It's All About the "Cats!"

It was June 11, 2006 that my partner and I were fortunate enough to see the musical, "Cats" with two of our friends. Our local college, Rock Valley College in Rockford, IL, presented it at the Starlight Theatre.

The night we went was a very special evening. It was a retirement community called Wesley Willows’ 34th Annual Benefit. Ticket sales and donations that were given that night went to a great charitable cause. The cause is called the "Good Samaritan Fund." This fund assists residents who have outlived their personal financial resources but are currently residing at the retirement community called Wesley Willows.

Most of us remember that "Cats" was a smash hit first on London’s West End and then Broadway in the early 1980’s. And since then, "Cats" has gone on to become a worldwide show. The lyrics of the show come directly from T. S. Elliot’s splendid book of poems—The Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. However, the music for it is by Andrew Lloyd Webber.

When my friends and I first entered the area to pick up our tickets (Sharon , my partner had to work until the show started), we were graciously welcomed by the Human Resource Director of Wesley Willows, Cathy and the C.E.O., Bill Pratt. Then we went to the Pre-Show 40th Anniversary Celebration of the retirement community Wesley Willows.

Wesley Willows provided for both snack food and drink at the Pre-Show. It had a buffet style set up. There were two long tables that had white clothe table cloths on them. As you walked by the tables you could serve yourself cookies and/or cake. There was also soda available in huge soda cooler containers. What we did was gathered our cookies up and soda and ate at a clothed covered picnic table that was under a tent-like pavilion. We later entered the Starlight theatre and watched a delightful show.

This local production was fabulous! I am not sure what impressed me more-the talent of the actors, dancers, singers or the choreography, costumes, direction, lighting, scenery or orchestra. All these essential parts of the show "Cats" were splendid. Moreover, although the college was allowed to present the production which included the original score, it was not allowed to use original choreography, costumes, direction, lighting or scenery. Hence, everything our audience viewed was a Rockford original. This was a memorable night indeed!

Quick Tips:

I have four suggestions/tips if you ever come to the Starlight Theatre. One, buy your tickets for any shows early because the seating is limited. Two, you can buy season tickets here. This is a really good deal since buying a season ticket is like buying three tickets and seeing the fourth show for . And if you are a student or senior you can actually see the fourth show for . Three, there are group rates available for groups of 20 or more. Lastly, the other three shows that will appear here this summer are the following: State Fair, Miss Saigon, Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. There are also summer concerts available with the Rockford Symphony Orchestra and Time For Three.

Best Way To Get Around:

The best way to get around once you arrive here is by a car/bus is by foot. You have to walk to the theatre. This place is wheelchair accessible though. If you need this service, you just need to notify the box office in advance so that they can better serve you.

As I aforementioned in my overview of this journal, the day my friends, my partner and I went to the musical "Cats," it was a very special day for seniors. This day at the Starlight, was set aside for celebrating seniors. It was Wesley Willows Corporation’s 34th Annual Benefit for the Good Samaritan Fund. This fund assists residents who have outlived their personal finances. Over one million dollars was used for charitable support of residents at Wesley Willows (retirement community) last year.

Part of the pre-show 40th Anniversary Celebration for Wesley Willows( providing a retirement community for seniors for this long) was Wesley Willows having a buffet-style refreshment area for the patrons of the "Cats" musical that night (June 11, 2006). My partner, Sharon, whom works for the senior living services for the company Aramark, and is the dining director at Wesley Willows, set up this buffet. She and her employees did a wonderful job!

The buffet-style tables used for this event had white table clothes on them and burgundy, ruffle skirting on the bottom of them. The front table was set up in the following way: a cookie platter on the left end of the table, then the beverage fountain, cut pieces of the Anniversary cake, then the Anniversary sheet cake, more cut cake and another platter of cookies. The back table had a cookie platter on the left side, cut cake, the beverage fountain in the middle, more cut cake, and another platter of cookies. Sharon said they had a two table set up so the line of people would move faster and thus people wouldn’t be standing around.

