella), they padded the movie with dialogue in an attempt to flesh out the Jellicle Ball and Jellicle Choice, which just made things MORE confusing tbh, and trying to make Macavity more of a present threat was a noble move, but ultimately failed.

This open up a conversation about what a good film adaptation of Cats would look like.

Good news,, we already got one in 1998.

It's not just a proshot; it's also a film. They used cinematic techniques that are specific to the medium when they recorded it; use of CGI, use of editing techniques such as slow-motion, performing multiple takes, pre-recording the vocals and lip-syncing during shooting, etc.

They even modified the makeup designs to better suit close-ups. And to replicate the audience interaction, they chose to have the cats look into the camera. These are adaptational choices that WORK.

But like, okay, suppose that 1998 doesn't count. You want a "proper" film.

In my professional Film Major opinion, Cats is one of the worst musicals to adapt to film. Too much of its appeal lies in the strengths of theater and the weaknesses of film.

We want films to be realistic, in a visual sense. In theater, you can get away with standing on an empty stage and miming washing dishes, and the audience will believe that the character is literally performing that task, not pretending to do so. That does not fly in film. We need to see a sink and plates and forks and water. There's little room for abstraction, is what I'm trying to say.

And Cats is so abstract. This works GREAT on stage, but not much so for live-action film.

Abstract meaning "exists as an idea, but not having a concrete existence".

We understand that the cats we see on stage are literally cats; but they're representing by the suggestion of cats. Bold makeup, fluffy wigs, and painted unitards combined with certain movements suggest cats to us without trying to literally look like a real cat.

In film? You need to look like a cat. If a lady walked onto the big screen with a rope tail and painted on whiskers, you'd say "that's a lady in a cat costume, not a cat." You want to see furry ears and a tail that actually twitch and move. Probably retractable claws and slit pupils, too.

And then you'd have to figure out how to adapt the rest of the plot. Do they stay in the junkyard, keeping it confined to one location as per the stage musical? Do you lean into the abstraction, or try to make it more realistic? That, of course, was the failure of 2019; trying to make an abstract and whimsical musical into something realistic. If you want to aim for realism, I truly think you'd have to change the source material beyond recognition.

I used to talk about adapting Cats as an animated anthology, showcasing each song in a different style of animation. And I still think that would be sick, but my thought process there was that animation lends itself well to abstraction; you would lose out on the magic of live dance, but could perhaps make up for it with stunning, stylized animation. It's what I personally would enjoy most.

TLDR; it wasn't a good movie OR a good adaptation, but to be fair, Cats is fucking hard to adapt.

[sevenkittensinatrenchcoat]

Korean Character Bios

I posted before about some characters bios from the 2008 South Korea Tour. I tried to translate the bios for the named swings with mixed results.

Well, it turns out that I’d completely failed to notice that Google Translate actually has a Korean keyboard that let me type more letters than other online keyboards did, and I was able to get some slightly better translations this time. Also, I did all of them. I’ve Google Translated all the character bios.

So, here they are:

Seductive Cat / Grizabella

She was a member of the Jellicles as a seductive, pure, curious cat, but she left the Jellicle society to experience a bigger and wider world. Now, marginalized for her shabby appearance, she returns to the Jellicle society to become a Jellicle member again.

(Notes: It appears that the word “seductive” is used to mean “glamorous”.)

Rebellious Cat / Rum Tum Tugger

A member of the Jellicles, he’s a cat who does only what he wants to do and has a clear sense of self. He likes to receive attention and is charismatic just by being himself, so he is the most popular with female cats.

Prophet Cat / Old Deuteronomy

As the eldest ancestral cat of the Jellicles, he is intelligent, wise, respected, and loved. Every year at the Jellicle Ball, a cat is selected and sent to the Heaviside Layer to become a new Jellicle cat.

(Notes: “ball” was actually “festival”, but I shifted terminology to match. Also, is Old D the ancestor of all Jellicles?)

Leader Cat / Munkustrap

A young and responsible leader cat who protects and takes care of the Jellicle Tribe. the Jellicle Cats trust and follow him as a leader.

Theatre Cat / Gus

After Old Deuteronomy, he is the oldest and has been a Jellicle member for many years. He was a famous actor when he was young, but now he is suffering from a serious illness.

Wealthy Cat / Bustopher Jones: 

Although not a member of the Jellicles, he is an aristocratic cat who is always welcomed. In his spare time, he likes to play golf and enjoy lavish meals.

(Notes: So Bustopher isn’t a Jellicle? I’m still not sure what defines a Jellicle in this version.)

Kind Cat / Jellylorum: 

She is a middle-aged, kind-hearted cat who always takes care of old Gus and the kittens.

Thief Cat Couple / Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer: 

A playful and clever couple of thief cats who are always causing trouble together.

(Notes: The word for “thief” sometimes translated as “stray” but only when applied to the word “cat”, so I’m guessing the Korean term for “stray cat” might be “thief cat”. But, Jerrie and Teazer are clearly not strays in their number’s lyrics, so I used the translation that applied to them. Also, the word “couple” translated as “pair” sometimes, so this isn’t confirming a romantic pairing, but they could’ve been playing it that way anyway, for all I know, so take that how you will.)

Train Cat / Skimbleshanks: 

As a train conductor, he is an orderly cat who takes on all the responsibilities of the train. An uncle to all cats, kittens love to hear his stories as a storyteller.

Magician Cat / Mr. Mistoffelees: 

The best magician, though he can’t speak. He can even make things disappear. As a great magician, he rescues the kidnapped Old Deuteronomy.

(Notes: “Magician” can also translate as “wizard” or “sorcerer”. This Misto is mute, which makes sense for a production from this region and era. Outside of Japan, east Asian productions are usually based on Australian ones, which is where the named swings come from. Although the first Australian productions had Misto sing, they later made him mute, only to switch back more recently. 2008 was during the mute era.)

Sensual Cat / Bombalurina: 

She is a very sensual and sexy cat, popular with male cats who pay attention to her sexual desires. As Demeter’s older sister, she always protects her.

(Notes: I think “older sister” might not be literal. She might just be a sort of “older sister figure”. It’s not clear.)

Sensitive Cat / Demeter: 

Because of Macavity, she is anxious and nervous about everything. She is also at risk of being kidnapped by Macavity. If she shows any signs of anxiety, it’s always a sign that Macavity is nearby.

(Notes: So, she’s always anxious, because of Macavity, but if she’s anxious, which is all the time, Macavity’s nearby. Is Macavity nearby all the time? This one is weird.)

Siamese Cat / Cassandra: 

Possesses a strange beauty. As the only hairless Siamese cat, she always behaves arrogantly.

(Notes: Despite the better keyboard, this one wouldn’t translate properly, so there’s some stuff missing. This is the general idea of what I think was being said. I wonder how having a Siamese cat in the cast affected Growltiger.)

Gumbie Cat / Jennyanydots: 

During the daytime, she sits all the time and seems lazy, but at night she’s actually a busy cat who educates bugs and mice.

