Andrew Lloyd Webber - Composer
Andrew Lloyd Webber is the composer of The Likes of Us, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, By Jeeves, Evita, Variations and Tell Me On A Sunday later combined as Song & Dance, Cats, Starlight Express, The Phantom of the Opera, Aspects of Love, Sunset Boulevard, Whistle Down the Wind, The Beautiful Game and The Woman in White. He composed the film scores of Gumshoe and The Odessa File, and a setting of the Latin Requiem Mass Requiem.
He has also produced in the West End and on Broadway not only his own work but the Olivier award-winning plays La B�te and Daisy Pulls It Off. In summer 2002 in London he presented the groundbreaking A R Rahman musical Bombay Dreams.
In 2004 he produced a film version of The Phantom of the Opera directed by Joel Schumacher.
In 2006 he oversaw a new production of Evita in London, a unique version of The Phantom of the Opera in Las Vegas and pioneered casting for musical theatre via TV with the hit BBC TV series How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria?, through which he triumphantly discovered Connie Fisher to star as Maria in The Sound of Music. This year in a series entitled Any Dream Will Do he will search for a male lead for the West End revival of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
He bought the Palace Theatre in 1983 and now owns seven London theatres including the Palace, the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and the London Palladium.
His awards include seven Tonys, three Grammys including Best Contemporary Classical Composition for Requiem, six Oliviers, a Golden Globe, an Oscar, an International Emmy, the Praemium Imperiale, the Richard Rodgers award for Excellence in Musical Theatre and the Kennedy Center Honor.
He was knighted in 1992 and created an honorary life peer in 1997.
TS Elliot - Poet
The story of CATS is told through the poems from Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, by T.S. Eliot.
Thomas Stearns Eliot was born in St Louise, Missouri, on September 26, 1888, the youngest of seven children. The family is of English origin, the American line descending from Andrew Eliot who went to Massachusetts from the Somerset village of East Coker in the 17th century.
T.S. Eliot was educated at Harvard, at the Sorbonne in Paris, and at Merton College, Oxford. The French symbolists, especially Baudelaire and Laforgue, profoundly influenced his early poetry. In his academic studies he specialised in philosophy and logic.
He settled in England in 1915, the year in which he married, and also met his contemporary, Ezra Pound, for the first time. He taught briefly at High Wycombe Grammer School, and in 1916 spent four terms at Highgate Junior School, where John Betjeman, aged ten, was on of his pupils. In March 1917 he joined Lloyd Bank in the City of London, in the foreign and colonial department. In this year he published his first volume of poems, Prufrock and Other Observations. His second book, Poems, 1919 was hand-printed by Leonard and Virginia Woolf. The Sacred Wood, a collection of critical essays, appeared in 1920. His most famous work, The Waste Land, came out in 1922 in the first issue of the quarterly The Criterion, which he edited. Three years later he left the bank to become a director of the publishing House of Faber.
In 1927 he became a British citizen. Ash-Wednesday was published at Easter 1930. Eliot soon became one of the leaders of Anglo-Catholic opinion and a devoted churchwarden in Kensington.
There have been various collected editions of his poems, and volumes of his literary and social criticism, notably Selected Essays, On Poetry and Poets and Notes Towards the Definition of Culture.
During the nineteen-twenties he frequented the ballet, the theatre and the London music halls, especially the Palladium. He wrote a celebrated tribute to Marie Lloyd on her death in 1922. His verse writing for the theatre began with the Sweeney Agonistes fragments in 1927. He wrote the London churches - pageant play The Rock in 1934. Murder in the Cathedral, about the martyrdom of Thomas a Becket, was commissioned for the Catherbury Festival in 1935. It was later filmed. The Family Reunion was first performed at the Westminster Theatre in 1939, with Michael Redgrave as Lord Monchensey. Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats appeared in October 1939. ('Possum' was Eliot's alias among his friends.) Four Quartets, now generally regarded as his masterpiece, began with 'Burnt Norton' in 1936, continued with 'East Coker' in 1940. 'The Dry Salvages' 1941 and 'Little Gidding' 1942. The separate poems were gathered together in 1943.
Eliot received the Order of Merit in January 1948, and in the autumn of the same year was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Among many other honours and distinctions he was an Officier de la Legion d' Honneur. He was awarded the Hanseatic Goethe Prize in 1954, and the Dante Gold Medal 1959.He subsequently wrote three more verse plays, each of which had its premiere at the Edinburgh Festival: The Cocktail Party 1949, The Confidential Clerk 1953 and The Elder Statesman 1958.
