Is CATS really still on Oasis?!!

[poocher]

Oh God, another hilarious show!  But not sure the “F#%%%^ you God” number would play well!  How about Avenue Q, full frontal puppet nudity!!!

[baelor]

3 hours ago, cruizzing said:

When rumors of "Book" were swirling for Odyssey, it made me think of "Book of Mormon". But not sure that it would appeal to the target audience. 

I would love to see Book of Mormon on a cruise, but it is probably a little too edgy and off-putting to most cruisegoers lol.

[CleverFirst]

On 5/7/2022 at 11:23 AM, baelor said:

I would love to see Book of Mormon on a cruise, but it is probably a little too edgy and off-putting to most cruisegoers lol.

A show about friendship, community, exceeding expectations, and boba fet? What's not to like? Also this would catapult royal firmly into the 20's-50's crowd and only the cool 50+ cruisers would still stick around. I'm for it tbh. 

[losfp]

On 5/4/2022 at 1:51 PM, CleverFirst said:

NCL made an excellent choice going with SIX

Six is an excellent choice for a cruise ship show.  High energy, great numbers, empowering themes, small cast and simple stage, single 90 min act. I saw the Australian production 4 times in Sydney and loved it each time.

 

Cats... yeah no. I saw it a few years back. I'm glad I saw it. The performers were great. I don't need to ever see it again (but if I found myself on a ship and it was "free"... then I would drag my kids to see it as they haven't seen it and I feel like they should suffer like I suffered).

 

We were considering Symphony for our first RCI cruise and I think we would have enjoyed Hairspray as we've seen it a few times and enjoyed it. But we ended up booking Explorer and Odyssey.. so no Broadway cruise shows for us.

 

The other shows mentioned here, I like Jersey Boys, Grease is ok (but the ending is terrible) and Mamma Mia is fine if you turn your brain off and just enjoy the ABBA music.

[alfaeric]

So we saw Cats on our recent Oasis cruise.  Had to see what all of the hubub was about.  Went in with less than zero expectations, and the show certainly lived up to those.

 

First of all, IMHO, they need to add an intermission to the show, keeping the whole thing at 90 min.  That way, for all of the people who leave, they can do it all at once instead of coming in late, moving to the center of the isles (where the open seats are) only to go back doing the exact same thing.  It was pretty distracting to see through all of the people coming and going.  

 

But why is the show so hated?  I'll tell you why I hated it (but I sat through the whole thing).

 

First of all, the music arrangements- it was if ALW was just copying a lot of the "Modern" music going on at the time of the late 70s, with uncomfortable harmonies going on.  So you at multiple voices singing odd notes, then the pretty quiet music behind it with different dissonance- and the result of that is the words sung were almost impossible to actually understand.  Some of it was also so quiet that you could barely make out they were even singing.

 

Next, the "story".  All but one or two songs were about individual cats and who they were.  Which is fine if those songs were setting the viewer up for something they would later do.  But no, they were just songs of cats that we never saw again, other than the horny male cat and the aging formerly glamourous cat.  Thieving cats, tap dancing cat, old cat, etc- they did their thing and were never seen again.  The song and dance associated with each were totally a waste of time.  

 

One of the whole points of the "story" was to pick a cat out for rebirth... wait, are they dead?  Why do they need some kind of rebirth?  And when it finally happened to the very obvious choice, it was just a ride off stage to the sky.  Which was just also nothing.  Also, I could have sworn the leader was dragged off by another cat without any real resistance...  so much for being a leader.  Then his skin re-appeared on one of those cats- so he's dead, right?  No- the last cat was magical, and brought him back to life so that he could make "the choice".   What in the world was all of that?  Did any of it have any purpose?

 

Lastly- while the cast seemed really great, it was pretty clear that not a lot of talent is really required for all but the cat singing "Memories".  With the lack of real harmonies, no high end singing skills were required, and the basic moves not in sync- no high end dancing moves are required- plus it was very rare that singing was combined with dancing- Cats had to have been one of the cheapest of the musicals of all time- you can get cast right out of college with basic skills and let them move on.