White Cat / Victoria: 

She is the purest, most innocent cat. This Jellicle Ball is her first, but she presents a beautiful dance.

Philosophical Cat / Plato: 

A cat who doesn’t move much, so he looks lazy, but he reads a lot and is always careful with his actions.

(Notes: I thought this characterization was weird until I realized that he’s “philosophical” because he’s Plato. He’s literally named after a philosopher. Since Australia-based productions at this time where Broadway-based, Broadway inspirted Australia inspired South Korea, Plato is just Macavity’s double and doesn’t have much to really do, so I guess they decided to have a bit of fun with the character.)

Villain Cat / Macavity: 

The mob boss of the feline world. Kidnapped Old Deuteronomy as the villain who commits evil deeds.

Just Cat / Alonzo: 

A masculine cat who is always dignified and protects young cats, even in inconspicuous places. He rescues Demeter from Macavity. They spend their lives together.

(Notes: More Broadway-based stuff. It seems like Broadway-based Alonzos are the superheroes of the Cats world.)

Copy Cat / Pouncival: 

A boy who wants to be a man. He follows Skimble around.

(Notes: His title more literally means “mimicking cat”, but how could I not translate it this way? Anyway, here’s another translation that wouldn’t cooperate with me. The first sentence ended up something like “a young male cat who wants to be worn by an adult male cat”. I couldn’t get it to make sense, so I guessed at what it was supposed to mean. He is Skimble’s copycat at that’s adorable.)

Curious Cat / Sillabub: 

Victoria’s best friend, a curious, intelligent, and pure kitten. She helps Grizabella return to the Jellicles by singing ‘Memory’ together.

Twin Cats / Coricopat and Tantomile: 

Mysterious twin cats who are not yet adults, but are still mature and have excellent cognitive skills. They always move together and do the same things.

(Notes: The twins are kittens/junior cats in this version, apparently.)

Teenage Cat / Tumblebrutus: 

A teenage boy who wants to be a man. His actions take precedence over thoughts and words, and he gets a lot of guidance from Munkustrap, because he can’t read the room.

(Notes: Very much a Broadway characterization. His first sentence was nearly the same as Pouncival’s. “read the room” was more literally “interpret the atmosphere”, but I thought this sounded more natural. Also, Munkustrap Adopts Kittens With Poor Social Skills.)

And now, named swings:

Stubborn Cat / Victor: 

He is more stubborn than any other cat and has a temperamental personality.

Meditating Cat / Olivia: 

She is a deep thinker with a determined personality.

Gentleman Cat / Admetus: 

An internally strong, generous, and gentle cat with a masculine appearance.

(Notes: Admetus has a personality closer to your average Broadway-based Plato than Plato does.)

Loner Cat / Quaxo: 

He’s a solitary cat with a strong sense of pride and arrogance, so he doesn’t fit in well with those around him.

Busy Cat / Electra: 

She likes to be involved, so she’s always busy and distracted.

Bragging Cat / George: 

Has a tendency to show off what he has.

(Notes: This one, just like the last time, broke down completely. It ended up saying “He has a tendency to show off what he has, rather than what he has”.)

Attentive Cat / Jemima: 

She’s attentive in everything and always acts responsibly.

Emotional Cat / Etcetera: 

She’s a cat who fits in everywhere and has emotions that take precedence over her head.

Emotional!

That’s all of them.

[lepoppeta]

17, 18, 25 for the weird writer asks ?

18 and 25 were answered here

17. talk to me about the minutiae of your current WIP. tell me about the lore, the history, the detail. the things that wont make it into the text.

ugh, gosh. ive got too many wips to count.

Dark and Familiar and Deep as the Sea (bioshock) has been on hiatus for ages. i want to re-write it and then continue to write it, i swear i do, but... i dont know. its the story of atlas and jacks reunion and history told in drabbles, because i dont really think in great sweeping scenes... more like microexpressions and actions. i can imagine a single moment in time, rather than a great overarching scene.

Tremble, Little Lion Man (or Rate Yourself and Rake Yourself) (bioshock) is meant to be a future companion piece to "The Blue Tide Pulling Me Under". ive dubbed it 'the nightmare duology', and its meant to be about how jack and atlas personalities are somewhat reversed when theyre faced with extreme vulnerability. jack, who is usually fairly soft-spoken and composed, becomes violent and pulls a gun on his lover after hes awoken from a nightmare. atlas, a very 'punch first and ask questions later' kind of guy, silently isolates himself from jack and becomes self-hateful and weepy.

Floodlights (cats the musical) was inspired by my experience with seeing the cats musical live for the first time. after the lights go out from the macavity fight, skimbleshanks is seen holding a single spotlight that makes a couple rounds of the yard, which then falls on and injured munkustrap to the side of the stage. i took this to mean that skimbleshanks was the first to find him after macavity disappears. its really just an excuse for me to write some tasty angst for my special boys whom i love very much.

[thefinalbracket]

GROUP 3: ROUND 1

LIVE-ACTION MACAVITY vs BRITTANY MATTHEWS

[themoonlitjunkyard]

So I wrote a bit of an essay on how I would handle writing a Cats movie, because it would not leave me alone, the ideas came pouring. x3

TL:DR?  How the Cats movie would be written by a competent fan. x3  It’s not a terribly long read anyway, about 4 and 1/2 pages worth.  Do eet. :3

How I Would Make a Cats Movie

I've suddenly been thinking about this a great deal, so I decided to write down my ideas for what the movie of this play could be.  This'll probably be a long post, and I'm sure there are other essays about how other people would remake the movie, but hear me out if you'd like anyway, because this won't leave me alone. x3

Note: Although I have my own headcanon for Cats, (the shared universe of my comic and writings) it pertains to the characters of the '98 stage film version.  When approaching a movie, I'd re-imagine the plot, using the important cues from the play that's common among most or all productions.

With that, let's get into what I wouldn't change from the movie itself:

-- Instead of sticking to the junkyard, I would indeed have the characters move around a big chunk of London; the sets they created were amazing.  If this were to be animated instead of live-action, that's fine too, as the backgrounds to the concept art were breathtaking, and I would have them stay that way.

-- Lots of nods to the original play and poems. In that vein, I actually liked that Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer's number was the original melody from the first performances; it gives their characters in a movie setting a more mischievous quality. Also, for the sake of time, I probably wouldn't include Growltiger's number or Pekes and Pollicles, but I would give references to them.

-- Keep the core cast. Pretty much everybody was perfect for the principle roles (With perhaps the exception of Corden's Bustopher Jones and Wilson's Jennyanydots, but they would have done much better, I believe, with a much more competent director, making them into what their characters were meant to be and not walking slapstick fat jokes). Perhaps switch up some of the background roles and give them to actual performers from the theater version.

-- Go ahead and mob me, but...I would still not have separated Victoria's and Jemima's characters. ^.^;;  It was AWL's first intent to have a character who could both sing with Jemima's youth and innocence and dance with Victoria's grace and beauty, and it wasn't possible at the time, where in a movie it is.  But, I would be open to negotiation on that one, because I still love Jemima.

