#because Jellicles dare

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

💙🧠🌙

Maybe a not so commonly dissucsed message from the show? I don’t know I like reading ur takes :)

💙 What's your favorite platonical ship?

My absolute favourite platonic ship will always be Jellylorum and Asparagus as sister and brother (and by extension, Jelly and Gus as a father and daughter duo) - there's something about that little family that gets to me.

🧠 Share a headcanon/theory about the show that you like!

The first one coming to mind if one of my own, but Old Deuteronomy is not immortal - he's an *old* cat, mind, but old by the same definition of a cat is old because they're 17. The reason Old Deuteronomy is revered as being what constitutes as functionally immortal is because he's what the cats call a Keeper of Memory (or just memory keeper), which is something only a few cats a generation are able to do - it's mostly passed down genetically (ex. Macavity has it and deals with it, but does not use it, and Jemima has it and *does* hone it), but not always. A Keeper essentially holds onto generations and generations of memories and information passed from cat to cat, which means they very often will know of experiences that occurred hundreds of years ago, or that they themselves may have never experienced, as if they were there (for example, Deuteronomy has clear physical and emotional memories of being - say - a birthing parent and nursing kittens, even though in their current body they are unable to physically do that).

Some cats given this ability are not able to discern much clarity in these memories; others are brought too much physical or emotional pain to hold onto them because the magic is essentially misfiring in the wrong outlet. It's not something that any cat can handle - it takes a certain amount of training and practice to do so. As such, functionally, Old Deuteronomy carries centuries within him, and this coupled with their actual physical age, lead to grandiose stories about immortality that they don't really discourage because it's quite amusing.

(Also speaking of Old Deuteronomy, Dee he/they superiority)

🌙 Do you think Cats has a theme/message? If so, what is it?

CATS has *many* themes and messages throughout, depending on how you read it, which is why the show is so versatile and resonates with so many people.

I've certainly spoken about my fair share, including the complexity involved in forgiveness, the dangers of mob-mentality, the value (or lack of value) of the elderly in Western societal structures, including the "worth" that they otherwise must provide in order to be continuously cared for or respected (something something Western society values *value* over humanity), the importance of generational storytelling and its affect on younger generations, etc. etc.

I suppose for a lesser discussed message or theme or metaphor from the show, not to go all "Hal, it's about cats", but there is something to be said in regards to CATS' treatment of class in their community structure, which is very interestingly portrayed through the generalized choice of accents and character tweaks and changes that are very often assigned to very specific characters. Scottish Skimbleshanks, Cockney Teazer and Jerrie, Posher Bustopher Jones, Victoria being "the white cat", Rap Tugger - even vocal types often going to specific characters - etc etc all have implications about them that are revealed through association, and carry shades of Elliot (and ALW)'s classicism - I won't go too deep into it here, because I feel as though I've already made this too long, but I have some specific thoughts here.

[uppastthejelliclemoon]

cats the musical isn't bad, y'all are just mean: sincerely, a cats fan who is exhausted with having to defend her favorite show

every time one of those theater polls pops up with a show against cats the musical, it's inevitable that the other show's fans, despite cats fans never saying anything negative, decide to make really negative and rude comments towards the musical and the fans.

most of the comments always say that no one understands how anyone can like cats the musical, or how the other musical is superior, or how the other musical is so incredibly important to the fans.

a show being important to someone is extremely valid, but people who are fans of other shows seem to always forget that there is also a reason why cats the musical has fans.

so allow me to provide some reasons as to why someone might be a fan of cats the musical:

the dancing, which is incredibly athletic and impressive

the songs, which provide a way for different actors and actresses to show off their vocal prowess, and have different tempos and meanings and also, you know, include one of the most iconic Broadway songs that has ever existed

the costumes, which have specifically character-oriented designs

the countless number of non-replica productions that take different interpretations of the show, and create incredibly creative designs for costumes and sets

the amount of LGBTQIA+ coded characters and relationships that take on different interpretations based around how they are played and portrayed.

the amount of LGBTQIA+/POC actors who have portrayed characters in the musical throughout the years, many of which put their own gender/sexual identity into their portrayal of the character.

cast members who directly interact with the fandom, and who encourage fanworks and posts about the musical with excitement

the different countries that have pulled Cats the Musical into their culture, and that have allowed countless groups of fans to be able to see the show live

but you know what?

People don't have to give a reason for why they love a show. If someone is asked why they enjoy a show like, say, Newsies, or Phantom of the Opera, or Falsettos, those fans don't have to go into a deep dive defending their love of the show.

There's a type of stigma that Cats is cringey because of the costumes, or because it "doesn't have a story", which is something that people say that I always find funny, as the story of the show is described in one of the FIRST songs of the show.

Jellicle Cats meet once a year At the Jellicle Ball where we all rejoice And the Jellicle leader will soon appear And make what is known as the Jellicle Choice When Old Deuteronomy just before dawn Through a silence you feel could cut with a knife Announces the Cat who can now be reborn And come back to a different Jellicle life For waiting up there is the Heaviside Layer Full of wonders one Jellicle only will see And Jellicles ask because Jellicles dare Who will it be? Who will it be?

If anyone ever gave a second of thought and research, they would see that the show's premise is literally sung about at the start of the show. It's something kind of important called exposition that actually happens in a lot of shows, but apparently Cats isn't allowed to have exposition.