 

Which appears to apply to Royal- there were only two shows for +5000 passengers, both of which had plenty of open seats.  

 

The other shame about this show is that it eliminated the aerial show that was previously on the Oasis- which was a GREAT show.  Nope, Cats eliminated that.

[yogimax]

The London production ran for 21 years and 8,949 performances, while the Broadway production ran for 18 years and 7,485 performances, making Cats the longest-running musical in both theatre districts for a number of years.

 

Looks like a good number of folks really liked it.

[queenfrostine22]

I said it a long while back.... its a ridiculous concept.

Sitting through it once was enough.

Jellicle cats! Jellicle cats!

[alfaeric]

2 hours ago, yogimax said:

The London production ran for 21 years and 8,949 performances, while the Broadway production ran for 18 years and 7,485 performances, making Cats the longest-running musical in both theatre districts for a number of years.

 

Looks like a good number of folks really liked it.

Good for them, it helps start a lot of careers based on the talent required to do it.

 

And I'm sure both had some seriously cheap discount tickets pretty fast to keep up demand.

 

At the same time, some people don't seem to want to accept that people dislike the show SO MUCH they will walk out in the middle of the show.  

 

In addition to not liking the show, I don't think I can accept the fact that Cats removed the aerial show from Oasis.  That's criminal.

[jk04]

4 hours ago, alfaeric said:

Which was just also nothing.  Also, I could have sworn the leader was dragged off by another cat without any real resistance...  so much for being a leader.  Then his skin re-appeared on one of those cats- so he's dead, right?  No- the last cat was magical, and brought him back to life so that he could make "the choice".   What in the world was all of that?  Did any of it have any purpose?

Macavity and his henchmen capture Old Deuteronomy.  What the cut version doesn't really make clear is that Macavity returns disguised as Deuteronomy.  His cover is eventually found out and he ends up in a fight with Munkustrap.  As Macavity starts to lose the fight he shorts out the lights and escapes.  Mr. Mistoffelees is then asked to use his magical powers to restore the lights and bring back Old Deuteronomy.  Once he returns, the Jellicle Choice can be made for the journey to the Heaviside Layer.  He chooses Grizabella.

[BND]

On 5/7/2022 at 8:21 AM, poocher said:

Oh God, another hilarious show!  But not sure the “F#%%%^ you God” number would play well!  How about Avenue Q, full frontal puppet nudity!!!

We saw that in NY in 2018 as a 1/2 price show after we'd seen one Broadway show and one off-Broadway show.  It was hysterical.  But, honestly, the funniest show we've seen was off Broadway also and that was "The Play that Goes Wrong".  Everyone laughed nonstop.  It has one set so could easily be done on a ship (It all takes place in one room).

 

BTW, we hated Cats.  And, we've seen a lot of Broadway musicals and a couple of plays.  We used to go to NYC about every 18-24 months.  Last time was Fall 2019.  

Edited May 23, 2022 by BND

[yogimax]

3 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

At the same time, some people don't seem to want to accept that people dislike the show SO MUCH they will walk out in the middle of the show.  

How about attacking Grease, a story totally based on stereotypical sexism?  

[bucfan2]

53 minutes ago, yogimax said:

How about attacking Grease, a story totally based on stereotypical sexism?  

Grease is awesome….no reason for him to attack it.  Cats intermission was well after 1/2 the crowd dispersed when we tried sleeping thru it. 

Edited May 23, 2022 by bucfan2

[BND]

19 minutes ago, bucfan2 said:

Grease is awesome….no reason for him to attack it.  Cats intermission was well after 1/2 the crowd dispersed when we tried sleeping thru it. 

We were on Oasis on a b2b.  The first week, we had reservations and went hoping for the best.  We left at intermission. We just couldn't sit through any more that day.  The following week we went back at intermission to watch the rest and afterwards wished we hadn't.  A lot of people left at intermission both weeks and others left during the show.   People who love it try to convince others to also, but we just can't.