-- Old Deut can even still be female.  It was nice seeing Dame Judy Dench given a chance to be in Cats again considering her history.

-- This is probably obvious, but still keep the premise that the Jellicle Ball is also a contest for those who are prospectively looking to be reborn into a new life, since that's the common interpretation of the play (maybe give some valid reasons for each who want to).  It wouldn't be Macavity's ultimate goal, however.

Now, I'm sure that most changes I'd make are obvious: polish the appearances of the cats in a live-version setting.  Keep the CGI tails, expressive ears, and fur, THAT was well done.  But make the face more feline.  Give them the stage make-up and facial fur.

Vary the cats' designs.

Better overall camera work.

INTRODUCE EVERYBODY, at least during the Naming of Cats portion, or provide pictures in the credits next to the names and actors.

DO NOT make the orchestra follow the singers; the singers must follow the orchestra (ups the overall quality of the music; more information can be found in this YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3aK-EK5V2k ).

More background character interaction.  The play is interesting because the actors are allowed to be in character while chilling on stage, and every performance is a little different with the way they can interact when not having to do numbers.  In a movie, you can make the audience able to notice something new each time they watch when things go on in the background.  A movie screen is a limited  stage, of course, but one can do wonders even with witty dialogue or gestures.

Yes, the cat puns can stay too. x3

Finally, stay true to the core messages, visual storytelling, and emotional context of the play. Honestly, I'm not sure if I'd even try to make a movie for theaters, to have to be subject to executive meddling and editing, for the sake of trying to make it compete with other movies coming out at the same time.  Such a decision might nix the possibility of the all-star cast, but...so be it.

Now then, how would I approach the story?  I can see why they went with Victoria as the main character in the movie; even being an ensemble character, she was an eye-catching part of the play, the "belle of the ball" so to speak, and had the important role of being the first to touch Grizabella, accepting her back into the tribe.  She was a good character to be the audience's eyes and ears, for the Jellicles to introduce us to their world.

In my version, she'd still be a focus character...the core of innocence and a bastion of empathy and hope, the one who accepts Grizabella first.

But...I'd make the main character Demeter instead.

Not just because she's my favorite, but because she seems to be the character with a LOT of background in the play itself.  She's the first cat we see on stage, she sounds the warning for Macavity's arrival time and time again (and has an obvious traumatic past), and has an emotional connection to Grizabella (if not a lot of empathy). In Jacob Brent (1998 Mistofelees)'s interpretation of the performance, Demeter is the one joining the Jellicles for the first time, or returning to them, to escape from Macavity...so she could easily be the audience's stand-in for the introduction to the tribe. Simply put, if the movie is to borrow more from the play instead of trying to be its own thing, Demeter would be a prime choice for main character, as she has much more plot potential to offer.

Plus, she had a character concept art sheet for the animated version that never got off the ground, and I imagine she probably would have been a focus character if not the main one.  In an animated version, I wouldn't even be adverse to using her young and elegant-seeming original design, if she were still a strong character aiming to face her own demons eventually; hidden bravery in a frame of helplessness, but she'd slowly be gaining some courage by making friends with the Jellicles.

Of course, all the important plot characters would also have their focuses and stories.  Victoria is a starry-eyed youngster who also just joined the tribe (she can keep the plot that she was abandoned there, but she's full of hope and enthusiasm, and only lets it show once that it bothers her...that can be where HER song to Grizabella comes in, IF that can fit somewhere). She makes easy friends with Demeter and they bond quickly, Demeter admiring (and perhaps even envying) her optimistic view of the world; maybe they even have similar stories of trying to find a place to fit in, her having found it already and Demeter having just left a worse place, eventually learning from this sweet youngster, that might even become like a niece or little sister.

The important point is that Victoria can be a side focus character and still be the emotional center of the story, an inspiration for everyone else. There is always room for good characterization, that's my belief.

The flip side to Victoria's coin in terms of friends for Demeter would be Bombalurina.

The way I see it, she's not necessarily evil and working against the tribe in this version; she'd take her role back from 2019 Cassandra as the voluptuous and influential tough girl with a heart of gold and protective nature, but she'd be a bit more enigmatic and mysterious as well.  She was also with Macavity (and at the start, still working with him, there having followed Demeter to keep an eye on her for him), but she's also a member of the Jellicles and joins in on all the shenanigans (this is pretty much what I imagined what she'd be doing in the movie until I heard Swift's description of her, really...perhaps she even speaks to and plots with Macavity in an aside or two).  As the plot progresses, she goes from trying to sway Demeter's attitude towards the Jellicles, to eventually having a Heel-Face-Turn and helping stand up to Macavity and protect her when he's revealed, the tribe having won her over.  They both still duet his number like in the play, to explain who Macavity is to the youngsters.  And there's no catnip involved. :B

Munkustrap is still, as always, the guide to the Jellicles' world, the sort-of narrator of the play, and de-facto leader...and in my movie he also still retains his protector role: the first to take on any threat, helping in leading the way to find and discipline the cat burglars, and most importantly by taking Macavity on in their fight, to protect Demeter and the rest of the tribe.  Of course, Demestrap is still my pairing...he sticks by Demeter as much as he does Old Deut and the youngsters, leading her through everything that the Ball entails, and they develop a caring bond throughout.  They share a nice intimate dance at the Jellicle Ball, much like Misto and Victoria in the movie, where Demeter can let go of her worries and have fun with this new tribe of friends.

On the shipping front for the others, I would mostly leave it up to interpretation, same as in the play, except for the obvious pairings. x3 Shipping isn't actually the first thing on my mind when I envision a story, really, but I'll make an aside about an obvious one.

Now, Tuggoffelees isn't my cup of tea, at least not in the '98 video, because there's an age difference...and also Tugger and Misto's dynamic seems more brotherly to me, or like older dude and younger mentor friends, as it's Tugger's job to help an uncertain child prodigy Misto to find his confidence, and to use his magic to bring Old Deut back from wherever Macavity took him (or her). This dynamic would still be there in my movie...but because the Tuggoffelees shippers seem to make up a big portion of the fandom, I'd still toss them a bone by aging Misto up a little (or Tugger down to rough teenager, perhaps) and having them interact more than they did in 2019, but I can also see Misto having a little crush on Victoria still. Maybe there's also a little Plato/Victoria/Mistofelees triangle lurking in the background too if you look hard enough. Cats do tend towards polyamory. :B

Possibilities are there, anyway, but in all seriousness, shipping shouldn't be the focus of a bigger story in the long run. Misto would be another focus character, perhaps only slightly less so than in 2019, but he's still a practicing magician with confidence issues and lots of talent that would blossom during his number.