There's also the matter of characters.

There are multiple different characters, both within the main singing cast and the ensemble, who provide fantastic layers to the show itself.

Grizabella, the outsider character who is redeemed and gets to become the Jellicle Choice, and who happens to have the aforementioned most iconic Broadway song, "Memory", a character who provides a contrast to other characters such as Victoria, who is the featured character during the Jellicle Ball

The Rum Tum Tugger, a seemingly selfish and haughty character, who also provides the song for Mr. Mistoffelees, a magical cat who is able to summon back the Jellicle Leader, Old Deuteronomy, who was kidnapped by Macavity, the antagonist of the musical.

It is a show that has so much emotion and meaning, which can be seen even on the most surface viewing. It doesn't take a genius to understand that there is a message of redemption and acceptance within the show as well.

and while i don't like using the awards Cats has been nominated for in order to discuss how impressive the musical is, because I absolutely think it doesn't need the awards to describe how amazing it is, but like... just look at the list of awards for the original London and original Broadway productions:

Cats the Musical was nominated for these awards, and won many of them, for a reason.

People don't want to admit that Cats the Musical is a good show because it is nothing like what has been on Broadway. There is a reason a lot of shows on Broadway right now are revivals, jukebox musicals, or based off of previous media. While, of course, Cats is based off of T.S. Elliot's poetry, it is done in a way that is incredibly original and unique. People are afraid of original ideas on Broadway. It's the reason why, along with Cats the Musical, Starlight Express is also seen as a weird show, because despite the fantastic music and costumes and storyline, because the actors and actresses are dressed as trains or cats, it's a weird show, and the fans are weird.

(though, as you can see above, I am NOT against revivals, jukeboxes, or media-based shows when they are done well. If you're familiar with my main blog, @tending-the-hearth, you are well aware of how much I adore the Outsiders musical, which is just one example of quite a few shows.)

I don't personally like Falsettos. On the poll putting Cats against Falsettos, I did not discuss why I disliked the show, or that it was a crime people were voting for the show.

I adore Newsies. I have a Cats/Newsies crossover fanfiction. My brother and I are obsessed with it. I love Cats more. I'm not writing on the poll that I'm disgusted people are voting for Newsies over Cats.

It is so genuinely unfortunate that, while every other musical and its fans are given love and support by the musical theater community, Cats the Musical and its fans are consistently ostracized and made fun of. (Rather ironic, considering the entire story of Cats the Musical and Grizabella's character)

You can talk about how much you love a show, or why a show is important to you, but you have to understand that for every person who loves a different show, there's someone who loves Cats the Musical for a similar reason.

Me personally? I love Cats the Musical because it's fun. It's an entertaining show with incredible music and characters. I love the show because it is the reason I've met some of my best friends in the entire world. The show got me through COVID, and some very difficult times with my mental health. It's the show I've been lucky enough to see live multiple times, with the most fantastic and kind cast. It is the show that helped me learn about the LGBTQIA+ community via the fandom, understand and become comfortable with being bisexual, and provided characters that I can identify on a personal level. It is the show that made me fall back in love with writing, and helped to create one of my most favorite OCs in the entire world.

I genuinely say that Cats the Musical saved my life.

And that's just my experience.

There are people who have had experiences with other musicals. They see the show as having saved their life, or giving them new experiences. I love that. I love seeing how musical theater has impacted the people who experience it. I think it's wonderful, and it's amazing that there are so many different shows that people can see and fall in love with.

Why are the experiences of Cats the Musical fans suddenly deemed inferior just because of the show they enjoy? Why do we, as fans, have to defend our enjoyment of a show?

You're not cool for hating on Cats the Musical.

You're not cool for hating on fans of the show.

Cats the Musical is a good show, it ran for years in London for a reason, it ran for years on Broadway for a reason, and it's STILL running in Japan for a reason.

Cats the Musical isn't bad, y'all just hate fun.

[cillyscribbles]

i promised cats metaposting 2 bagpipe boogaloo and i am a bitch of my word here we go

cats 1998: the rum tum tugger + these hands are rated G for grizabella

(theory wank under cut call that catracter development)

(theory wank about munkustrap & grizabella here for those uninitiated)

RIGHT SO unfortunately this one is no longer semi-coherent overanalysis of microexpression but a full descent into conspiratorial madness, so please remain aware of the fact that this is a tangent missing textual support at the best of times. it's entirely possible and even likely that rum tum tugger is genuinely just a bitch to grizabella because that's who he is as a person and doesn't like what she smells like or something idfk. anyway.

welcome to my red string board of why rum tum tugger actually doesn't dislike her for no reason and totally has depth and yeah we're poor little meow meowing a white boy with more hubris than eyeliner, classic essay genre on tumblr, at least he's a catboy this time and the hubris-eyeliner ratio is actually a close call.

anyway, for any of my theorizing to make sense, here are the two headcanons it's all based on:

grizabella is an (ex-)wife of old deuteronomy and the mother of rum tum tugger (and munkustrap if you're so inclined)

grizabella left the jellicle cats at some point when rum tum tugger was a kitten or otherwise a very young cat

and honestly the rest just flows from the mommy issues to be honest. there's a load of alternate explanations and theories and headcanons and mine's by no means the right one necessarily, but i do have to admit the family angst it allows for is balls to the walls insane because it just. it fits what we see on screen so well!

