Torialou's Travels: Cats

MY TRIP!

I have been away for a few days watching the new cast of Cats the Musical, it's currently showing at the Opera House in Blackpool, within the Winter Gardens complex.

I have not been to Blackpool for many years so I was a mixture of excited and worried that I would manage with me health issues.

HOTEL!

I wanted to stop with Travelodge however they were all at the far end of the beach and also very expensive so I opted to try a B&B. This is very rare for me due to my sleeping issues, however it was so cheap I was able to pay for an extra night and check out as late as I wanted. Worked out nicely!

I rang ahead to make sure my room was ready however upon arrival I found that they had forgotten to get the room ready for me. Not the best start lol.

The room was tiny, a little dusty and in need of a good vaccum but overall clean enough and certainly comfortable.

THE WINTER GARDENS!

The theatre was closer than I realised which was really nice to discover, as I found that there was a short cut through a side entrance to the Winter Gardens.

It was however sad to see some of the Winter Gardens in such a run down state see the photos below of one of the old entrances!

Once inside you got to the areas in use it is a different matter, they have really kept up the building and it is beautiful, I did not get any photos but will on my next trip!

THE SHOW!

I was let down by my seat once I got into the show, a large section of the stage was limited by the side of the set. I would not have minded if the seat had been a restricted view chair, however it was a premium seat!

The section sticking out is the side of the set, it is at an angle so there was things happening that were blocked from my view.

The seat was also loacking in leg room and the stage a little high for a premium view seat.

My first night at the show was the casts second live show, I was throughly impressed by everyone involved. I doubt anyone in the audience would have guessed this fact if they did not know.

Notable performaces for me were the new twins (tantomile and copricat) the pairing is perfect, they really do echo each other well but also had me stunned wich some of the impressive lifts they performed.

Clare and Paul who play jellylorum and Gus shone for me as always, during a lot of the show while Clare has a number of important singing numbers its her solo that really makes her shine, she's able to portray how gentle, caring and motherly that Jellylorum is one minute then jump into the evil Lady Griddlebone where clare switches to a rather sexy naughty all white cat.

Equally Paul amazes with hisbrilliant portrayal of a very elderly cat remembering his youth then jumps within seconds into the evil partner of Lady Griddlebone.

I was especially excited to see Danielle Cato's performance as Cassandra. I have seen Danielle in a number of shows, but always as a dancer until now. She is a very talented beautiful dancer, she always stands out on stage for me, so it did not shock me that her performance was beautifully done, however she also nailed her solo singing which made me smile because this is the first show I have seen her with a solo vocal section. I also loved the part when she tried to get away from being chosen by Misto for the magic trick, she managed to look shocked but still hold that air of refinement that we expect of Cass.

I enjoyed the new mungo and Rumple but I have to admit I did miss the previous duo that performed the part a little. The old Mungo was so cheeky he was always funny to watch. The new pair were amazing though and equal in their performance and acro skills.

Jane MacDonald looked very old and sad as Grizz, I have to admit I was very unsure what to expect from her but once she opened up and really started singing I found I was not actually breathing. She absolutely floored me! At the end of Memory she actually started crying and I found myself wanting to literally reach out to her, I felt so sorry for her I wanted to comfort her.

STAGE DOOR!

After the show I nipped to the stage door, it was so lovely to see an inside one for a change.