[alfaeric]

1 hour ago, yogimax said:

How about attacking Grease, a story totally based on stereotypical sexism?  

Go for it.

The music is better- and you can actually understand the words. 

There's an actual storyline, with a handful of sensible sub plots.

 

The biggest complaint I've seen of Grease is the use of cigarettes.  

 

Stereotyping goes a long way in Broadway- ever seen West Side Story?  Or even Mama Mia?  Perhaps Chicago is better at it's stereotypes?  Did you catch them all in Oklahoma?  I can go on.

 

But all of them have real stories and understood music.

 

Heck, even the very modern and incredibly fast paced wording in Hamilton is easier to understand than Cats.

[BND]

6 hours ago, alfaeric said:

So we saw Cats on our recent Oasis cruise.  Had to see what all of the hubub was about.  Went in with less than zero expectations, and the show certainly lived up to those.

 

First of all, IMHO, they need to add an intermission to the show, keeping the whole thing at 90 min.  That way, for all of the people who leave, they can do it all at once instead of coming in late, moving to the center of the isles (where the open seats are) only to go back doing the exact same thing.  It was pretty distracting to see through all of the people coming and going.  

 

It had an intermission when we saw it Oasis a few years ago.  That's when we left.

Edited May 24, 2022 by BND

[poocher]

24 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

Go for it.

The music is better- and you can actually understand the words. 

There's an actual storyline, with a handful of sensible sub plots.

 

The biggest complaint I've seen of Grease is the use of cigarettes.  

 

Stereotyping goes a long way in Broadway- ever seen West Side Story?  Or even Mama Mia?  Perhaps Chicago is better at it's stereotypes?  Did you catch them all in Oklahoma?  I can go on.

 

But all of them have real stories and understood music.

 

Heck, even the very modern and incredibly fast paced wording in Hamilton is easier to understand than Cats.

Cannot agree, the music is mediocre at best and the story line?  Let’s turn Sandy into a slut so Danny will like her!!  Greased Lightening - the chicks will CREAM?  You aren’t watching if you think it’s a family show/

[yogimax]

23 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

Go for it.

The music is better- and you can actually understand the words. 

There's an actual storyline, with a handful of sensible sub plots.

 

Sure, it's easier to understand.  Very simply... women are dependent on men and simply objects of male gratification.  Sandy surrenders her identity and morals for finding her male savior.  

 

Sorry, the lyrics and story line in Cats may be difficult to follow but at least it does not attribute an inferior and dependent place to female felines.

[RomanPearce]

There are way more up to date shows out there……….. however the cost 💲 is astronomical for these productions 

[mook1525]

Wait,

 

I thought Royal cut the show from 120 mins to 90 mins.  No?

 

Is there still an intermission now?

 

 

[alfaeric]

17 minutes ago, yogimax said:

Sure, it's easier to understand.  Very simply... women are dependent on men and simply objects of male gratification.  Sandy surrenders her identity and morals for finding her male savior.  

 

Sorry, the lyrics and story line in Cats may be difficult to follow but at least it does not attribute an inferior and dependent place to female felines.

So that horny male cat is part of a family show?  Who knew....   His whole spiel was about how manly of a cat he was.  To pretend that Cats is morally better is far from true.

 

I also remember when the cavity cat abducted the leader.  And then showed up in his skin- holy crap, he murdered and skinned the leader.  The violence.  Good thing there was magic to fix this problem.

 

At least you can understand the story/music to have an opinion of the stereotyping.  Cats is so bad, there could be some hidden messages that you would never know.

Edited May 24, 2022 by alfaeric

[alfaeric]

1 minute ago, mook1525 said:

Wait,

 

I thought Royal cut the show from 120 mins to 90 mins.  No?

 

Is there still an intermission now?

