this is tyler hanes preparing the 2016 cats revival

i'm???? combusting over this picture of Tyler!Tugger?????

Tyler Hanes on the Misto/Tugger relationship

"Tugger just likes love, he likes anything, and Misto is his... his boy, in every sense of the word. But ultimately they were best friends. And that was something that Ricky and I—he is one of my dearest friends, he's such a great guy, and we just had the best time, and I think it just translated onstage because we just like making each other laugh. To this day he's one of my favourite people. And the guy who played Misto for the last half of it, Zachary Downer, equally as fun, totally different, super talented, but game to just play."

'The Wrong Cat Died' podcast, February 2020. Tyler Hanes was Tugger for the whole run of the Broadway revival.

My tribute to Rum Tum Tugger and to actors who played him.

It's finally time to talk about Cats the musical ( yes for the 100th  time again)and I know I'm a little bit late with this and some information in this post is irrelevance now, but I didn' t have time to post it earlier due to my study so I'm doing it now

So here is the thing... now cats 2021-2022 US tour 6 is in full swing and although I can't see it on stage in person for obvious reasons... (if I could I would give everything to see this tour ) but it doesn't mean that I can't see footages from the show here and there, and let me tell you that cast of cats US tour 2021-2022, they are all incredibly talented people, absolutely every single one of them and it's in my humble opinion   but today I wanna talk about the specific character and as a result, specific actor *drum roll* and the character is going to be my favorite tom  Rum Tum Tugger  and the actor who’s playing Tugger in 2021-2022 tour is Zach Bravo  and oh boy... I would say that Zach Bravo is one of the best actors who ever played Rum Tum Tugger ( I should also mention John Partridge and Tyler Hanes as they are also amazing Tuggers ) but let's get back to Zach  so why do I think he's such a good person to play Rum? Let me explain  Reason number one. Tugger is an extremely charismatic cat! And so every actor who wants to play RTT on stage should be as charismatic as Tugger. And in Zach's case, you could see how he truly enjoys playing Rum Charisma just oozes out of him! (Okay to be fair I can say the same thing about John and Tyler because they are all super charismatic people ) Reason number two and I think that it's the main rule of musical theater and I suppose it goes something like that: " if you want to play a character first and foremost you should become one with this character". In other words, transform yourself into this character. And Zach Bravo was born to be Rum Tum Tugger because he manages to do it perfectly.   he's extremely hilarious, energetic, charming and so so sweet ( like a marshmallow ). In my opinion, Zach's Tugger it's a perfect balance between free-wheeled, curious heartbreaker  and a fluffy purring ball of cuteness . I will attach a screenshot to this post (from Zach's Instagram) where you can see his thoughts about playing Rum. To sum all this up I really want to give a huge shout-out to Zach Bravo for playing Rum Tum Tugger so well and also for making my days easier and happier (it's super important, especially now) by sharing some of behind the stage footages. In addition to that, a year ago or so I almost lost all my hopes to see cats on Broadway one day. But now this dream, this hope, this yearning desire is burning even brighter! I have no idea why is it so, but I guess Zach's performance as Rum Tum Tugger reminded me how amazing this show (musical) actually is and how much I love all of these characters (especially this little rascal ) And I still believe that someday I will see this fantastic musical on Broadway in person!  Meanwhile, I will be enjoying videos from Zach's Instagram and Tik-Tok  (BTW his final performance as RTT is going to be on May 15th. (P.S. they've changed their mind his final performance was on May 8th ) And it's so sad but at the same time it's a great opportunity for Zach to try on some new roles!) Zach Bravo, you are a great actor and I wish you all the best! And now let's move on to John Partridge. Before playing Rum Tum Tugger he also played Alonzo several times. Alonzo is a quite interesting character as well but today we are talking about Mr. Curious cat. And excuse me, ladies and gentlemen, but John Partridge's Rum is literally iconic  and I'm not exaggerating, like have you ever seen him in 1998 DVD production of cats? Oh my my... he's something  how should I put it right? Well, he gives me the vibes of some sassy rockstar, I mean, yes, it's a part of Tugger's character as he should be a bit sassy, and maybe even annoying but there (in the 1998 DVD version) it had been brought to another level I mean he's extremely hot and he's also really flirtatious. All female cats would love to have him as their boyfriend and he knows that  

But also John's Tugger can be really understanding and compassionate when he is not trying to be annoying or too flirtatious, he can give good advice and if you feel blue he can comfort you also he's a very good listener  Again, you must keep it in mind that it is one character played by different actors so his character should be more or less the same. In general Rum Tum Tugger should be extra curious, over the top picky, a bit flirtatious maybe even mischievous in some way. He should be a heartbreaker but he also should be caring, soft and just overall charming. But every actor is playing him in his own way. John Partridge's Rum is this seductive rockstar cat who is also really sweet.  And I love it so much!  Who knows maybe if it wasn't because of him I would not become such a huge Cats the musical fan... Unfortunately, I don't know much about John Partridge himself because of a lack of backstage material but what can I say for sure he's a really hard working and graceful person. Oh and also I know that he played Tugger both in UK and in Berlin and it means that he knows two languages English (obviously) but also German.