The most popular fan-canons (or even confirmed canons) would probably make it into the movie, like Munk and Tugger being brothers, and them being Old Deut's sons (I have a vision of a cute interaction with Munk and Deme during Tugger's number where Munk snidely introduces him as his brother on whom everyone must have a crush, Demeter remarks that cats like him aren't her type, and he glances at her briefly like, "then I might have a chance...!" before the song abruptly continues...this could even replace Jenny’s aside with Munk from 2019). Otherwise, again, let the interactions with each of the cats towards each other drive the thoughts of various relationships.  There's never any one true canon of Cats, really, that's a part of what makes it fun.

Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer's number would be different than the movie as well; instead of bringing Victoria along for some mischief and getting her in trouble, they'd have just been responsible for the first "Macavity" scare, only to go along the street breaking things (and into things) and generally causing mayhem while they sing.  The rest of the tribe realizes they've been tricked, and Demeter is like, "I know these two...c'mon, I know how we can catch them," and she leads the others around in a chase while the song goes on until they are surrounded, with Munkustrap left rather impressed at how clever and headstrong the young queen could be.  The trouble twins are brought along when everyone gathers for Old Deut's arrival, though Bomba is briefly left behind to let Macavity know they've caught his "best" two bandits, and him retreating for another way to get at them.  Munk even still has Alonzo and Plato as his two best protectors (or in-training ones), as either one are usually beside him in the productions to catch out Jerrie and Teazer after their number.

The only conundrum I'm having at the moment is how to play out the "Moments of Happiness" scene that starts the play's second act, after Grizabella's first rendition of "Memory".  In the movie, that's followed by Victoria's song, and then by Old Deut lamenting quietly to herself with a song about how easily the true meaning of happiness can be forgotten...whereas in the play, Old Deut sings that both to lament thoughtfully and to scold the others on not forgetting it themselves. They don't quite get it, and Jemima chimes in with a line of "Memory" (used by Grizabella later) to help convince them.

I'd honestly love to keep "Beautiful Ghosts", it's a very lovely, emotional number...but honestly it's hard to place it.  The scene might fit if Demeter watches the song, empathizing with it, and then is the one to gently pull Victoria (who is still desperate to help Grizabella) away from trying to touch the retreating old queen, again feeling pity for her but knowing that nobody wants her back in the tribe.  There'd be a bit of dialogue, perhaps some comforting for the kitten, and then Demeter overhears Old Deut sing his/her bit, there's some dialogue there, and then the rest of the plot continues.  It's a part that could be worked on, but essentially when you think about it, "Beautiful Ghosts" replaces Jemima's rendition of "Memory", which is a sweet moment in itself, and it would be almost impossible to keep both.

As for Macavity...in 2019 he's the one who wants to be granted another life, but no reason is given other than that.  He's a successful criminal in his current life, a powerful magician at that, and derails the Ball...for what, to die and be reborn, leave what he built?  Not sure if there was to be any behind-the-scenes explanation, other than he just wants a chance to do more and be bigger.  His reasoning is a bit weak, TBH.

In my movie, he keeps his motivations from the play, firstly to retrieve Demeter, and then hatches a plan to kidnap old Deut and derail the Jellicle Ball for good measure, as he knows the tribe are the only ones who could stop him (perhaps there's hidden, mysterious backstory there too that can be touched on, some hatred for the tribe).  Bombalurina learns of this, and having by the second act grown to love the Jellicles as well, has her doubts to go through with it.  After the number about him, Macavity still returns in Old Deut's disguise to trick the Jellicles, but Demeter still sees right through it...and it's her high time to shine and face her fears, attacking and revealing him, and further proving herself to the tribe.  When he comes after her, Bomba is the one to step up first to defend her, basically saying "I quit" to his face...then when she's slapped aside, Munkustrap charges in for the real fight.  Once the protector is defeated, the rest of the cats rise above their fears of Macavity and force him to retreat.

All the rest of the movie, the songs and numbers and such, mostly plays out like the stage version, with lovely moments of dialogue and interaction in-between.  With both Pekes and Pollicles and Growltiger cut, even with lines from the songs and the length of the Jellicle Ball Dance as cut for time as they were in 2019, I'd say my movie could still run a good two and a half hours at the VERY least, maybe even three (with Pekes and Pollicles, probably), because this would be a labor of love and not a labor of a rush to the box office numbers.  Time can be taken.

I might just write out my movie's sequence of events specifically later if there's interest. x3 But yes!  That's how I'd approach the movie.  What do you guys think? What would you do?  I'd probably also still try to go live-action, but an animated one would be neat too; for the dancing, which is an integral part of the performance, dancers can be rotoscoped.

I just know that if I were making enough money, I'd totally get some talented actors or animators and voice actors together and make a Cats movie at least close to what it was supposed to be.  Perhaps even better, owing to the time passed since it was proposed.

It deserves a better treatment than what it got, definitely. x3

[uppastthejelliclemoon]

grizabella and silena for the headcanon ask

Grizabella:

Headcanon A: realistic

Grizabella, Jellylorum, and Jennyanydots had tea together all the time, and would spend afternoons laughing and telling stories to each other about their kids or their mates.

Headcanon B: while it may not be realistic it is hilarious

Like Tugger, I can absolutely see Griz showboating and being dramatic, and making all of her friends giggle and laugh with her.

Headcanon C: heart-crushing and awful, but fun to inflict on friends

Grizabella knew Demeter and Bombalurina when they were with Macavity, and helped them both escape with baby Jemima, but stayed behind because she thought she could help Macavity

Headcanon D: unrealistic, but I will disregard canon about it because I reject canon reality and substitute my own.

Grizabella comes back to the tribe prior to the Ball, Gus gets chosen, and Grizabella is accepted and happy in the tribe

Silena:

Headcanon A: realistic

Her final actions earned her Elysium, but she basically hid from Beckendorf for a good chunk of her beginning time ther. She was terrified to face him, because in her mind, her being the spy led to his death. It took Beckendorf finally finding her, pulling her off to the side, and firmly telling her that it wasn't her fault he died, and that he was proud of her breaking away from Kronos' control. Silena breaks down, because Beckendorf was the main person she needed that forgiveness and reassurance from, and they just sit together, holding each other.

Headcanon B: while it may not be realistic it is hilarious

she used to help the Apollo cabin prank other campers, because her charm-speak combined with their rhyming curse meant a deadly mix, and also extremely funny for everyone else who wasn't suffering.

Headcanon C: heart-crushing and awful, but fun to inflict on friends

Silena, Chris, Clarisse, and Beckendorf were planning on getting an apartment together after the war was over. They were all planning to go to the same college, and live a somewhat normal life, and Silena was even already making wedding plans, because she and Beckendorf wanted to get married as soon as they could. Clarisse already agreed to be her maid of honor, and they were going to go wedding dress shopping a few weeks after the war 🙃

Headcanon D: unrealistic, but I will disregard canon about it because I reject canon reality and substitute my own.

