The Associated Press reports that Lloyd Webber will re-conceive the character of Rum Tum Tugger as a rapping street cat. "I've come to the conclusion that ... maybe Eliot was the inventor of rap," he said, referencing poet T.S. Eliot.
The composer also indicated that he had returned to revise other parts of the musical that premiered in London in 1981. The return of Cats will play a 12-week season beginning Dec. 6.
Based on Eliot’s "Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats," Cats is directed by Trevor Nunn, with Gillian Lynne as associate director and choreographer and designs by John Napier. Chrissie Cartwright, long-term associate director of Cats, will work for Nunn and Lynne in re-directing the production for the London Palladium.
Tickets are on sale via london.catsthemusical.com.