The snack refreshments were fresh and very tasty. And if you are a cookie monster type personality, you would have adored the cookies Wesley Willows served that evening. The following is the list of the cookies that were served: chocolate/peanut butter, chocolate truffle with coconut, peanut butter/MM, chocolate chip with a fudge filling and a sugar cookie type with raspberry filling. I personally ate the chocolate truffle with coconut and the sugar cookie with raspberry filling. These cookies were to die for! And my friends tried them all and said all of them were equally delicious! Concerning the cake, it was a lemon cake with white frosting. I noticed many people were gorging on it, therefore I assume it was another great snack/dessert served that evening. This cake was made and given to Wesley Willows by a restaurant called Cliffbreakers in Rockford, IL.

Concerning the beverages, besides the fruit punch that Wesley Willows prepared, Cliffbreakers donated the soft drinks and the bottled water. They were available where the buffet-style set up was located. There were huge soda coolers with a variety of sodas and bottled water in them.

Although you served yourself here, the tables were manned by volunteers and Wesley Willows workers. Whenever the cookie platters needed to be refilled, more cake needed to be cut and put on the plastic, disposable dishes or the picnic tables that we ate on (all had white clothe tablecloths on them) needed to bussed, help was always available. Between the volunteers and the workers of Wesley Willows, the buffet-style setup was a success! These people were courteous! And they provided us guests, with a well-organized buffet-style setup and a clean dining area.

Many, many people were enjoying the free refreshments that Wesley Willows provided and proceeds of the ticket sales assisted the Good Samaritan Fund. It was exactly what Wesley Willows wanted to see—people help celebrating their 40th Anniversary with them.

Wesley Willows Dining Services are available for the public. If you desire to eat with your love one at Wesley Willows you can eat there for a charge. And if a resident or an outside guest would like to book a function with Wesley Willows, Wesley Willows can provide a dining room and either serve you a sit-down meal or a buffet-style meal. The food is negotiable but there is no charge for the dining area. You must speak with the Dining Director for the cost of the function.

Wesley Willows is located at 4141 N. Rockton Ave., Rockford, IL, 61103 and the phone number for the dining director, Sharon, is (815) 316-1520.

Summation of Act Two

Act Two: Why Will the Summer Day Delay--When Will Time Flow Away-- starts out with Old Deuteronomy informing the cats that he will select a cat who "has found meaning to the happiness he or she has experienced" (The Moments of Happiness). Then Jellylorum introduces Gus: The Theatre Cat. This Cat was once a superb actor and he recalls one of his favorite roles in The Ballad of Billy M’Caw. After he is finished with his performance, the next cat that competes is called Skimblesshanks, the Railway Cat. He thinks he operates the train station and keeps it running right. But then the cats are disturbed again and hear a loud crash and leave. As a result of this, Old Deuteronomy speaks softly to the cats and tries to make them feel at ease. Meanwhile, the cats Demeter and Bombalurina whisper about the secretive criminal cat called Macavity, the Mystery Cat that appeared. This cat is upset and jealous that he isn’t in the competition. Consequently, he kidnaps Old Deuteronomy so that no one can be selected to be reborn.

When the cats finally figure out Old Deuteronomy is gone, and Macavity is standing in his place, an enormous fight occurs (Macavity Fight). The cats capture Macavity but they have no idea how to discover Old Deuteronomy. But Rum Tum Tugger comes up with the idea that they ask Magical Mister Mistoffelees. And this cat comes on the scene, and with his magical ways Old Deuteronomy re-appears. Because of this, the cats are happy that their leader is back and make over Mister Mistoffelees.

Grizabella once again arrives at the junkyard and again pleads her case to be selected. She tells the cats that she desires to live in a different manner and go back to her gleeful days of her youth (Memory). The first cat to accept her is Jemima and the other cats follow. They all end up welcoming her to the Ball.

Since the night was coming to the end, Old Deuteronomy had made his decision who was going to be reborn. The cats made a processional leading Old Deuteronomy and the cat selected to be reborn was Grizabella! Then we saw this cat character rise off the stage "up to Heaviside layer, past the Russell Hotel and the Jellicle moon" (The Journey to the Heaviside Layer).

When it is just about morning and the Jellicle Ball is almost finished for another year, Old Deuteronomy ends the Ball by making sure the other Jellicle cats remember that they have special privileges (The Ad-dressing of Cats). Then the cats go to their homes and the junkyard remains still, until next year.

I thought both the storyline and the musical synopsis of the scenes were intriguing. How the cat characters dance, sing and act was remarkable. You would think all of these individuals had played Broadway. They prowled, meowed and hissed their way into your heart. If you didn’t know there was humans in those cat suits, you would think you were home with your feline friend(s).