And now let's talk about Tyler's depiction of this curious beast  

I see Tyler's Tugger as this cool, wild street cat. He's a self-absorbed, very loud, a little bit narcissistic even, but at the same time he's playful and goofy, and annoying but in a good way if you know what I mean... Like Tyler's Rum is probably the goofiest and the funniest out of three  and I don't know why it is or how it is so, but every time when I'm putting on some bootlegs of cats from 2016-2019 ( I guess at that time there was a revival of cats on Broadway and exactly at this time Tyler was playing RTT) I'm rolling on the floor during Tugger's scene.  Everytime when he's on stage I have a feeling that he wants to say something like ' yeah I'm the coolest one here and you all know that. So I'm glad that you all here but I need my personal space so... step aside yeah I know I'm super handsome, extra cool and you all want to dance with me, guys, but respect my privacy please'  So, in my book, Tyler's Tugger has more recklessness in him, more boldness, and this is a thing that I like the most about his performance. I mean, how Tyler Hanes is combining comedy and his personal understanding of Tugger's character is just amazing! I recall one scene from this 2016-2019 production of cats and it's the moment when other junkyard cats made a huge mirror from smaller mirror shards. And then RTT was just playfully dancing in front it while he was looking at his reflection in the mirror. I know it's a such a small detail but it says a lot about his character  they are small things like these that make this musical even better. And as an addition I want to bring up 2016th musical mashup. Three Andrew Lloyd Webber's fantastical musicals were combined together. Phantom of the Opera, Cats and School of Rock and now you are probably thinking ' yeah and so what?' Worry not, my beautiful people! Just let me explain. You see I really like that dynamic between children from School of Rock and Tugger (I mean if you want you can find the video of this mashup it's out there on YouTube after all...) for example children were playing with his tail, they were trying to catch it meanwhile Rum aka Tyler was teasing them not allowing them to catch his tail and again it was teeny tiny moment but nonetheless it was so sweet. But the most tender moments in this mashup Tugger had with this girl named Katie. As they were in the same team because if I remember that right Katie plays the electric guitar and as we all know Rum Tum Tugger is a rock star cat and even if he doesn't have an electric guitar sometimes he just pretends that his tail is an electric guitar so no wonder they end up in one team. And I suppose I'm not the only one who thinks that it was an adorable partnership because I remember somewhere on Tumblr there is this article about someone's headcanon in which little Katie was Tugger's owner. Nothing special really I just think that this idea is really cute for headcanon

Okay, I think I digressed from the main topic. This post is about... so, yeah, apparently Tyler's Rum knows his ways with children but I'm more than sure that is a part of Rum Tum Tugger's character in general. And just as a side note if you want to know more about 2016-2019 production or just in general what's going on behind the scenes of Cats the musical you should definitely check out Tyler Hanes' blog 'what's new pussycat' as for me I really like rewatching it from time to time. And there you have it - my personal list of my favorite Tuggers actually there are a few more of them but this post already took me long enough to write it( a few months actually) some things have changed for example now I'm unable to watch Cats the musical Tik-Toks because it’s no longer are available to watch from the place where I live but hey I still have a Tumblr. And at the end of the day I'm really glad that I wrote this post because I had this in my head for a while now. And I'm just glad that I have this opportunity to share my thoughts and my feelings with other people. Oh and it's not top or anything.. like I said they are  just my personal thoughts. Or if anything it's more like a tribute to Rum Tum Tugger and to actors who played him. Because I truly adore this charming curious beast. And I love cats the musical from the bottom of my heart. So, please write in the comments who's your favorite Tuggers are. I would be really glad to hear your thoughts.