look at this clown i love him. he ONLY does the puff-up at grizabella. and even though that supports my theorizing it's also honestly a bit of a loss i think. it's such an evocative cat-thing. i want him to do that when something jumpscares him lmao. i NEED him to do that at old deuteronomy jokingly and get cuffed on the back of the head by munkustrap for being a professional youngest child. anyway

don't get me wrong, the fact that tugger has a grudge against grizabella isn't anything special, most older cats do; hell, some of them deliberately walk past her Judgementally (bombalurina, notably) or shake their head at her in disapproval (jennyanydots), but it's so pointedly constant and so pointedly Pointed with tugger that it draws my eye. every time she appears, he has to clearly and explicitly broadcast his displeasure with the fact that she's daring to breathe at them.

like, she's not In His Way or anything here. he doesn't have to walk past her if he doesn't want to. he doesn't have to look at her; plenty of other cats pretend she doesn't exist when she looks at them. but not only does he do all those things, he explicitly looks at her and puffs his coat up again. he's walking at a fairly brisk pace toward her and actually slows down to do it. it's such a deliberately mean thing to do it's stuck between really extra and really petty. exactly the same with the jellicle choice scene.

my man's being so petty this should be constituted as bullying lmao. look at that! nobody likes you still! sucks to be you i guess! like. this man would be pouncival doing the fake pranks and scratching her if he was a kitten. he's just, constantly upping his level of mean to her. in the first scene he at least has the decency to walk out in the opposite direction of her.

a really professional youngest child. again, all that ^ is fairly grounded thought on character performance i think if you don't really connect it to anything, but i'm connecting it to abandonment issues for maximum ouch lmao.

so, bear with me for a moment: for whatever reason, grizabella leaves the jellicles, including her husband and kid(s). (if you're a fan of the theory about macavity being the third brother to munkustrap and tugger, i mean, she might've just left with him because he was her kid. i dunno.) and you're tugger. Baby tugger, even. you don't understand why she'd leave you. was it you? were you too much? were you not enough? of course not, but you're a little cat with a lot of pride and all the makings of a Petty Little Bastard in you, so you say fuck all that. i'm not too much; i'm actually more than enough. i'm the best! and i'll make damn sure you never forget it!

i feel like if you include munkustrap in that too it gets to be a really interesting dynamic. tugger's mean and angry and going out of his way to show it, and munkustrap is just kind of. "can we not do this" about it. really seems like he'd rather be somewhere else, but, i mean, welcome to The Unpleasant Shit being his job. professional eldest sibling.

she approaches him and he actively goes absolutely not oh look at that what a nice corner i'll just go stand over there. meanwhile tugger's determined to be all OH! OH LOOK WHO'S HERE!!!! WELCOME HOME CHEATER!!!!!! about it. like i already made a post about this so i won't get into it again but i really don't think munkustrap is all that mad at her, which gives tugger's attitude some nice contrast.

continuing with dynamics for a moment, i feel like tugger either has real Attuned Parental Figure Senses or is surprisingly perceptive for his character? this isn't necessarily connected with the point before, but i mean, he stops his whole entire number MID-DANCE MOVE to point out grizabella. he does do it with great flow though you must admit.

he loves attention!! that's established!! whether or not he's up for it at All Times we can have a discussion about (he really just dips out after his number to recharge for a good while lol) but he's here having the time of his life, BOOM one whiff of grizz and he's tearing down the party decorations, that's it, everyone go home.

i'd attribute it to him just Really Having That Big of a grudge if he didn't also kinda sorta activate his Deuteronomy Detect power during the lad's arrival LMAO.

look at that! he beats munkustrap to it! admittedly i can't see the rest of the stage so it might be that all the other cats already saw it and he's just pointing old deuteronomy out to munkustrap as the latter's too busy looking the other way. but it's still a funky way to get in character traits besides Mean & A Whore!

ok and another notable thing, and to me something really interesting, it that tugger never does end up touching grizabella, even though he has the choice to.

after she's first accepted back via touch from victoria, the cats sort of line up to show their affections too. it's a really nice scene in my opinion, you get the sense that all those cats really are happy to be able to take back an old friend and i'm all for it. but the cherry is that tugger is being Really Interestingly Acted here - he leads cassandra closer so she can reach out to grizabella, but tugger himself stays behind with this sort of blank expression over him. even those cats i mentioned before - jennyanydots and bombalurina - get the moment to hold grizabella's hands and smile and encourage her on. tugger doesn't do that.

grizabella doesn't touch every cat, granted, but even those she doesn't touch are reaching out to her, which is pretty much as good as. they all do enough of that sort of implied gesture throughout the musical that it shows it's affection and acceptance all the same whether or not physical contact is made, like for example old deuteronomy's greeting and the moments before the jellicle choice; the first one's posed similarly to grizabella's return, everyone's trying to touch old deuteronomy, but they're perfectly fine with sort of just reaching out and being reached out to (note mr mistoffelees and bombalurina). in the second one it's even sillier because both munkustrap and old deuteronomy could clear the like 10cm of distance between them, but the reaching and willingness is more than enough for that mutual understanding to come between them. basically intent > result (side note: this is not a good rule for life outside of the cats musical).

tugger doesn't reach out. doesn't try to get any closer than he already got and stays in the shadow behind the rest, just watching her go for a bit before he dips again.