Eliot married for the second time in 1957. He died in London in January 1965. There is a memorial to him in Poets - Corner, Westminster Abbey, beside those to Tennyson and Browning. His ashes rest in St Michael's Church, East Coker.
Trevor Nunn - Director
Trevor Nunn was educated at Downing College, Cambridge and in 1962 he won an ABC Director's Scholarship to the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, where, as resident director, his productions included The Caucasian Chalk Circle, Peer Gynt and a musical version of Around the World in Eighty Days. In 1964, he joined the Royal Shakespeare Company, was made an associate director in 1965, and became the company's youngest ever artistic in 1968. He was responsible for running the RSC until he retired from his post in 1986.
His productions for the RSC included The Revenger's Tragedy, The Relapse, The Alchemist, Henry V, The Taming of the Shrew, King Lear, Much Ado About Nothing, The Winter's Tale, Henry VIII, Hamlet, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Julius Caesar, Titus Andronicus, Romeo & Juliet, The Comedy of Errors, As You Like It, All's Well That Ends Well, Once In a Lifetime, Three Sisters, Juno and the Paycock, Othello (the final production at The Other Place Theatre) The Blue Angel and Measure For Measure (the first two productions in the new Other Place Theatre). With his colleague, John Caird, he co-directed Nicholas Nickleby (winner of five Tony Awards); JM Barrie's Peter Pan and Les Miserables which won eight Tony Awards and has become the most performed musical in the world.
In 1982, he opened the RSC's new London home, the Barbican Theatre, with his production of Shakespeare's Henry IV Parts I and II. 1986 saw the opening of the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon which he conceived and for which he directed one of the finest productions, The Fair Maid of the West.
Outside the RSC, he has directed the Tony award-winning Cats, Starlight Express, Aspects of Love and Sunset Boulevard for Andrew Lloyd Webber; Chess, The Baker's Wife, Timon of Athens and Heartbreak House. At Glyndebourne he has directed Idomeneo, Porgy and Bess, Cosi Fan Tutte and Peter Grimes and at The Royal Opera House Porgy and Bess (revival) and Katya Kabanova.
For the Royal National Theatre, he has directed Arcadia, An Enemy of the People, Mutabilitie, Not About Nightingales, Oklahoma!, Betrayal, Summerfolk, The Merchant of Venice, Albert Speer, The Cherry Orchard, My Fair Lady and The Relapse.
His television work includes Antony and Cleopatra (BAFTA award), The Comedy of Errors, Macbeth, Three Sisters, Nicholas Nickleby (Emmy Award) Word of Mouth, Othello and Porgy and Bess. He has directed three films, Hedda, Lady Jane and Twelfth Night.
He is the Director of London's Royal National Theatre.
Gillian Lynn - Associate Director & Choreographer
Gillian Lynne was a leading soloist with Sadler's Wells Ballet, the star dancer at the Palladium, played opposite Errol Flynn in the movies and danced with all the greats on TV. She became instrumental in the development of jazz dance in Britain and her distinctive style - a fusion of classical and jazz - led to her groundbreaking work on the world famous Cats, which was recognised with a new category of Olivier Award, specially created for her to acknowledge Outstanding Achievement of the Year in a Musical. Cats continues to be produced worldwide.
Gillian's fifty-plus Broadway and West End shows include - Tonight at 8.30, Love on the Dole, The Match Girls, Tomfoolery, Jeeves Takes Charge, Cabaret, The Roar of the Greasepaint, Pickwick, The Card, Phil The Fluter, Hans Christian Andersen, My Fair Lady, Songbook, The Phantom of the Opera and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
For the Royal Shakespeare Company - A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Comedy of Errors, The Way of the World, As You Like It, Once in a Lifetime and The Boyfriend. She has previously worked with Adrian Noble on the RSC production The Secret Garden.
Gillian's opera productions include the direction of Bluebeard, The Trojans, The Midsummer Marriage, The Flying Dutchman, and Parsifal. Among Gillian's ballets are Breakaway, Lippizaner, The Brontes, and Journey for the Bolshoi.
On television, Gillian has directed The Various Ends of Mrs F's Friends, Easy Money, The Look of Love, The Morte d'Arthur, which won the Samuel G Engel Award in America and A Simple Man, which won a 1987 BAFTA.
