When it came to choosing a spring show, OPAI ballet mistress and the show’s director Amy Davidge had a memory of “Memory,” the show’s signature song.
“I’ve always loved ‘Cats.’ It was the first Broadway musical my parents took my sister and I to, so it’s special,” she said.
Gauging if the young performers would be in tune with that title, Davidge turned to senior Addie Powell and found she had a similar experience. It was Powell’s grandmother’s favorite show and her dad played the soundtrack and raised her on it.
“Cats” is one of the more challenging productions of its type with the cast of 45, from second-graders to high school seniors and a few younger kids, needing to be transformed into the title characters through costumes and wigs along with elaborate sets.
Davidge said the parent volunteers deserve co-star status as they’ve spent hours crafting the standout appliances that will create the proper atmosphere.
One of the volunteers found an online tutorial to create wigs crafted from special yarn and has worked with others over the past three weeks including crafting milk jugs into stands for the wigs.
The costumes were just solid colored unitards and once in the performers’ hands, were adorned with paint and markers to complement the wigs. Each performer also gets their own makeup palette that they can use their imagination to apply as long as it’s cat-like.
Some of the dads have designed sets that include a slide, platforms and even a stove.
“We’ve had a huge volunteer base that this show would not come together without. They’ve spent their whole spring break working on these,” said Davidge.
Counting down to the last days of her senior year, Powell wanted to make this, one of the last shows she can do on this level, count. It has been a dream role to play Grizabella, one of the leads who gets to perform “Memory.”
The show has had a shorter rehearsal period than normal for such an epic show and demanding in that the performers need the skills to sing, dance and act, but it has been coming together.
The show is condensed from the original to fit a timeslot of about an hour with a few different harmonies, but the experience will capture the beloved Broadway experience, Davidge said.
“Every waking moment has been about ‘Cats’ recently. We’re ready to go,” Davidge said.
MORE DETAILS
Tickets cost $17.82 for adults and $14.70 for students, seniors and veterans. For more information, go to facebook.com/ohioperformingartsinstitute.
Future OPAI projects include its annual variety show in June and then its annual summer theater arts camp in July.
About the Author