with the way he's squashed behind asparagus jr here i can't tell if he's bowing or nodding or what, but i think it'd be really funny if he was just trying to make himself shrink a little. like hanging his head nope i'm not here don't look at me goodbye. so completely contradictory to his usual vibe it's hilarious.

it is interesting to think about though, in my opinion, that he spends pretty much the rest of the musical in the shadow and separated from the other celebrating cats. he climbs up onto the chest and stays on that platform for the rest of the show while the other cats are being directed by munkustrap to follow and then surround old deuteronomy.

it's interesting - he may be positioned above the other cats physically, but it makes him feel sort of separated if you know what i mean. there's usually this pretty clear separation between munkustrap and the other cats when they're on screen, they might crouch when he stands and reach out to him when he's talking, but this time munkustrap is just down there calling upon the vibes with the other cats, and only makes his way up to old deuteronomy's right after grizabella's gone and it's time for the closing number. rum tum tugger straight up bounces as they're going to the russel hotel LMAO.

he does hype her up as she's going up, which is also really cute. he's off to the side so the other cats aren't really looking at him, but even as old deuteronomy shows her the rest of them, grizabella's eyes linger on tugger's wee rockstar schtick and it just kind of melts me.

anyway. man may be conflicted but he's happy mum gets a retry whether anyone likes it or not. and i think that's nice. :)

[millenari]

as much as I love Sideways's video on Cats 2019 it's fascinating to me how he claims 'Grizabella is the only cat to not explicitly want to go to the Heaviside layer' when Griz literally says 'I must think of a new life / And I mustn't give in' meanwhile not a single other Cat Song™ cites a single reason why any other cat wants to go there. As a matter of fact even in the Invitation to the Jellicle Ball the lyric is 'And Jellicles ask because Jellicles dare / Who will it be?'. Nothing there says they all want it. The song certainly makes the Heaviside Layer sound cool and awesome and desirable, but the song says they all want to know who it will be, not that they all want it this year exactly.

[king-gansey-boy]

I spent entirely too much time on this but it had to be done.

[gotham-native]

did this again and am very happy with the result hehe

i added the photo hehe

[naturepointstheway]

5 Times Misto Didn't Confess To Being In Love With Munkustrap (and 1 Time He Did) [Zurich Mute Misto]

A series of six drabbles showing five times Mistoffelees didn't tell Munkustrap he loved him, and the one time he did. Zurichverse, with mute Misto. Mentioned Tuggoffelees but mainly Munkoffelees

----

It started as the kind of cute crush, a silly childhood crush a kitten would have on an admired figure. Munkustrap was kind, nice, quiet, friendly, and while not as silly as Tugger, he could have fun every now and then. He looked out for him, let him sleep in the curl of his tail during slumber, and let him follow him around—at least at first.

Then he got busy, he had to learn to be a Protector, but at least he still was nice. Little kittens always had silly innocent crushes; it would surely fade away soon enough.

---

Kittenhood ended, and adolescence arrived, and with it, all the new feelings that come with it. The crush was there, still, but it was different. For the first time, Mistoffelees noticed Munkustrap’s thighs, the way he smiled, the physique of his muscular frame. His baritone singing was enough to make something tingle in him, and sometimes he had dreams about Munkustrap he wouldn’t dare confess to him, nor even to Tugger.

Not least of all because Munkustrap no longer had time for anyone except the whole junkyard. He was a full Protector of the Tribe, that was his life now.

---

Mistoffelees’ intimate love for Tugger ran deep, so much so he imagined it ran into whatever previous lives he’d had once upon a time. Perhaps in some of those lives he had not been mute, and perhaps in those lives, Munkustrap might have liked him more. Not that Munkustrap didn’t now, especially after having rescued Old Deuteronomy and showed the full might of his magic doing so. Still, despite Munkustrap warming up to him again, like he had back when they were kittens, Mistoffelees did not dare confess his crush on him—for what if then Munkustrap became cold again?

---

With age, the crush became more of a deep, deep love, much like he had with Tugger. The sort of intimate love only lovers understand, and yet Mistoffelees still hesitated, despite the rekindling of mutual trust between Protector and Magician, their friendship stronger and closer than even when Mistoffelees had been a kitten sleeping in the curl of Munkustrap’s tail. They worked together to create shows to delight and stun new generations of kittens and the older cats who wished to reminiscence on younger days when they could still dance under the Jellicle Moon, when they still were beautiful then.

---

Alas, even the greatest Protectors must grow old, and Mistoffelees knew he had to tell Munkustrap soon. Or perhaps it wasn’t worth it now they were so old, not long for entering the Heaviside Layer themselves. Mistoffelees could no longer do his conjuring turns, but he still created great shows with his magic, Jemima now the new storyteller. In a cruel twist of fate, age stole Munkustrap’s voice, and with it, his storytelling. So Mistoffelees told the stories with his magic, and Jemima orated.

One day he’d tell the story of how he fell in love with Munkustrap. Next year.

---

The following year, it was Munkustrap’s turn to enter the Heaviside Layer. Mistoffelees had dreaded this day’s arrival. Last year it had been Tugger, and this year, Munkustrap. Munkustrap who clung tight to him as they ascended, surrounded by the singing of the cats under the light of the Jellicle Moon.