Silena fights alongside the Hunters, the Ares Cabin, and her siblings, and manages to save some of the turned demigods, and returns to camp a hero

[marchivists]

to say that they fell for each other (even in the smallest way) at first sight would cheapen demeter and munkustrap’s relationship a great deal. munkustrap falls for her quickly, yes, but only after some time has passed. he is observant and is quick to see the parts of her that are worthy of love (and there are so very many. she is made up of nothing else. it takes their whole lives to uncover them all, and even then there’s still some missing) but at first she is a stranger. a stranger deserving his respect and care, but munkustrap respects and cares for every cat that comes his way. she interests him too, this queen who escaped from his brother’s grasp. she is full of stories and munkustrap has always been so very fond of those. but he does not ask about them and she does not tell. some stories are not meant for entertainment. obligation moves him, too. munkustrap regrets this later, when they’ve both fallen. that macavity’s actions might have inspired any of his own is a thought that makes munk’s skin crawl. but affection and growing respect overpower duty soon enough. 

demeter falls more slowly, though even that is a surprise; she’d never expected to fall again. munkustrap overwhelms her with his kindness (though she’ll later learn that this original goodwill was purposefully restrained. munkustrap’s magnanimity is an endless thing and he did not want to frighten her with the full force of it). everything about him is baffling. he loves for no reason but love itself and it comes so easily to him. but she has more important things to concern herself with than munkustrap. there is jemima, first and foremost. and there is the feeling of unease that won’t leave her, even in the safety of the junkyard. it’s worse at night, when the others are gone and darkness lends secrecy to those who might come to take this new haven from her. she finds, over time, that munkustrap lifts the weight of this unease, if just barely. he does not fear the dangers that solitude might bring and would brave the black of night to protect what is his to guard. demeter is part of that now, she learns. he will not let harm come to her if he can help it. but even in this relative safety she does not fall. it is hard to love under the best circumstances, and demeter has long been a stranger to good fortune. there are wounds to tend to, new rules to learn, old habits to break. friendship grows between them as she does so. and this is where she starts to fall. 

[aceofshitposts]

I saw that you like CATS the musical. What are your thoughts on the movie?

AAAAH AHHAHA oh man oh boy y'all should BUCKLE IN cuz it's a ride

my simple thoughts? it's entertaining if only because it butchered the stage show so badly in an attempt to idk modernize it? Well, modernization is one part of it I think. The other part I'll go into below lol. I don't necessarily hate some of the more modern renditions of the songs (mostly the ensemble sets like Jellicle Song for Jellicle Cats) but then others are just... so poorly done it's insulting.

I've said this at the end of this whole rant too but I'm gonna put it up here in case people don't (justifiably) wanna see me go on and on about it:

The movie wasn't made for fans of the musical. It was made to make money and I believe they choose, at least partially, to do that through making it the weirdest and worst possible adaptation they could so that people would want to go see the train wreck. Which, really, worked! It was all people could talk about for a good while so like... Goal achieved, I guess.

A MUCH MORE COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS UNDER THE CUT cuz i don't wanna. flood your dash with... this

ALRIGHT SO. Most of my friends know I'm actually a huge fan of new adaptations of things. I love remakes (provided the people making it are coming at it with some form of heart and not just... cash grabbing which is more often the case) I love seeing other peoples interpretations of characters, or changing settings. It's one of the reasons I like American comics so much, getting to see different writers takes is fascinating.

I think musical movies can be wonderful ways to introduce people to a stage show that might have been unavailable to them otherwise! Chicago, for example, is one of the BEST musical to movie adaptations in my opinion. It kept the heart of the show, it's funny and the song numbers are done really well.

There are of course other famous examples, such as Grease or Bye Bye Birdie. Hairspray was also a wonderful take. These are simply off the top of my head, there are of course more.

CATS in particular has a history. If you go through my CATS tag you may see a few posts from @catsnonreplica which posts photos from non broadway productions of CATS! It's a fascinating read and I love, love, love looking at the other interpretations of the characters! CATS is a musical full of fun and wonderful characters if you take the time to see past the ridiculousness haha and the Korean and Japanese runs of CATS especially have some of my favourites.

How does this relate to the movie, I hear you say well. As you might has noticed the movie's interpretations of the characters is........ lackluster at best and downright uncanny valley at best.

CATS is, at its core, a ridiculous thing. I will fully admit that! But it's fun, it's entertaining and if you pay a little attention you can actually get the plot. (Honestly I don't understand when people complain it has no plot but that's a whole other rant for another day)

The movie was... obsessed with this idea of like... semi realism? Like obviously, as a fan, I think they should have leaned into the over the top character designs but instead we got...w ell:

Bombalurina:

Demeter left and Bomba right. Demeter was actually cut! From the movie which is. upsetting lmao.

Macavity is one of the worst offenders for me:

Macavity was... I wish I could know what the hell they were thinking there cuz it's even in his song? Ginger cat??? THAT IS NOT... A GINGER CAT...... but I digress. I would show more examples but I think you get the point.

So. We've butchered the characters appearances. Okay that's fine but what about their personalities?

ALSO BUTCHERED.

There's... there's a lot to unpack here. Just for context: the Jellicle Ball happens once a year and the Jellicle leader chooses a single cat to be reborn into a new life. In the stage play all the cats who are nominated for this honour are on the older side (Jenny-Any-Dots, Bustopher Jones, Skimbleshanks, Gus The Theatre Cat, and eventually Grizzabella) AND are always nominated by another cat. Not themself, unlike the movie where they all seem to nominate themselves.

Jenny-Any-Dots went from a doting grandmother figure who's celebrated for her selfless volunteering and tireless work into a conceited, vain younger cat who is obsessed with fame.

It's an incredibly strange dichotomy. I don't doubt some of it isn't the result of the uh people playing the characters honestly. I do think some of them did the best they could! I don't really blame Jason Derulo, for example, for Tugger. And honestly, Tugger was probably closest to his stage version (while being a trouble maker, he's shown to show Deuteronomy an immense amount of respect)

Speaking of Tugger! This will bring us to one of the biggest grievances with the movie and that is how they handled Mr Mistoffelees.

So... Ugh. So. We have Victoria as the pov character, which imo is like whatever in the grand scheme of things, and then we have Misto who they have decided will be get live interest cuz... Of course. Misto is shown throughout the musical to be awkward, unsure of himself and well. Really, kinda incompetent. Which is Wild cuz in the stage show he might be aloof but he's fairly confident in his powers.

So, Old Deuts gets kidnapped. In the stage show Tugger is the one to bring Misto forward! It's really quite sweet, imo, and I'm showing myself as a Tuggoffelees shipper here, but again Tugger is previously shown to be pretty conceited but then here he is boosting and hyping up Misto to bring Deuteronomy back. My friends and I have lovingly dubbed this the boyfriend hype song.

SOMEHOW. The movie manages to make this, easily, the MOST BORING number in the whole thing. Which, again, WILD. Misto awkwardly stumbles through his whole song, which again is... Boasting of his supreme magical powers which movie Misto clearly. Does not have or believe to have. The song, to me, feels super awkward and unnecessarily drawn out in the movie which sucks cuz it's one of my favourites in the show.

