Tickets are now on sale for the much anticipated return of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s record-breaking musical CATS at Theatre Royal Sydney in June 2025.
This ground-breaking musical production had its Australian premiere at Theatre Royal Sydney in July 1985, and now returns to celebrate its 40th anniversary at its original Australian home.
Producer John Frost for Crossroads Live said, “CATS was revolutionary when it first opened and enticed new audiences into the world of musical theatre, a sparkling fusion of music, dance and verse. I’m thrilled to bring the original production of CATS back to Australia where it all began, at Theatre Royal Sydney, to celebrate its 40th anniversary in Australia.”
“We are incredibly excited to welcome CATS back to Theatre Royal Sydney, where its Australian journey first began in 1985,” said Tim McFarlane, Executive Chairman of Trafalgar Entertainment Asia-Pacific. “It’s a special moment to host this beloved musical 40 years later, in 2025, bringing it back to where it had its Australian premiere. When CATS first opened at the Royal, it was nothing short of a sensation, running for an incredible 16 months and playing over 400 performances in Sydney alone. As one of the longest-running productions in our theatre’s history, it set the standard for world-class musical theatre in Australia.”
McFarlane continued, “CATS continues to be a favourite among musical theatre fans, drawing new audiences and providing a memorable experience that keeps theatregoers coming back year after year. This return marks not just a celebration of CATS but also the deep connection between this theatre and iconic global productions.”
Based on T. S. Eliot’s Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats and set to music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, CATS has been captivating audiences around the globe since it opened at the New London Theatre (now known as the Gillian Lynne) in 1981, where it played for 21 record-breaking years and almost 9,000 performances, winning both the Olivier and Evening Standard Awards for Best Musical. Since then, CATS has been presented in over 50 countries, translated into 23 languages and has been seen by over 81 million people world-wide. On Broadway, CATS played for 18 years and won seven Tony Awards including Best Musical.
The musical tells the story of the Jellicle cat tribe. On just one special night of the year, all Jellicle cats meet at the Jellicle Ball where Old Deuteronomy, their wise and benevolent leader, makes the Jellicle choice and announces which of them will go up to “The Heaviside Layer” and be reborn into a whole new Jellicle life.
The timeless musical score includes the hit song Memory, which has been recorded by more than 150 artists including Celine Dion, Barbra Streisand, Nicole Scherzinger, Johnny Mathis, Liberace and Barry Manilow.
Get your tickets now at catsthemusical.com.au and let the memory live again.
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