The 2016 Broadway revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1982 musical about singing cats, attempting to update the spectacle for contemporary audiences while competing with the memory of its original 18-year run and impending disastrous 2019 film adaptation.
Nine Lives on Broadway
“Cats” returned to Broadway July 31, 2016, at the Neil Simon Theatre, three decades after its original 1982-2000 run made it the longest-running Broadway show in history (until “Phantom” surpassed it). The revival attempted modest updates while preserving the show’s reputation as Broadway’s strangest spectacle.
The timing proved unfortunate. The revival ran from 2016-2017 (593 performances), closing just before the 2019 film adaptation became a cultural punchline for its disturbing CGI “digital fur technology.” The film’s mockery retroactively damaged perceptions of the stage show’s surreal cat-human hybrid aesthetic.
Leona Lewis was cast as Grizabella for the first leg, with “Memory” remaining the show’s emotional anchor. But without the novelty of the original’s groundbreaking makeup and costume design, the revival felt like nostalgia for something audiences didn’t actually miss.
The production represented Broadway’s struggle with IP recycling: how to revive shows whose original magic was tied to era-specific spectacle and novelty. “Cats” worked in 1982 because nothing like it existed; in 2016, it competed with Cirque du Soleil, immersive theater, and audiences numb to spectacle.