Cats is a sung-through musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on the 1939 poetry collection Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot. It tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make the "Jellicle choice" by deciding which cat will ascend to the Heaviside layer and come back to a new life. As of 2022, Cats remains the fourth-longest-running Broadway show.
Despite its unusual premise that deterred investors initially, the musical turned out to be an unprecedented commercial success, with a worldwide gross of US$3.5 billion by 2012. Cats was adapted into a direct-to-video film in 1998, and a feature film directed by Tom Hooper in 2019.
History with the Macy's Parade[]
The cast first made a splendid performance at the 1983 Parade as Betty Buckley, playing "Grizabella" sang one of the best musical numbers from the show "Memory".
Several cast members from the show would later make a brief appearance at the 1993 Parade as part of the "Best of Broadway" Herald Square act.
During the 70th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, the cast rode on The Jolly Polly Pirate Ship float through the parade route.
After fifteen years of the original show's closure, Cats was revived just in time to get a second official spotlight at the 90th Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The cast performed their spectacle hits such as "Jellicle Cats" and "Memory".