The declawing (heh) of Mr Mistoffelees actually reminds me strongly of how they changed Gaston in the live action Beauty and the Beast movie. He's gone from a beloved figure in the animated movie to someone so disliked in the town that Le Fou has to pay people off to say nice things about him. It's just. Wild character choices were made!!

Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat is probably my favourite in movie non ensemble number. It feels the most... Genuine? Compared to the other nomination songs.

Other problems include but are not limited to:

The inconsistent size scale of the CATS which throws me off constantly.

The weirdly overt sexual overtones added to MANY of the songs (Jenny and Bustopher being the worst)

This is just a personal gripe and opinion but I don't like that they used the UK version of Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer. The American version is both better known and tbh way more fun. Teazer's giggle? Adds ten years to my life every time.

Victoria's added solo song, Beautiful Ghosts, while I like the song as a song it doesn't fit the style of message of the musical. In the movie she's singing directly to Grizzabella who's being an outcast for years that she should be grateful she even has memories of being part of the tribe?? What?? But I know they had to add an original song to be able to be nominated for awards in like the Grammys n shit (which is why all musical movies will have an original song, fun fact!!) kinda funny they went to the effort though considering........... I don't think anyone could have genuinely believed CATS 2019 was gonna win anything but golden rhaspberries.

Movie Mr Mistoffelees has made repeated appearances as my sleep paralysis demon

The various cut characters, shout outs to Jemima, Demeter and Jellylorum especially

Bombalurina being a henchman to Macavity rubs me the wrong way

God I've written... So much. You probably get it by now haha. Like I said at the beginning, I try to go into any adaptation with an open mind but... Let's be honest, this movie wasn't marketed to people who are fans of the musical.

It was marketed, and made, to make money. And they choose to do that through, I think, intentionally making the worst possible version ever. Bad press is still press and the more outrageous people said the movie was the more people wanted to go see exactly what kind of train wreck it was.

Which is a disservice to the stage show, honestly, and all the people who've worked on it over the years.

But what can we do, right?

And besides all that, I do... Still own the movie version and I do still rewatch it on occasion. It is entertaining even if it's in a train wreck kind of way. I usually end up watching the 1998 version, then 2019 and then various tour runs that are on YouTube. (I highly recommend the 2016 tour, it's very good)

So in conclusion. It's fun (?) to watch. I enjoy picking things apart and doing analysis (if you couldn't tell!) so like... I don't hate it?

It did what it set out to do, I guess, and I can't fault it for that but. It's not a fair metre with which to judge the stage show imo. But I know it's not everyone's cup of tea, haha.

Jazz hands. I'm more than happy to elaborate or just chat about CATS if anyone wants! I grew up listening to the Broadway CD since I was a toddler so it's been! A very long standing obsession haha. Probably the only other thing on par with CATS is my obsession with Jurassic Park which I've also been a fan of since I was 3 (but that's a whole story in and of itself)

[oohlordhealthisbike]

Open for bootleg trading~

Hello all! I am posting my bootleg list here for now as a temporary list until I get my website up and running- I am open to trading! I’m mainly looking for any Cats production- preferably English or Dutch but any musical would be nice to have and expand my collection. 

Addams Family - Broadway - March 12, 2010

FORMAT: .VOB w/o smalls

CAST:Nathan Lane (Gomez Addams), Bebe Neuwirth (Morticia Addams), Terrence Mann (Mal Beineke), Carolee Carmello (Alice Beineke), Kevin Chamberlin (Uncle Fester), Jackie Hoffman (Grandma), Zachary James (Lurch), Wesley Taylor (Lucas Beineke), Krysta Rodriguez (Wednesday Addams), Adam Riegler (Pugsley Addams)

NOTES: Video quality isn't the best, and audio is sometimes on the softer side. Still a very entertaining show.

Anastasia - Broadway - September 6, 2017

FORMAT: (VOBs w/ smalls)

CAST: Christy Altomare (Anastasia), Derek Klena (Dmitry), John Bolton (Vlad), Ramin Karimloo (Gleb), Caroline O'Connor (Lily), Mary Beth Peil (Maria Feodorovna), Zach Adkins, Sissy Bell, Lauren Blackman, Kyle Brown, Janet Dickinson, Constantine Germanacos, Wes Hart, Ken Krugman, Shina Ann Morris, James A. Pierce III, Molly Rushing, Nicole Scimerca, Johnny Stellard, Allison Walsh (Ensemble)

Aladdin - Broadway, 2014-Nov-05 (SunsetBlvd79‘s master)

Format: VOB + smalls (7.58 GB)

CAST: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Merwin Foard (s/b Jafar), Michael James Scott (s/b Genie)

NOTES: Beautiful HD capture of latest Disney Broadway offering. Great to see the changes from the Toronto tryout. Michael and Merwin do terrific jobs as Genie and Jafar.

Beauty and the Beast New Zealand April 2006 - Proshot

Format: .VOB w/ smalls

Cast: Jade Steele, Russell Dixon, Glen Drake, Rob Ormsby, Gladys Hope

NOTES: Only the first act & first part of act two! 

Beauty and the Beast (Disney) - Broadway - July 27, 2007 (Unknown's video master)

CAST: Anneliese van der Pol (Belle), Steve Blanchard (Beast/Prince), Jamie Ross (Maurice), Chris Hoch (Gaston), David DeVries (Lumière), Jeanne Lehman (Mrs. Potts), Glenn Rainey (Cogsworth), Ann Mandrella (Babette), Trevor Braun (Chip), Aldrin Gonzalez (Le Fou)

NOTES: Two days before the show closed on Broadway. Good amount of closeups and good quality filmed from the mid-mezzanine; there is a railing issue for a while in Act 1 but the taper improves. 'Me', 'Gaston' and 'Be Our Guest' are all predominantly missing and recording stopped for some time after 'Gaston', which created a little jump in the timeline to where Maurice gets thrown out of the tavern. Still a nice video with great closeups of the last Broadway cast.

Beauty and the Beast - Music Theatre of Wichita (2016)

FORMAT: .VOB w/ Smalls

CAST: Catherine Charlebois, Thaddeus Pearson, Johnny Stellard, Steve Hitchcock, James Beaman, Katie Banks-Todd, Karen L. Robu, Lexis Danca, James Heinrichs, Timothy W. Robu, Tanner Pflueger, John Boldenow

Notes: Pro-Shot. Filmed using one camera on a tripod with excellent clear picture and sound.

Cats - Hamburg - August 21, 1999 (Unknown's video master)

FORMAT: MP4 (2.9 GB) CAST: Julia Howson (Grizabella), Stefano Bontempi (Alonzo), Sean McGrath (Admetus/Macavity), Daymon Montaigne Jones (Bill Bailey/Tumblebrutus), Donna Hagan (Bombalurina), Lachlan Youngberg (Bustopher Jones/Gus/Growltiger), Marie Dumas (Cassandra), Valentino McKinney (Coricopat), Juliann Kuchocki (Demeter), Marni Raab (Jellylorum), Nadja Solovieva (Jennyanydots), Clinten Pearce (Mr. Mistoffelees), Deon Ridley (Mungojerrie), Matthew Pike (Munkustrap), Werner Kraus (Old Deuteronomy), Adrianne Richards (Rumpleteazer), Siegmar Tonk (Rum Tum Tugger), Japheth Myers (Skimbleshanks), Angela Roczkov (Tantomile), Rebecca Sutherland (Victoria), Damian Kacperski (Pouncival), Tracey Packham (Sillabub) NOTES: very good quality for the time! Great audio as well. 