The scenes in act one were compelling too. You had to "catch" who was the main cat in charge (Old Deuteronomy) and who was the cat whom was most hated by the other cats (Grizabella) and needed to redeem itself. Therefore, in my opinion, Grizabella and Old Deuteronomy were the focal characters of Act I.

Lastly, I could tell the cast member who played Grizabella must have performed in other plays before (she seemed to be so at ease with playing her character and her voice while singing Memory was superb!) Sure enough, I found out later she did. Last summer at the Starlight, this performer, Jill A. Morgan, played Mary in Jesus Christ Superstar and she played Lucy in You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. In addition, she played the Witch in Into the Woods, and Norma in Victor/Victoria at the RVC Studio Theatre.

The Starlight Theatre is located at 3301 N. Mulford Rd., Rockford, IL, 61114. You can purchase tickets by calling (815) 921-2160 or you can purchase them by going to the following website: www.rvcstarlight.com

Summation of Act One

First of all, "Cats"’ is situated in an enormous junkyard. In Act One: When Cats are Maddened by the Midnight Dance, an exceptional kind of cat—the Jellicle cat—is getting together for the yearly Jellicle Ball (Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats). Then the cats talk about the various names for cats (The Naming of Cats). The cats here are meeting to see who will be chosen to go to the Heaviside Layer and be reborn (Invitation to the Jellicle Ball).

There are numerous cats who compete for the position to be reborn. Some of these are JennyAnyDots, (The Old Gumbie Cat), The Rum Tum Tugger, Bustopher Jones, and Grizabella.

The Old Gumbie Cat sits around all day but at night instructs insects and mice music and crocheting so they are less ruinous. The Rum Tum Tugger is the "hottie" among all the female cats. Bustopher Jones is a cat that is liked by all but has gotten pretty plump because of his high society living. Lastly, Grizabella, the Glamour Cat, lost her beauty and has "Lady -of-the night ways," which caused all the cats to detest her. Consequently, they run her off.

The cats get scared off for awhile, until they realize that it is only the cats called Mungojerrie and Rumplteazer who always cause mischief. But still other cats chase them away to improve their chances of winning the position to be reborn.

Once Old Deuteronomy (the cat that decides who going to be reborn) takes a seat, the cat called Munkustrap and others perform the tale of The Aweful Battle of the Pekes and the Pollicles, Together with The Marching Songs of the Pollicle Dogs. Then the Jellicles Ball starts (Song of the Jellicles and the Jellicle Ball). This is when the cats compete. They dance and perform in front of Old Deuteronomy to show him who is the best choice to be reborn.

Although the ball is crashed twice by Grizabella, Old Deuteronomy (the highly revered patriarchal cat) watches her perform (she sings Memory and recalls memory of the glamorous days of her past) and he listens to her plea to be chosen for a second chance of life.

I thought Act II had a refreshing ending! For me, it was about the cats joining their forces together and setting aside the competition of being chosen to be reborn so they can find Old Deuteronomy. It was also about how one can redeem him or herself and others should accept him or hers metamorphosis. And for everyone to be happy with what they already have in his or her life.

My partner and my friends and I, all enjoyed this production immensely. It was so difficult to decide what portion of the production we liked better. I mean, actors, dancers, singers, choreography, costumes, direction, lighting, scenery and orchestra were all outstanding. And I discovered later that this local production of "Cats" had an array of diverse cast members. As I glanced over the biographies of the cast, I noticed the various backgrounds each had. Some were new performers entirely, some Starlight alums, some were dancers and/or singers and others were cat lovers. But despite their diverse backgrounds, all of these individuals been working on this production since April of this year. These wonderful individuals have been working on the music, dances and the story. In addition, a man named Peter Mc Masters came out of "lighting design retirement" to work on this production. As a result, all these "professionals" delivered a grand performance.

As aforementioned in the overview, although the college was allowed to present the production which included the original score, it was not allowed to use original choreography, costumes, direction, lighting or scenery. Consequently, everything our audience viewed was a Rockford original. Therefore, besides the cast delivering a great performance for the audience, the choreography, costumes, direction, lighting and scenery was equally as essential and as good!

