It’s no secret that “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” at the Perelman Performing Arts Center has made the ’80s musical cool again, and the costumes are a major part of that.
Rather than going literal, “Cats: The Jellicle Ball” brings the story to the ballroom with humans, and rather than wearing realistic catsuits, the characters don runway-ready looks, courtesy of costume designer Qween Jean. When she began brainstorming the design, Jean knew fashion and movement were a priority.
“Cats are moving. They’re dancing, and so there’s a lot of movement. There’s a language of movement in fashion,” she says. “As a designer, I wanted to fuse those worlds in a very powerful way, but also to infuse joy.…We’re not making cat costumes, but I wanted to make some feline fashion.”
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There are of course feline-inspired moments throughout the show — think fur coats, furry accessories and cat ears, but for Jean and the rest of the creative team, it was necessary to take the production in a brand new direction while honoring the original score.
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To tap into ballroom culture, Jean dove deep into the archives, particularly from the New York Public Library’s picture collection and photographer Chantal Regnault’s book “Voguing and the Ballroom Scene of New York 1989-1992.”
“[Regnault is] an iconic photographer of that era, who invested in capturing portraiture of the mothers of that era,” Jean says, noting the show pays tribute to these icons and portraits at the top of Act Two. “We were able to bring Chantal to our rehearsals, and having that connection was extremely helpful and necessary to me as a designer.”
Throughout the production’s workshops, Jean was constantly meeting with the actors, discussing their characters and what “armor” they would sport as a ballroom cat — there was a yearlong period filled with research and conversation before a sketch was even done. Eventually, a slew of vibrant, sparkly and textured costumes came to life inspired by the period.
Although all of the costumes are unique and specific to each cat’s personality, a few stand out. For starters, Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat’s look resembles that of an MTA worker with some extra sparkle, Jean’s “thank you” to essential workers in New York City.
“The essential workers of this city never get their flowers,” she says. “The hard working women and femmes on the MTA, they’re always fabulous, the way that they personalize a work uniform.…When thinking about Skimbleshanks, I was like, ‘What’s the way that we give flowers back?’”
As central as the score is to “Cats,” so is the character Old Deuteronomy, played by Broadway veteran André De Shields. His character resides as the elder cat, overseeing all that goes on in the ballroom.
“Their presence is paramount. They are the most impeccable cat,” says Jean, noting that an additional costume was designed and created for the character in just three days during the production’s tech rehearsals.
To capture Old Deuteronomy’s power, she played around with several purple hues, a color denoting regality, and structured silhouettes, some asymmetric.
“For [Old Deuteronomy’s] wardrobe, I worked very hard,” Jean says. “I wanted to give a nod to an elder statesperson.…There is a regality and a sense of authority with Old Deuteronomy that can’t be questioned.”
Then there’s Grizabella the Glamour Cat, who transforms over the course of the show, first appearing in a raggedy fur coat and closing Act Two in a sparkly, studded gown.
“Tempress” Chasity Moore as Grizabella the Glamour Cat. Matthew Murphy
“We were able to design something that is a true celebration of her journey,” says Jean. “We see an entire character transformation throughout the night of the ball.”
While “Cats” has been a debated show — fans had a love-hate relationship with the 2019 film — “The Jellicle Ball” is bringing new audiences into the fold. But for Jean it’s always been pure magic.
“First and foremost, ‘Cats’ has always been essential. That is the profound genius of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber,” Jean says. “A lot of us, we’ve been able to bring ourselves in.…That’s the reason that this production has been able to help people unlock and to be able to connect. We’ve seen people, and not that we couldn’t see them before, but we’re able to see parts of ourselves.”
While some theatergoers are new to “Cats” via “The Jellicle Ball” production, which runs through Aug. 11, it seems Jean was always destined to attend the ball.
“It’s my love letter to the eight year old Queen that bought her first ‘Cats’ CD,” she says, reminiscing on this full circle moment. “It’s a manifestation.”