She staged many of The Muppet Show for ATV and her 11 feature films include A Wonderful Life, Half a Sixpence, Man of La Mancha and Yentl.
Gillian's most recent productions include the staging of a special Gala in New York to celebrate Phantom of the Opera overtaking Cats as the longest running show on Broadway and Phantom - the Las Vegas Spectacular, which opened in 2006.
ABC-TV awarded Fool on the Hill, Gillian's special featuring the Australian Ballet, Best Musical and Best Production; she was awarded the Austrian Silver Order of Merit for her production of Cats in Vienna; a Moliere award for Cats in Paris and in 2001 she was honoured by the Royal Academy of Dance with the Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Award. Gillian was awarded the CBE in 1997.
John Napier - Designer
John Napier studied Fine Art at Hornsey College of Arts and subsequently theatre design at the Central School of Arts and Crafts under Ralph Koltai. He is an associate designer of the Royal Shakespeare Company.
Notable productions for the RSC include Macbeth, The Comedy of Errors, King Lear, Once In a Lifetime, The Greeks, Nicholas Nickleby Hedda Gabler, Peter Pan and Mother Courage.
His productions for the Royal National Theatre include Peter Shafter's Equus, later seen worldwide, Trelawny of the 'Wells', An Enemy of the People, Peter Pan, Candide and South Pacific. John Napier's designs for opera include Lohengrin and Macbeth for the Royal Opera House, Idomeneo for Glyndebourne, The Devils for ENO and Nabucco for the Metropolitan Opera in New York.
In the musical theatre he designed Cats, Starlight Express, Les Miserables, Miss Saigon and Sunset Boulevard. These productions have been presented on Broadway and around the word. Other designs in the West End include Time, Children of Eden and Jesus Christ Superstar at the Lyceum.
John designed the Captain EO video starring Michael Jackson for Disney. He designed and co-directed the spectacular Siegfried and Roy Show at The Mirage in Las Vegas, followed by Steven Speilberg's film Hook.
He created Burning Blue at the Haymarket (1996 Olivier award for Best Set design), The Tower and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? both at the Almeida, the new production of Martin Guerre and the musical version of Jane Eyre on Broadway.
John Napier's design awards include three society of London Theatre Laurence Olivier awards, a BAFTA and five Tony awards for Nicholas Nickleby, Cats, Starlight Express, Les Miserables and Sunset Boulevard.
Mr Napier is a member of the American Academy of Achievement and in 1996 was elected Royal Designer for Industry.
Pieter Toerien - Producer
His first foray into show business was at the age of 17 and for the first 10 years of his career he brought many legendary stars to South Africa. Hanging in his office is a commanding charcoal portrait inscribed: To Pieter, with my love and deep thanks, Marlene. He brought Dietrich to South Africa when he was 20 years old.
In the 70's he helped create The Intimate, Barnato and Andre Huguenet Theatres in Johannesburg. In 1980 he bought the Alhambra in Johannesburg, virtually tore it down, and came up with three theatres the Alhambra, the Rex Garner and the Richard Haines. In 1988 he purchased the derelict Alvin Cinema in Camps Bay, Cape Town and rebuilt it calling it Theatre on the Bay. He also runs 2 theatres at the magnificent Montecasino Entertainment Centre, with 320 and 160 seats.
The Cape Town season of "LES MISERABLES" a co-production with Sir Cameron Mackintosh and TSOGO SUN brought world class musical theatre to South Africa. This was followed by CATS, and "The PHANTOM OF THE OPERA" co-produced with Tim McFalane. Then came SLEEPING BEAUTY ON ICE, JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT, JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR, STOMP, HAIR, THE LION KING, SWAN LAKE ON ICE and marking his 450th production, CHESS-The Musical. After the triumphant success of The Lion King, Pieter continued his association with Thomas Schumacher with two more Disney shows, BEAUTY AND THE BEST and HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL - Live On Stage, which he co-produced with his friend Hazel Feldman. This new production of CATS is for Marita. It was her favourite show. Coming shows are CINDERELLA ON ICE and the West End production of GREASE.
Jo-Anne Robinson - Adapted Direction & Choreograph
Performance credits include the original London casts of A Chorus Line; Billy; No No Nannette; Oklahoma! and many T.V. and variety shows including Royal Command Performances in England.