I guess I was mesmerized with the costumes and the scenery the most. The cat costumes were especially darling. All cast members had their faces painted up like felines with whiskers. And most had one piece leotard suits in cat stripe designs with slouch down socks on some and others had fur-like vests and a few had more of a furry costume suit such as the characters Old Deuteronomy and Bustopher Jones. The scenery was very intriguing too. There was a prop that was painted and constructed in to looking like a dumpster. Another prop was one that looked like an enormous tire and yet another one that looked like a huge sofa. And the background had a paper, round lantern light (suppose to be the moon ) with little clear lights (looking like stars). Both of these props were behind a webbed-like curtain with a dark blue/black background (definitely looked like a night time scene).

The Starlight Theatre is located at 3301 N. Mulford Rd., Rockford, IL, 61114. You can purchase tickets by calling (815) 921-2160 or you can purchase them by going to the following website: www.rvcstarlight.com

Anyone would be mesmerized at this stunning architectural building at Rock Valley College. It features a retractable roof and has more than 1,000 seats. You can watch this college’s musicals under the stars in the summer months here. This Theatre is the longest-running summer theatre program in the Rockford, IL area. An average of 35,000 people come to the Rock Valley College campus to view the shows each June and July.

This theatre has its humble beginnings. Back in the fall of 1966 a group of Rock Valley College students desired to bring their community to an area by the Spring Brook and Mulford Roads. They thought they could influence the public on appreciating the scenery of their college’s farm setting. With assistance from the Dean of Community Services, they did this by performing a musical next to a beautiful farm pound. They performed the musical called "Finian’s Rainbow." This production was about how racial barriers can be overcome through hard work and a little bit of magic. What ended up happening was that the Opening Night of "Finian’s Rainbow" was a bigger success than anyone thought it would be! This wonderful production was watched by the community. They came in droves with lawn chairs to see this show! Now, after the past thirty-nine summers, Starlight has given audiences 112 productions. The performers, volunteers and crew have shared their love for the arts in front of 846,000 audience members. Consequently, it is them that make Starlight Theatre what its premise is today---"to provide a creative outlet for both students and the community. It is a place where people work together to provide a positive, affordable, and accessible cultural activity showcasing the beautiful setting and amazing talent that the community possesses."

Thanks to a group of citizens back in the middle 70’s that decided that the permanent structure was needed to house Starlight Theatre, a stage, orchestra pit and a rough graded seating area were erected. These were built by private donations only.

Sjostrom & Sons, Inc. built the facility as a donation in memory of Bengt Sjostrom (Rockford builder and civic leader) . Consequently, the theatre that houses Starlight is called Bengt Sjostrom Theatre.

Although I absolutely marveled at the Starlight Theatre’s architecture (a 200-foot, star-shaped, articulated retractable roof), the inside of it is pretty remarkable too. The college made many renovations for the Bengt Sjostrom Theatre. They are the following: easier accessibility; increased seating capacity to 1,100 (before it was 599); on-site rest room facilities; on-site box office for both ticket purchase and pickup; on-site concession stands; state-of-the-art theatrical technology; construction of 150-foot proscenium stage house which included improvements like: a fully functional fly system, larger stage platform, a completely protected stage, and a stage house that provides an acoustical barrier from other area events. But I have to admit, the most stunning renovation was the construction of the 200-foot, star-shaped, opening roof in June 2003.

What I really like about this theatre is that for the majority of its history, the performers at Starlight have been volunteers. However, many times professional performers come to Starlight and donate their services. They do this because they want to have a chance to play a certain role or to sing a particular composer’s music. Along with these individuals, are the talented amateur dancers, singers and actors which all then work with professional directors and choreographers. Together all these wonderful people end up producing top-rate musical productions.

I also like how the Starlight can keep the cost ticket prices down. The theatre only expects ticket revenue to cover only 75% of the cost of producing the season. Through program advertising and the donations of patrons, the remaining 25% is made up. Along with this, a music teacher and cultural sponsor named Leola Arnold left her estate to the College. And this estate supports cultural activities which include the musicals here.

I highly recommend you coming to Starlight Theatre. Not only is the construction of the theatre stunning, but it provides live theatre which is always great family fun.

The Starlight Theatre is located at 3301 N. Mulford Rd., Rockford, IL, 61114. You can purchase tickets by calling (815) 921-2160 or you can purchase them by going to the following website: www.rvcstarlight.com