 

 

It's 90 min now.  My contention is that it should be 80 min with a 10 min intermission.  Better if it was 70 with a 20 min intermission- there were plenty of songs and character intros that could be dropped without impacting the story.  Let the people free without leaving during the show.

[yogimax]

3 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

So that horny male cat is part of a family show?  Who knew....   His whole spiel was about how manly of a cat he was.  To pretend that Cats is morally better is far from true.

C'mon... to excuse the blatant sexism in Grease by comparing it to Cats is simply nonsense.  The whole story line of Grease revolves around women's inferiority and need for male domination.

[bucfan2]

36 minutes ago, yogimax said:

The whole story line of Grease revolves around women's inferiorityc and need for male domination.

So what didn’t you care for?

Edited May 24, 2022 by bucfan2

[John&LaLa]

7 hours ago, alfaeric said:

So we saw Cats on our recent Oasis cruise.  Had to see what all of the hubub was about.  Went in with less than zero expectations, and the show certainly lived up to those.

 

First of all, IMHO, they need to add an intermission to the show, keeping the whole thing at 90 min.  That way, for all of the people who leave, they can do it all at once instead of coming in late, moving to the center of the isles (where the open seats are) only to go back doing the exact same thing.  It was pretty distracting to see through all of the people coming and going.  

 

But why is the show so hated?  I'll tell you why I hated it (but I sat through the whole thing).

 

First of all, the music arrangements- it was if ALW was just copying a lot of the "Modern" music going on at the time of the late 70s, with uncomfortable harmonies going on.  So you at multiple voices singing odd notes, then the pretty quiet music behind it with different dissonance- and the result of that is the words sung were almost impossible to actually understand.  Some of it was also so quiet that you could barely make out they were even singing.

 

Next, the "story".  All but one or two songs were about individual cats and who they were.  Which is fine if those songs were setting the viewer up for something they would later do.  But no, they were just songs of cats that we never saw again, other than the horny male cat and the aging formerly glamourous cat.  Thieving cats, tap dancing cat, old cat, etc- they did their thing and were never seen again.  The song and dance associated with each were totally a waste of time.  

 

One of the whole points of the "story" was to pick a cat out for rebirth... wait, are they dead?  Why do they need some kind of rebirth?  And when it finally happened to the very obvious choice, it was just a ride off stage to the sky.  Which was just also nothing.  Also, I could have sworn the leader was dragged off by another cat without any real resistance...  so much for being a leader.  Then his skin re-appeared on one of those cats- so he's dead, right?  No- the last cat was magical, and brought him back to life so that he could make "the choice".   What in the world was all of that?  Did any of it have any purpose?

 

Lastly- while the cast seemed really great, it was pretty clear that not a lot of talent is really required for all but the cat singing "Memories".  With the lack of real harmonies, no high end singing skills were required, and the basic moves not in sync- no high end dancing moves are required- plus it was very rare that singing was combined with dancing- Cats had to have been one of the cheapest of the musicals of all time- you can get cast right out of college with basic skills and let them move on.

 

Which appears to apply to Royal- there were only two shows for +5000 passengers, both of which had plenty of open seats.  

 

The other shame about this show is that it eliminated the aerial show that was previously on the Oasis- which was a GREAT show.  Nope, Cats eliminated that.

 

What aerial show? Come Fly With Me?

 

CATS didn't eliminate it. They ran together for 5 years. It was 'replaced' with a Flight knockoff that is so bad it hasn't been seen since February 2019.

 

CATS replaced Hairspray as I recall

[John&LaLa]

1 hour ago, poocher said:

Cannot agree, the music is mediocre at best and the story line?  Let’s turn Sandy into a slut so Danny will like her!!  Greased Lightening - the chicks will CREAM?  You aren’t watching if you think it’s a family show/

 

You left out Pussy wagon and Get lots of tit. 

 

Never realized the words when it first came out (no Google😉) First got the words by watching it in sing along version on Freedom pool deck with tons of impreshionable kids🤣🤣