Cats - Broadway Revival - August 13, 2016 (Unknown's video master)

FORMAT: .VOB w/o Smalls

STAGE: Broadway

CAST: Leona Lewis (Grizabella), Giuseppe Bausilio (Carbucketty), Kim Faure (Demeter), Lili Froehlich (Electra), Sara Jean Ford (Jellylorum), Eloise Kropp (Jennyanydots), Ricky Ubeda (Mr. Mistoffelees), Andy Huntington Jones (Munkustrap), Quentin Earl Darrington (Old Deuteronomy), Shonica Gooden (Rumpleteazer), Tyler Hanes (Rum Tum Tugger), Jeremy Davis (Skimbleshanks)

NOTES: Some people walking across the image for a few seconds during Jennyanydots and Rum Tum Tugger's number. Sometimes a head is visible but not obstructing the action. Almost no white-outs with very good video quality. Audio is very crisp as well. Filmed from a higher seat, but zooms are excellently done and fluent. Overal an amazing bootleg!

Cats - Sixth National Tour - March 15, 2019 (thehouseonsunset's video master)

CAST: Keri René Fuller (Grizabella), Phillip Deceus (Alonzo), Tyler John Logan (Admetus/Macavity), Devin Neilson (Bill Bailey/Tumblebrutus), Lexie Plath (Bombalurina), Timothy Gulan (Bustopher Jones/Gus/Growltiger), Mariah Reives (Cassandra), PJ DiGaetano (Coricopat), Liz Schmitz (Demeter), Maria Failla (u/s Jellylorum), Emily Jeanne Phillips (Jennyanydots), Tion Gaston (Mr. Mistoffelees), Tony D'Alelio (Mungojerrie), Dan Hoy (Munkustrap), Brandon Micheal Nase (Old Deuteronomy), Rose Iannaccone (Rumpleteazer), McGee Maddox (Rum Tum Tugger), Ethan Saviet (Skimbleshanks), Halli Tolland (Tantomile), Laura K Kaufman (u/s Victoria), Anthony Zas (Pouncival), Ahren Victory (Sillabub)

NOTES: Audio is soft in some parts and has a shaky camera. Good video though, nice zooms and high quality. 

Cats 1998 Film - (Pro-shot).

FORMAT: MP4 CAST: Elaine Paige (Grizabella), John Mills (Gus the Theatre Cat), Ken Page (Old Deuteronomy), Rosemarie Ford (Bombalurina), Michael Gruber (Munkustrap), John Partridge (Rum Tum Tugger), Aeva May (Demeter), Geoffrey Garratt (Skimbleshanks), James Barron (Bustopher Jones), Jo Gibb (Rumpleteazer), Drew Varley (Mungojerrie), Susie McKenna (Jennyanydots), Jacob Brent (Mistoffelees), Susan Jane Tanner (Jellylorum), Phyllida Crowley Smith (Victoria). NOTES: pro-shot version of the musical. Multiple cameras and HD video and audio. 

Cinderella - Broadway - March 2, 2013

FORMAT: VOB + smalls

CAST: Laura Osnes (Ella), Santino Fontana (Prince Topher), Victoria Clark (Fairy Godmother), Harriet Harris (Evil Stepmother), Ann Harada (Charlotte)

NOTES: Very good view of the stage, sometimes zooms are a bit slow but it's not bothersome. Very enjoyable experience.

Evita - Costa Mesa - December 14, 2013

FORMAT: (VOBs w/ Smalls)

CAST: Caroline Bowman (Eva), John Riddle (u/s Che), Sean MacLaughlin (Peron), Krystina Alabado (Mistress), Christopher Johnstone (Magaldi)

Kinky Boots - Broadway - May 26, 2017 (Opening Night) (Audio)

CAST: Brendon Urie (Charlie Price)

FORMAT: M4A

NOTES: Brendon is amazing in the role, the audio is not really HD, but it’s still really fun to listen to, especially for P!ATD fans like me haha. 

Legally Blonde - Broadway - 2007-Oct-25

Format: VOB no smalls (4.11 GB)

CAST: Becky Gulsvig (u/s Elle Woods), Andy Karl (u/s Emmett Forrest), Richard H Blake (Warner Huntington III), Orfeh (Paulette), Kate Shindle (Vivienne Kensington), Nikki Snelson (Brooke Wyndham/Shandi), Michael Rupert (Professor Callahan), Haven Burton (Margot), Tracy Jai Edwards (Serena), Asmeret Ghebremichael (Pilar), Matthew Risch (u/s Kyle/Grandmaster Chad/Dewey), Natalie Joy Johnson (Veronica/Enid), Kate Wetherhead (Kate/Chutney), Rod Harrelson (u/s Carlos)

NOTES: Great capture of the two understudies in the role. Shot from the orchestra with amazing shots. Starts in the middle of 'Omigod You Guys'.

Les Misérables - West End - November, 2018 (NYCG8R's master)

FORMAT: VOB (with smalls) (SD)

CAST: Dean Chisnall (Jean Valjean), Bradley Jaden (Javert), Carley Stenson (Fantine), Amara Okereke (Cosette), Toby Miles (Marius), Elena Skye (Éponine), Samuel Edwards (Enjolras), James Hume (u/s Thénardier), Vivien Parry (Madame Thénardier), Logan Clark (Gavroche), Andrew York (u/s The Bishop), Adam Filipe (u/s Grantaire), Barnaby Hughes (Combeferre), Joe Vetch (Feuilly), Oliver Brenin (s/w Courfeyrac), Ben Tyler (Jean Prouvaire), James Nicholson (Joly), Andrew York (Lesgles), Adam Bayjou (Brujon), Ciaran Bowling (s/w Babet), Sam Harrison (Claquesous), Ciaran Joyce (Montparnasse), Adam Bayjou (Factory Foreman), Anna McGarahan (Factory Girl), Anna McGarahan (Crone), Sam Harrison (Bamatabois), Ben Tyler (Pimp), Barnaby Hughes (Fauchelevent), Adam Bayjou (Champmathieu), Ciaran Bowling (s/w Major Domo)

Les Misérables - The All-Star Staged Concert - December 2, 2019 (Closing Night) (Pro-Shot's master)

FORMAT: MKV (HD)*

CAST: Alfie Boe (Jean Valjean), Michael Ball (Javert), Carrie Hope Fletcher (Fantine), Lily Kerhoas (Cosette), Rob Houchen (Marius), Shan Ako (Éponine), Bradley Jaden (Enjolras), Matt Lucas (Thénardier), Katy Secombe (Madame Thénardier), Earl Carpenter (The Bishop), Raymond Walsh (Grantaire), Craig Mather (Combeferre), Vinny Coyle (Feuilly), Niall Sheehy (Courfeyrac), James Nicholson (Jean Prouvaire), Ciaran Joyce (Joly), Andrew York (Lesgles), Leo Roberts (Brujon), Stephen Matthews (Babet), Oliver Jackson (Claquesous), Adam Bayjou (Montparnasse), Gavin James (Factory Foreman), Celia Graham (Factory Girl), Tamsin Dowsett (Crone), Earl Carpenter (Bamatabois), Oliver Jackson (Pimp)

NOTES: The digitally released proshot, edited differently to the live cinema stream.

