For “Cats”, Andrew Lloyd Webber chose the poems of T.S.Eliot on which to base his libretto. Eliot had published a book of poems, “Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats”, which was a popular children’s book. Being a cat lover and a fan of Eliot’s book, Webber created his new sensation…a musical (again with no spoken dialogue) with dance as the key element. There is, however, one song (also the most well-known of Webber’s career), Memory, that did not get it’s libretto from Eliot’s poems. Instead, it was artistic director, Trevor Nunn, who provided the lyrics.
In 1996, Webber re-worked and re-wrote his earlier unsuccessful music, “Jeeves”, and presented the new version under the title, “By Jeeves”. It has not risen to the level of the majority of his musicals.
“Whistle Down the Wind”, the most recent of Webber’s musicals, had its world premiere in 1996 at the National Theatre in Washington, DC, playing to sold out crowds. Unfortunately, it closed after only nine weeks. A Broadway opening was in the works but became postponed indefinitely. In July of 1998, the revised version of “Whistle Down the Wind” opened in London and just recently had its final performance in January of 2001.
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 50th birthday was celebrated on television in gala style with the program, Great Performances. The star-studded tribute featured music from many of Webber’s musicals. To find out more click onto http://www.pbs.org/wnet/gperf/lloydwebber
For more information on Andrew Lloyd Webber and links to all his musicals, visit http://www.reallyuseful.com (Site takes a while to load)
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