When they reached the top, Mistoffelees took a deep breath and confessed with his magic that he’d always been in love with Munkustrap.

Munkustrap lifted their clasped hands to his heart with a teary smile and nod.

Somehow, Mistoffelees knew, even though Munkustrap could no longer speak.

Me too.

[murdleandmarot]

betrayal, desire, and guilt from that one ask game. For Bluebelle :3

HI HELLO THANK YOU FOR SENDING IN AN ASK!!!!!

I get to talk about my special girl hooray!!! (Guys I love ocs so so much never stop making up silly people in ur head)

Betrayal: okay so I’m going to bring out the Time Machine™️ and NOT talk about Bluebeard for once (shocker)

Bluebelle definitely felt betrayed the first time Victoria brought Misto with her, not in a ‘how dare you know other people 😡’ but more in a ‘someone knows I exist oh god oh fuck :{‘

It took her a little bit to calm down and get used to it, but Misto grew on her. He also helped desensitize her about meeting new people, which is why she didn’t freak out as much when she met Plato.

Desire: love, probably, and to feel safe, which is probably going to come out of her meeting more cats. Like I said before, she’s got Victoria, Misto, and Plato, but they’ve got a lot of jellicle things to do, and whole Jellicle family. That’s a lot of time for Bluebelle to be alone, and it eats away at her. A lot.

Final answer: family, familiarity and love :)

Guilt: BLUEBEARD TIME AGAIN!!!!! I’m obsessed I love you Bluebeard you’re a horrible awful man <3333

Bluebelle feels SO fucking guilty that she managed to get away with her life and her music box. She’s super in the mindset of ‘why did it have to be me’ sort of vibe, and she feels a lot of guilt about not trying to. Kill Bluebeard or something. He’s still out there, and she can’t do anything about it, and she got away, and the other queens didn’t. It EATS at her.

Bluebelle has Victoria and the others, but she doesn’t have anyone to talk to about what happened, because she’s afraid of what they’ll think, (even though Misto would like. 100% kill Bluebeard with lightning), so she doesn’t have any way to cope with the guilt at all. Most days she just tries to forget, and on her really bad days, she just freezes up.

[cryptidvoidwritings]

[statisticalcats2]

Victeazer kid asks?

Name: Lollytussle

Gender: female

General Appearance: Mostly white with some scattered very light orange stripes, and some darker patches of orange and black on her head.

Personality: She's very fun-loving and energetic. She has an accepting personality but it can get lost in translation as she's more playful and teasing than compassionate and gentle. When it comes to physical stunts, acrobatics, and the like she's very daring, but when it comes to actual conflict she's more prone to run than stand her ground. She doesn't hold grudges but she also tends to not take things seriously enough and the two can sometimes be related.

Special Talents: Very bendy and flexible, like even for a cat. Other Jellicles are awed at the positions she can put herself in and the crazy places she can fit herself in because of her contortion skills.

Who they like better: Victoria. Victoria's a good balance to Lollytussle as a parent and in a surprising turn of events, also tends to be the less strict parent, which makes Lollytussle like her more in that immature kid way.

Who they take after more: Rumpleteazer. Her playfulness, teasing nature, and love for acrobatics come from Rumpleteazer. Unfortunately so does her tendency to not take things seriously enough and act without thinking.

Personal Head canon: Her relationship dynamic with Rumpleteazer is a less serious version of the dynamic Rumpleteazer had with her own parents when she was young. Lollytussle sees Rumpleteazer as the stricter parent, so the one more prone to be annoying, and she also gets annoyed at Rumpleteazer being stricter when Rumpleteazer is otherwise very similar to Lollytussle. But that's also why Rumpleteazer is a bit more strict, because her own ignorance and tendency to not take things seriously when she was younger led her into bad crowds. And she is doing her best to not be too strict, as her own parent(s)' strictness also led to her chasing freedom in what ended up being harmful ways.

Face Claim: Hmm.... Michele Tibbitts!

[afairytalestray]

@storyweaverofgondor's cats-pril day 9: dance! I hadn't written my faves Platoria in a while, so please enjoy this ficlet of them. (Nb I don't know sign language, so please excuse any inaccuracies on that front). Also on Ao3 here.

...

He could do this. He could do this. He could totally do this, right?

Plato attempted to push down the bundle of nerves that had gathered in his stomach. He could do this. He had the sign language down, he’d been practising non-stop. He knew exactly what he wanted to say, and how to say it. He just had to keep his nerve!

His breath hitched as he saw her enter the main clearing of the Junkyard. Victoria. She was beautiful, kind, patient, and funny, and Plato was completely terrified to ask her to dance with him tonight. It wasn’t a full Jellicle Ball, so it wouldn’t be a serious proposition, but he was hoping that it may make her see him as more than a friend. She could lip read, but Plato was determined to learn sign language so she wouldn’t have to.

Victoria caught his eye across the clearing and smiled at him. She nuzzled Electra goodbye and began walking over to him. This was it, this was the time!

…Everlasting, he could not do this! In what world would an elegant, classy queen like her dance with a stray like him? He must be off his head! But she was nearly at him now, he had to think of something to say, anything!

“Hi, Plato,” Victoria said, sitting down in front of him. She even made that look graceful. Get it together!

“Hi,” he signed back. “How are you?”

