Backstage at Cats

It was a long journey to catch Cats, the musical, in Sydney, but the trip — though tiring — turned out to be very productive and proved to be a learning experience. It was like we attended a crash course in theater school where we studied every aspect of production.

From my end, I also got for myself a treasure trove of materials for both print and television and even had the opportunity to see Lea Salonga rehearse her songs with Cats musical director, Firoz Shapur.

Yes, Lea — our national pride — will be playing Grizabella, the glamour cat (the one who gets to sing Memory) when the Cats touring group (based in Australia) performs at the main theater of the Cultural Center of the Philippines for three weeks beginning July 24. (Tickets to the first two weeks are almost sold out, but you can try calling Ticketworld at 891-9999 or Concertus at 403-2099 to reserve for corporate nights.)

Lea had to fly to Sydney to rehearse with the production because it is cheaper and more practical that way — rather than sending all 60 cast members to Manila for a run through with her. And since we were already both there in Sydney, why don’t I take that chance to have a one-on-one with her (to be aired in Startalk soon) since it’s also quite difficult to pin her down here in Manila? The interview with Lea and the other cast members, however, was just one of the major activities lined up for our delegation, headed by one of Cats Manila producers, Francis Lumen of the All Youth Channel (AYC). The others in the group were Bea Tan and Cecille Fonacier representing Citi, which is the Cats Manila major presenter and Tessa Prieto-Valdes and Pam Pastor of the Inquirer.

The piece de resistance, of course, was watching the actual Cats presentation (see Starbytes review, June 17) at the Lyric Theater, which is located in one of the tourists’ districts of Sydney and was a very comfortable walk from our hotel, Star City — from where Tessa started making heads turn in her bright yellow terno with a train. (Oh, she is the most delightful traveling companion.)

The theater is nowhere as big as the Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo of the CCP. But Lyric, which has a less formal air about it, seems friendlier to theater patrons. The ushers are there to guide you — unlike here where everyone is suspected of sneaking in without a ticket. Why, they even lend out cushions to children to elevate their seats at Lyric.

Food and drinks are also allowed inside (including popsicles) — maybe because the people there know how to clean up after and properly dispose of their trash. For all the food items I saw being consumed inside the venue, I was surprised that there was no litter after people had vacated the theater. We saw that for ourselves because we were the last to leave since Bambi Verzo of Concertus had arranged for our group to go up on stage after the performance to see up close how each item used as prop actually looks.

The set of Cats does not change with the progression of scenes. The backdrop is made to look like a junkyard, which is the favorite hangout for the cat characters. So there is an old tire, a rusty oven, used tennis rackets and an odd assortment of junk — all in oversized scales — basically from how a cat would perceive them. (Bambi’s daughter, Tana, the most obedient child I’ve ever known, had a grand time posing for pictures with every piece of prop.) 

According to Cats company manager Beck Windsor, it had become a practice for them to add or discard an item every time they make a tour. When they visit a new country, they add something that is part of the nation’s culture. Maybe when they perform here in the Philippines, they could put a parol (our native Christmas lantern) — and that should be additional visual treat to the Filipino audience. Of course, that parol would be made to look torn, but that would still be exciting, especially if they continue using it as part of the props in their future tours (next stop is supposed to be Taiwan).

Ms. Windsor also pointed out the floor (it’s still the original) on which the cat characters sing, dance and glide. Utmost concern is given to the flooring because it can’t be too dull or too polished — otherwise that could cause performers to slip in the middle of a number and nobody wants that. Here in Manila, they are worried about the humidity because the actors may sweat easily and slip on the floor. But they should be able to figure out that problem even before they get here next month.

After inspecting the props and the floor — all of which will have to be shipped here in eight containers, we toured the backstage area and saw the wigs and costumes (which will be the subject of a future column because these are other aspects of production that had made Cats very appealing to theater-goers through the years). Side by side are communal dressers and the makeup requirements of each character are stashed in Ziplock bags and carefully labeled.

There were a lot more to see backstage, except that it was nearing midnight and before Tessa could sing Memory (why not – after all, wasn’t she the first Celebrity Duets champion?), we decided to wrap up that day’s activities.

Before leaving Lyric Theater, I took one long lingering look at the stage and I could hardly believe that I actually stood there. Here in the Philippines, I’ve performed as host in various venues: From the snooty CCP, the popular Araneta Coliseum — to those rickety makeshift stages in basketball courts and plazas in far-flung provinces.

But for me to actually stand on a stage in Sydney? I still can’t believe I had that opportunity. Oh, if only there was an audience out there watching me.

If only there was an actual audience there.