Les Miserables - Broadway - Feb. 17, 2007

FORMAT: VOB + smalls

CAST: Alexander Gemignani (Jean Valjean), Norm Lewis (Javert), Daphne Rubin-Vega (Fantine), Gary Beach (Thenardier), Jenny Galloway (Mme Thenardier), Celia Kennan-Bolger (Eponine), Ali Ewoldt (Cosette), Adam Jacobs (Marius), Drew Sarich (u/s Enjolras)

Little Shop of Horrors - Encores! Off-Center-New York City Center, 2015-July-1 (Opening Night) (NYCG8R's video master)

Format: VOB + smalls (4.21 GB)

CAST: Jake Gyllenhaal (Seymour), Ellen Greene (Audrey), Joe Grifasi (Mushnik), Taran Killam (Orin), Eddie Cooper (Audrey II), Marva Hicks (Crystal), Ramona Keller (Ronnette), Tracy Nicole Chapman (Chiffon)

NOTES: Opening Night filmed from the very back of City Center, so there is some spotlight washout that's never too bad and a head that's shot well around.

Phantom Of the Opera - US Tour - August 12, 2015 (Unknown master)

FORMAT: VOBs w/ Smalls)

Chris Mann, Katie Travis, Storm Lineberger, Jacquelynne Fontaine, Edward Staudenmayer, David Benoit, Anne Kanengeiser, Frank Viveros, Morgan Cowling, Mark Emerson, Eric Ruiz, Edward Juvier, Dan Debenport, David Foley Jr., Allan Snyder, Christy Morton

Spider-Man - Turn off the Dark - Broadway - October 14, 2012

FORMAT: (VOBs)

CAST: Matthew James Thomas (alt. Peter Parker/Spiderman), Kristen Martin (u/s Mary Jane), Robert Cuccioli (Green Goblin), Katrina Lenk (Arachne).

NOTES: Post-Changes

The Book of Mormon - UK & Ireland Tour - 2019 (Rumpel's master-RARE)

FORMAT: .VOB (no smalls) (HD)

CAST: Kevin Douglas Clay (Elder Price), Connor Peirson (Elder Cunningham), Nicole-Lily Baisden (Nabulungi), Will Hawksworth (Elder McKinley), Ewen Cummins (Mafala Hatimbi), Thomas Vernal (General), David Brewis (Cunningham’s Dad), Tre Copeland-Williams (Doctor), Johnathan Tweedie (Prices Dad/Joseph Smith/Mission President), Cleopatra Isaac (Mrs Brown), Jemal Felix (Guard), Lukin Simmonds (Guard), Alex James-Hatton, David Brewis, Evan James, Fergal McGoff, George Crawford, Isaac Hesketh, Jed Berry

NOTES: One of the best videos of this show out there. Recorded from the right wing, doesn't miss any action. High quality video and excellent sound. Kevin is a very good Elder Price.

The Book of Mormon - Chicago - December 23, 2012 (SunsetBlvd79's master)

FORMAT:  VOB (with smalls) (HD)CAST: Nic Rouleau (Elder Price), Ben Platt (Elder Cunningham), Syesha Mercado (Nabulungi), Pierce Cassedy (Elder McKinley), James Vincent Meredith (Mafala Hatimbi), Christopher Shyer (Mission President), David Aron Damane (General)

The Book of Mormon - Broadway - March 1, 2011 (Preview) (NYCG8R's master)

FORMAT:  VOB (no smalls) (SD)

CAST: Andrew Rannells (Elder Price), Josh Gad (Elder Cunningham), Nikki M James (Nabulungi), Rory O’Malley (Elder McKinley), Michael Potts (Mafala Hatimbi), Lewis Cleale (Mission President)

Wicked - Broadway, 2013-May-12 (Lanelle's master)

Format:  M2TS (HD) - (24.02 GB)

CAST: Willemijn Verkaik (Elphaba), Katie Rose Clarke (Glinda), Kyle Dean Massey (Fiyero), Adam Grupper (The Wizard), Randy Danson (Madame Morrible), Catherine Charlebois (Nessarose), F Michael Haynie (Boq), John Schiappa (Doctor Dillamond)

NOTES: Filmed from the right orchestra, at a slight angle, but excellent quality. The taper originally released this as a blu-ray, 2-disc DVDs and 1-disc DVD, so make sure to get the version that best suits your needs.

Wicked - May 12, 2013 (Lanelle's master RIP WITH SUBS)

FORMAT: .MKV w/o Smalls, With English & Chinese Subtitles

CAST: Willemijn Verkaik (Elphaba), Katie Rose Clarke (Glinda), Kyle Dean Massey (Fiyero), Adam Grupper (The Wizard), Randy Danson (Madame Morrible), Catherine Charlebois (Nessarose), F Michael Haynie (Boq), John Schiappa (Doctor Dillamond)

NOTES: Warning- Moderate quality. Some quality of the original master has been lost through conversion from blue-ray to MKV. Has English and Chinese subtitles. Audio is great and video sometimes has some white-outs. 

Wicked - Broadway - January 2nd, 2015 (unknown master)

FORMAT: VOB w/o Smalls

CAST: Caroline Bowman (Elphaba), Kara Lindsay (Glinda), Matt Shingledecker (Fiyero), Tom McGowan (The Wizard), Kathy Fitzgerald (Madame Morrible), Robin de Jesus (Boq), Arielle Jacobs (Nessarose), Timothy Britten Parker (Dr. Dillamond)

NOTES: The camera moves a bit but follows the actors well. Some parts are a bit washed out but the audio is good. 

Wicked - Broadway, May 28, 2006 (Unkown master)

FORMAT: VOB w/o SmallsCAST: Eden Espinosa (Elphaba), Megan Hilty (Glinda) Derrick Williams (Fiyero), David Garrison (The Wizard), Carol Kane (Madame Morrible), Jenna Leigh Green (Nessarose)

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If you’re interested, please don’t hesitate to contact me! Like I said I would love any cats bootleg- especially the older ones in English and Dutch from like the 80′s till the 00′s. I am also looking for more diversity in my list- and I’m also looking for the classics- Dear Evan Hansen, Falsetto’s, some more Phantom Of the Opera, Mean Girls, Legally Blond, etc...