His paws were clumsy, unpractised. Victoria’s eyes widened. Everlasting, he had messed it up! He cursed himself. All that practice, he had thought he had it down, Misto had said he was perfectly understandable. The nerves were making him shake, he had probably just sworn at her!

“You learned to sign?” she asked, her own paws fluid and fluent. Wait, he understood that! Maybe he hadn’t totally messed up after all? She didn’t look angry, she looked… impressed?

“A little. I thought lip reading all the time must be tiring.” He was slightly calmer now, he was confident he had managed to say that right.

“That’s so sweet, you didn’t have to do that.”

“It’s only fair, and I wanted to! I wanted to because I like you and I wanted you to know I meant it when I asked…” His paws flopped down. Nope, he couldn’t do it. Bottled it.

Victoria tilted her head, eyeing him curiously for a moment. Then, she giggled.

“Plato, will you dance with me tonight?”

What? Had she just-? Had she known? Maybe. She was smart, after all. Embarrassment flooded him – he had probably been very obvious in his crush. But then again, she was looking at him genuinely, and she wasn’t the type to make fun of others like that.

“Really?” he managed after a long moment. “You would want to dance with me?”

“I would be honoured to dance with you.” She smiled sweetly at him, and Plato felt his heart soar.

“I… yes! Thank you! I’d love to!” He once again struggled to keep his paws from shaking, but at least this time it was because he was trying to contain his joy! Victoria giggled again.

“You don’t have to thank me!”

“Yes, sorry, I-”

“Or apologise!”

Plato paused, paws hanging in midair. He wasn’t sure how to respond now – he wasn’t sure there were any words to convey how happy he was. He just smiled. It felt big and dopey, but he couldn’t bring himself to care when she grinned back at him.

“I’ll see you later then?” She got up. “I should go get ready.”

“Absolutely, can’t wait!”

He watched her trot away and let out a happy sigh. Did he dare let himself hope she might like him back? Maybe, if he worked right up until tonight to build up his confidence, he would ask.

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

“You don’t have to do this.”

"You don't have to do this."

Demeter's voice comes from somewhere behind Alonzo's shoulder, thin and reedy but heavy with intent. She is frighteningly calm, all things in considered, though Mungojerrie can hear the tail edge of something foreign tightening each syllable.

The decided emphasis of the statement gives Alonzo a solid beat of pause; he's hearing what Demeter is saying, but, more importantly this time around, he's deliberating it. It's gotten through to him. Mungojerrie sees every millimeter of muscle beneath his eye twitch and shift. He holds his breath.

The speed at which Mungojerrie had been off his paws and slammed back against the wall was - admittedly - startling, knocking the wind and words clean out of him. He'd been midsentence, explanatory excuse just on the tip of his tongue, attempting to keep pace with the cats walking with him, but every time he caught up front, they continued on. Alonzo wouldn't even look at him - that should have been his first warning.

They'd been silent amongst themselves when he'd made his meager attempt at explanation. Even Teazer was frighteningly quiet, trailing hesitantly behind Demeter, in the way that suggested whatever she'd seen back in that room hadn't been good. The silence had been deafening and uncomfortable, tension thick and wounded like a noose set to decorate a neck, and every nervous bone in Mungojerrie's body screamed to fill it, interrupt it - say something that would diffuse everything and stitch them back together instead of feeling like he'd been trapped behind glass, screaming and screaming with no one around to make it mean anything.

He'd said the wrong thing; he could feel it the moment it whistled through his teeth. He'd said the wrong thing, done the wrong thing, pissed off the wrong cats. Or just one of the wrong cat; the most important of wrong cats. And they'd all surely pay for that slip up down the line. But it could be smoothed over; surely everything could.

The last thing he had heard before being suspended was a sharp, flat exhale - a decisive, frustrated kind of noise that, perhaps if he were paying more attention to his surroundings instead of his fear, Mungojerrie would have recognized as something foreboding.

Now, he was face-to-face with a very angry looking tomcat, and struggling a solid few inches off the ground, every instinct in his body screaming at him to escape, lash out and yowl like his tail was on fire, do something, but he was completely frozen. Alonzo held onto the scruff of his chest firmly, shoving his nose into Mungojerrie's muzzle and the rest of him bodily into his space so he couldn't look away from him even if he tried. There were bright coals of anger burning in Alonzo's eyes, fanned to life with an undercurrent of fear. Danger. A reminder - Mungojerrie thought distantly as his attempts at squirming free from an iron grip slowed to a trickle, then an icy stop - of how he'd gotten to be where he was in the first place. It was easy to forget; easy to pretend they were playing one long hauled game. Alonzo was grumpy and aloof, but never dangerous. Never any real threat.

There is a scar running through his lip and up into his nose, deep and pulled taught against his snarl. Mungojerrie wonders where he got it. He'd never asked.

"What the fuck were you thinking?" the larger tomcat growled, low, menacing, cold, shaking him for emphasis. "What is the matter with you?"

Send me a sentence and I’ll fill at least five more in after it for a little mini-fic.

[munkustance]

Spare Tantometer hcs?

Also, who are your favorite actors for Munkustrap, Tantomile and Demeter?

If you could extend any sequence in the show what would it be?

if you could bring back one retired swing character into regular productions who would it be?

and finally Macavity or Munkustrap

First of all thank you for the quick ask! Now lets feast!

