Cats the Musical: Toireasa is honored as a cat yet again!

My dear friends,

First let me wish you all a very wonderful, happy and healthy new year! I also have some interesting news...

As you know Billy is directing Cats this May in Hartford (Hannah I saw your post and wish you all the best!), but he has asked me a favor...
that he may name a cat after Toireasa in his chorus.

All of you are aware of how many different Cats there were over the years in every different production, so this isn't uncommon. Billy just wanted to honor Toireasa, the show goes up around her 3 year anniversary.

I of course told Billy that it would be an honor to have a cat named after my princess.

So if you are anywhere near Hartford in May, PLEASE come see the show.

I am also attaching the press release about the musical for you all to read!

Happy New Year Everyone!!!!

Love you!!

Julia

CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts is
First High School Selected to Perform Cats
The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization Releases Rights to Magnet School

(Greater Hartford) - The CREC Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts is the first high school in the country selected to perform Cats, the long-running Broadway musical that closed September 10, 2000. Pre-production is underway for the show, slated to be the magnet school's annual spring musical in May.

Directing the show will be Academy theater teacher and New Britain native Billy Johnstone, a member of the Broadway cast from 1997-2000. Johnstone first saw Cats - his first Broadway musical - at age 13. “I sat in awe as the actor playing Coricopat crawled along the railing of the mezzanine to fix his eyes upon mine, hypnotizing me with his words,” Johnstone said.

Thirteen years later, Johnstone made his Broadway debut as Coricopat and performed as part of the cast that broke the longest-running Broadway musical record in 1997, as well as in the closing company of 2000. Now, he'll bring a show with some of the most unique and difficult choreography to his Academy students.

“I have 100 percent faith these kids can dance every step in the show,” Johnstone said. “The amazingly talented students never cease to amaze me with their deep passion for learning the craft, their drive for doing it over and over again until they 'get it right' and the deep respect they have for the people who came before them in the industry.”

Johnstone and Andrea DeCarli, assistant to the director at the arts academy, began inquiring at The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization about rights to the show in May, when production wrapped on that spring's musical, A Chorus Line. At the time, Cats was not available to amateur groups. The duo persisted and finally obtained the rights in August. Students were let in on the secret in late September.

Workshops to prepare students for the December 13 casting auditions, which will be run just like Broadway auditions, continue through December 4. They review protocol and etiquette - how to prepare, what to expect.

“What's exciting to me is seeing these kids so dedicated to coming to workshops, and they are not even cast yet,” Johnstone said. “They are already following all the rules we've put in place - a dress code, professional behavior - their focus, commitment and discipline at this stage of the process is impressive. They are acting like true professionals already.”

Johnstone is contacting others from his Cats past to serve as visiting artists during the magnet high school's production, including members of the original, record-breaking and closing companies.

“It's so rewarding to see high school students with such an enthusiasm for this show,” Johnstone said. “I want to recreate this as close as possible to the original New York show. At the Academy, we always strive to provide a realistic experience for our students.”

Though the musical's setting - a junkyard - might sound low-cost, the scenery and the costumes actually make Cats an expensive show to produce. Johnstone and the crew are considering localizing the set to feature Hartford-related items and tapping area sponsors.

“In New York, the set itself was a piece of art,” Johnstone said. “Every night during the performance, I found a new piece of 'junk' that I hadn't yet seen. While we don't know yet exactly what our set will look like, we have a number of ideas to pursue. Audiences can count on seeing cats popping out of all sorts of surprising places in the dark. From the musicians in the pit to the crew behind the scenes to the actors on the stage, I already know our students are going to wow everyone, including me.”

About CREC
CREC is a non-profit, regional educational service center serving 35 Greater Hartford public school districts. It was founded in 1966 by local school districts working together to solve common problems. Today, CREC administers more than 100 programs and services spanning the entire educational spectrum with the same goal in mind. CREC's Division of Magnet Schools strives to offer the highest quality educational opportunities that reduce racial, ethnic and socio-economic isolation of students by initiating, developing and managing innovative educational programs. For more information about CREC and the Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts, please visit www.crec.org/academy.

Toireasa is honored as a cat yet again!

Feel Proud

Wowsers!!!

Kyouiteki! :^D