Since concentrating on the directorial/choreographic side of theatre, her credits include working with Trevor Nunn and Gillian Lynne on the original production of Cats in London and also assisted in the staging of the New York production. She has directed and choreographed Cats worldwide, concurrently working with Hal Prince on The Phantom of the Opera in Australia and Miss Saigon, working as Resident director/choreographer on the productions as they toured Australia.
Jo-Anne has worked on many other T.V. and film productions, both in England and Australia, working with stars such as Michael Crawford, John Voight, Judy Davies, Juliet Prowse and Daniel Massey, choreographing scenes as required and has directed and choreographed Into the Woods; Mack and Mable and South Pacific in Australia; The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber in China; choreographed Aspects of Love and The Hunting of the Snark both in London and Australia; Little Shop of Horrors and Nine in Australia and is constantly travelling with various productions of Cats. Meanwhile, she completed a B.A. in Italian and Art History at Sydney University, has been part of a team excavating an archaeological site in Chios where she returned in July 2007 to assist in a study tour.
She revisited South Pacific directing and choreographing it in April/May 2005, in Adelaide, Australia and worked as Associate Director/Choreographer on a new production of Titanic The Musical, the Tony award winning musical by Maury Yeston and Peter Stone which opened in Sydney in October 2006 to great critical acclaim and was nominated for Best Production of a Musical by the Sydney Theatre Critics. She followed this setting up another tour of Cats visiting Bangkok and China. She has recently finished directing a Korean language version of Cats in Seoul that opened in September 2008.
Fiz Shapur - Musical Supervisor
Fiz has been associated with Cats since the show's creation at the New London Theatre in 1981, and, as a Musical Supervisor for The Really Useful Group, is closely involved with the re-creation of the show around the world, from productions in Europe to South Africa, and most recently, throughout the Far East. As a freelance Musical Director Fiz has worked in many different fields of the Music and Entertainment industry in London for over twenty five years, both in theatre, television and on the stage
His theatre experience covers a wide range of musicals that include Working, 110 in The Shade, Company, Sweet Charity, and the London Premieres of Merrily We Roll Along, and Little Shop Of Horrors. He spent three years conducting Les Miserables at the Palace Theatre with a brief excursion to the Donmar Warehouse for the Kander and Ebb celebration How Lucky Can You Get, followed by the ill - fated King at the Piccadilly Theatre.
After the U.K tour of the National Theatre production of Guys and Dolls he returned to London's West End for the acclaimed new production of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Aspects Of Love at the Prince of Wales theatre. He then went on to be Musical Director for Five Guys Named Moe, and for the London Premiere of The Best Of Times, the new Jerry Herman revue. Fiz also works as a Vocal Arranger and most recently provided the arrangements for the show What A Feeling and the new musical theatre singing group Teatro for their recent debut Album.
Away from Theatre, as a Music Director / Pianist, and Vocal arranger, Fiz has worked with many Jazz / Cabaret, and 'Pop' artistes, both in the U.K. and Europe, and across the U.S.A., ranging from; Adelaide Hall and Elizabeth Welch, to Helen Reddy, The Three Degrees, The Stylistics, Shalamar, Candi Staton, The Supremes, Rose Royce, Sister Sledge, Leo Sayer, The Trammps, The Real Thing, Odyssey, Tavares, Demis Roussos Jocelyn Brown, and most recently, Sweetbox.
Fiz also composes and arranges for television, and was Music Director for the BBC series Bob Monkhouse on the Spot, and was seen recently on the new tv series Let Me Entertain You.
Louis Zurnamer - Musical Director
Louis Zurnamer studied piano performance at the University of Cape Town with Albie van Schalkwyk and Graham Fitch. He is the winner of the Adcock Ingram Music Competition, the Du Toit van Tonder Bursary at the UNISA National Study bursary Competition, and an Oude Meester National Music Competition Finalist. He made his solo piano debut under the baton of Barry Smith, and was the subject of an SABC1 television documentary Headwrap with Hip-Hop DJ, Ready'D in 2006. Louis has worked as accompanist, vocal coach, Assistant Musical Director and Musical director for Pieter Toerien on productions such as The Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Lion King and Hair - The Love Rock Musical. Louis also held the position of Musical Director on Jesus Christ Superstar, which toured through South Korea in 2009. Louise was also the Musical Director for the acclaimed CHESS The Musical and most recently he received an Naledi Nomination as Best Musical Director for his work on Disney's Beauty and The Beast.