One Tantometer headcannon that I love is that Tantomile didn't realise how much she loved Demeter until the Macavity fight during the ball. Seeing Demeter in that horrendus amont of danger exploted a whole lot of emotions inside Tantomile. She had never felt so scared and worried for another cat before. Although it wasn't until afterwards that she realised the reason she got so wind up was because she couldn't dare see someone she loved be in danger, and she loved Demeter. (Bonus points to the broadway revival for putting Tantomile protecting Demeter into the scene.)

For who's my favourite actor I'd have to say Micheal Gruber and Aeva may for Munkustrap and Demeter, (although I also love Anneka Dacres and would kill to see her do Demeter live and Frances Dee who I did see live and loved how she played Demeter, especially during the Macavity song). I just love how does two plays those roles and it's hard to picture anyone else play them (especially Micheal Gruber). But for Tantomile I just have to give tons of love to Milan Cacacie. I fell in love with Tantomile when I saw the international tour in 2022 because of her. Like we were barely a meter away from touching paws during the naming of cats and she was so so so beautiful.

10000% The Jellicle Ball, I don't care that it's already like 10 minutes long I NEED MORE, like just add five more minutes and then I MIGHT be pleased.

I'm actually not that know knowledgable when it comes to all the swings but I do know there is one whos name is Olivia. And only due to that fact I want her in every production. Why? Well subtle munkustance lore, that my real name CX

OBVIOUSLY MY MAN MUNKUSTRAP

[sillybub]

Can you talk more about Anchovy? He's such a cool OC, and I'd love to know more about him and his relationship with Bustopher!

Yea sure!!

So Anchovy is an ex-henchcat who used to run evil errands for Macavity. He was was scrawny, skittish, flea-bitten scrap of a cat who ran with Macavity's crew out of desperate self-preservation.

One day while he was rummaging through trash bins, a very handsomely rotund gentletom approached him, asking asking directions. He looked way too fancy and clean to have been from around that part of town, and judging by the way he was squinting, Anchovy figured he was probably lost.

The gentlecat spoke very politely and kindly to Anchovy, and they were the first friendly words he'd heard in a very long time. Overcome by emotion at being treated with basic feline decency, Anchovy led Bustopher Jones back to the nicer part of town.

Bustopher remarked on how horribly skinny he was, and insisted on treating him to dinner at one of his favorite clubs. Bustopher's fancy friends helped him get all cleaned up, and he felt like a brand new tom.

See, Anchovy was polite. He was polite to other cats because that's how you generally avoid getting the shit beat out of you if you're lucky. Bustopher was being polite back, Anchovy realized, because he thought that everybody ought to be treated with respect and dignity. Even scrappy strays like himself.

Overwhelmed by the kindness he'd been shown, Anchovy swore to leave behind his life of crime. He starts camping out in Bustopher's giant yard. He gets introduced to the Jellicles. His life turns around completely in 24 hours.

But he shows up at the Junkyard and him and Demeter point at eachother because they have DEFINITELY seen eachother before. And that's actually the first time anyone becomes aware that he used to be associated with Macavity. Before then he was just "a very fine chap who needs more meat on his bones." Everybody kept hearing that Bustopher had a new tomfriend and they were not expecting that roadkill looking dude to show up let alone literally one of Macavity's lackeys.

And since Bustopher seemed to be completely unaware of that part of his history, everybody was grilling him super hard. Like, "how do we know this isn't some trick huh?? What are you lying to Bustopher about your past for?"

And it's not that Anchovy was lying per se; just omitting certain details about where he lived and what kind of business he got up to. See, Bustopher was just being so nice to him, and Anchovy figured if he knew that he worked for Macavity, he wouldn't want to hang out anymore. But he really did quit the gang--just for Bustopher.

It takes a big for the rest of the Jellicles to really warm up to Anchovy, and it helps that Bustopher was so insistent that he was a perfectly fine cat, and how dare they be so uncouth!!

Not to say that Bustopher Jones is naive. After all, Anchovy stopped to help a lost stranger get back home when he really had no good reason to. He saw that Anchovy was jumpy and hesitant and dirty, and figured that life probably hadn't been kind to him. But just because life can be cruel doesn't mean that cats have to be.

I think that Bustopher also sees like. Some of a past life of his in Anchovy. Bustopher has such a blessed life now that surely this is the result of having been the Jellicle Choice in a past life. It's all well and good to become the Jellicle Choice if you truly need it, but Bustopher could help this cat make and better life now, before it was too late for him. And Anchovy was such a clever, funny, well-mannered cat! And, well, quite the romantic, too...

Anchovy hangs out around Bustopher's big house, but he's still uncomfortable going inside, or really interacting with humans beyond eating their food. He's pretty awkward when it comes to talking to other cats (he appreciates manners and politeness because it gives him a script to work from), but on his own? He knows how to rough it like the best of them. He knows how to open bottles and cans that humans need to use tools for, and he knows how to climb into high places that you're not supposed to be able to get to.

All in all, they're definitely a mismatched couple. But Bustopher is very fashionable, and he thinks they look good together, and Anchovy is inclined to agree with him.

[millenari]

And for you!

🧵✍️🐾, please?

🧵 fav production!

My two biggest of favs are 1998 and the Vienna Revival. I've listened to the Vienna Revival cast recording so many times that there are moments that, when I listen to English productions, I'll get confused for a moment because I'm expecting them to speak in German. And 98 is of course a classic. 😙👌

✍️ changes to my own production!

alonzo shadow dance

boys participate in Macavity backup dance

more swing/kitten characters (also why are all the swings kittens? older female swings would be nice)

taking a page from the bway revival: longer pas de deux (but not necessarily their pas de deux, just a longer one), platoria in tugger's song, & the new macavity fight (tho I'd love if it were longer)

pekes goes to munk in act 1, no growltiger, i think I'd keep the 'hurry, make ready, remember what I told you!' line of munk's from later London Pekes

smaller theater. I think one of the big things with pac cats is the small, intimate stage that they use. obviously i wouldnt use a catwalk, but something smaller where 'audience interaction' isnt limited to only the audience members in the first few rows (and people all the way up on the balcony can barely tell all 20-30 of the characters apart).

speaking of pac cats, canon tuggoff [insert fire elmo meme here]

m/m and f/f pairs in the mating dance

jenny tap battle

restore bway-style tumble with the fighty personality. london-style pounce and tumble always seem to be the same exact character tbh

dare i say it (i shall) (i shant) (i shall) I might cut Naming Of Cats.

Idk how that would work bc I'd want to keep the 'man who's not heard of a jellicle cat' section. maybe I'd just cut the song down a bunch. I feel like that number sets audiences up to be confused bc it just throws a bunch of information that's technically not relevant at them before they even learn the plot of the show. idk, maybe go straight from 'man who's not heard' to the Introduction, but then I'm not sure where Victoria's solo would go. I'd have to think about it. The fact that Cats 2019 kept it still baffles me, as much as it's a fun song that sets the vibes it does little in terms of storytelling.

TSE: Cats call each other secret names that humans don't know. also TSE: "All the guards and all the porters / And the stationmaster's daughters / Would be searching high and low / Saying "Skimble, where is Skimble?"

🐾 how did I discover Cats!

i cant remember the exact timeline of which came first, but i remember around 2019 i started getting recommendations on youtube for cats videos (i listened to a lot of musical theater songs at the time) and i kind of eyeballed them, but never played them. Then I got (of all songs) Pekes put on one of my playlists, and I just remember minding my own business and drawing (or working or whatever), and I hear what sounds like, 'FUCK! FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!FUCK! FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!'. I go 'what the hell', change tabs, and discover that I'm listening to british catpeople say 'bark'. I thought it was the ugliest song I'd ever heard (lol and now i love it) and put on something else, but other Cats songs creeped in after that one, and I eventually sat down and watched the whole thing on youtube.

And either briefly before or right after this, the trailers for Cats 2019 dropped; at the time I hadn't thought it was bad enough to earn all the mockery, but my awareness of Cats was small (I imagine actually this was after I'd heard Pekes but before I'd watched the rest of the show, come to think of it)

And for a few months I was mostly 'whatever, fun songs', about Cats, but then I just got randomly back into it and the hyperfixation stayed. I think it mightve been 2021 by then? But yeah, it was mostly the youtube algorithm that got me.

[real-total-drama-takes]

Are you blind when you're born? Can you see in the dark? Dare you look look at a king? Would you sit on his throne? Can you say of your bite that it's worse than your bark? Are you c of the walk when you're walking alone? When you fall on your head, do you land on your feet? Are you tense when you sense there's a storm in the air? Can you find your way blind when you're lost in the street? Do you know how to go to the heaviside layer? Because jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicles do and jellicles can Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicles do and jellicles can Jellicles can and jellicles do Can you ride on a broomstick to places far distant? Familiar with candle, with book, and with bell? Were you Whittington's friend? The Pied Piper's assistant? Have you been an alumnus of heaven and hell? Are you mean like a minx? Are you lean like a lynx? Are you keen to be seen when you're smelling a rat? Were you there when the pharoahs commissioned the Sphinx? If you were, and you are, you're a jellicle cat Jellicle songs for jelllicle cats Jellicle songs for jelllicle cats Jellicle songs for jelllicle cats Jellicle songs for jelllicle cats Jellicle songs for jelllicle cats We can dive through the air like a flying trapeze We can turn double somersaults, bounce on a tire We can run up a wall, we can swing through the trees We can balance on bars, we can walk on a wire Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Can you sing at the same time in more than one key? Duets by Rossini and waltzes by Strauss? And can you (as cats do) begin with a 'c'? That always triumphantly brings down the house? Jellicle cats are queen of the nights Singing at astronomical heights Handling pieces from the 'Messiah' Hallelujah, angelical Choir The mystical divinity of unashamed felinity Round the cathedral rang 'Vivat' Life to the everlasting cat! Feline, fearless, faithful and true To others who do-what Jellicles do and jellicles can Jellicles can and jellicles do Jellicle cats sing jellicle chants Jellicles old and jellicles new Jellicle song and jellicle dance Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Practical cats, dramatical cats Pragmatical cats, fanatical cats Oratorical cats, Delphicoracle cats Skeptical cats, Dispeptical cats Romantical cats, Pedantical cats Critical cats, parasitical cats Allegorical cats, metaphorical cats Statistical cats and mystical cats Political cats, hypocritical cats Clerical cats, hysterical cats Cynical cats, rabbinical cats Aaah, Jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats Jellicle songs for jellicle cats

-🐈

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