The Rum Tum Tugger

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

2016 Broadway Revival

Tyler Hanes

when i tell you nothing makes me more emotional than seeing older actors interacting with younger actors who are playing the same character and their interactions just being so earnest and the older actors being so visibly proud of the younger ones

you know i was just looking at this gif again and thinking about how i love Height Difference™ w/ Plato and Vicky on the right

Victoria's stretched all the way up on her tippy toes but Plato still kind of has to bend his elbows a little to keep their hands level! And you can see on the far left that Demeter and Munk are having the same issue, also cute there.

But then you have Tugger and Bomba in the middle and Tugger is very clearly wearing heels & they're still having zero problems whatsoever lmao. Tall Bomba my beloved.

Tyler, 27

“I’m wearing Maroske Peech leggings, Heaven shoes, Aisling Duffy bag, Hanes tank, and a thrifted oversized shirt. Currently inspired by the uniforms of animated characters.”

May 14, 2022 ∙ Bushwick

literally shaking with anger thinking about how Cats ran 18 years in the 80s but when they revived it in 2016 it closed after a year. SOCIETY WENT BACKWARDS. WHY DID WE LOSE OUR LOVE OF THE CATS. WHAT HAPPENED. *punches the wall blood dripping from my fingers*

my phone did not know how to handle the glare from karine and terrence's white outfits for most of the bows video but it figured it out in the end 😭😭💕

Watched the Broadway Revival with a good pal and it was so much fun I love Cats!!

Manhattan Concert Productions is producing a concert edition of Stephen Schwartz and John Caird's Children of Eden directed by Tony Yazbeck.

The cast includes Auli'i Cravalho as Yonah, Nikki Renée Daniels as Eve and Mama Noah, Norm Lewis as Father, David Phelps as Adam and Noah, Donald Webber, Jr. as Cain and Japeth, and Lucas Pastrana as Abel and Ham, along with Jennifer McGill, Jesse Nager, Marcus Paul James, Rema Webb, Runako Campbell, Dylis Croman, Karli Dinardo, Tyler Hanes, Jakob Karr, and Zelig Williams.

The concert will happen at David Geffen Hall in Lincoln Center on February 18, 2024.

THE SAME VIBES

Tyler Hanes on Tugger's relationships and backstory

Family: "They had told us on day one that Munk and Tugger were brothers and were Deuteronomy's sons. And Munk was the chosen prince and Tugger was the rebel. And so I'm not a big Game of Thrones fan, but Andy Huntington-Jones [Munkustrap] was like 'oh, we're like Jon Snow and...' the other guy, I don't know that reference, but I really went with the whole Prince William, Prince Harry thing... we kind of turned into our characters during rehearsals and previews. He's a little more diligent and consistent and I'm just kind of... I can be a hurricane in rehearsals, as far as just trying whatever, trying to get a reaction, and we really created a sort of special relationship. The other element of that family that I went with... there are stories out there that Macavity was the third brother, and he was the middle son.... I was the youngest and Macavity just went awry and went off on his own."

Grizabella: Is Grizabella your mother? "No... I went in the direction that... this is a long story! basically [when I was a kitten] Grizabella was active in the tribe and I very much idol-worshipped her, had a crush on her, whatever. ... Essentially Grizabella is the cat who turned Tugger into Tugger, because Grizabella deflowered Tugger and then broke his heart. And then went off with Macavity and killed the last ounce of his kitten. Between that and... [Tugger's] owner was a little girl who was very much like Veruca Salt from Willy Wonka, just a little brat, who'd just dress me up like that... so I was a punk partially because of her, partially because of being screwed over by Grizabella, and partly because I could! Because I could get away with it because I'm Deuteronomy's son, and nobody's going to do anything."

'The Wrong Cat Died' podcast, February 2020. Tyler Hanes was Tugger for the whole run of the Broadway revival.

Nobody asked but here’s a list of Actors I like for (almost) every character (and by almost every character I mean only the ones I care about)

Mr Mistoffelees

Jacob Brent

Harry Francis

Timothy Scott

Guy Paul De St Germain

Gen Horiuchi

Fergus Logan

Ryan Patrick Farrell

Rum Tum Tugger

John Partridge

Spencer Dean

Terrence Mann

Frank Mastrocola

Tyler Hanes

Jason Gardiner

Todrick Hall

David Schoonover

Grizabella

Betty Buckley

Elaine Paige

Kim Kriswell

Mamie Parris

Angie Smith

Munkustrap

Michael Gruber

Steven Barton

Andy Huntington Jones

Bryan Batt

Ben Reynolds

Victoria

Phyllida Crowley Smith

Georgina Pazcoguin

Caitlin Bond

Cynthia Onrubia

Mungojerrie

Drew Varley

Ray Roderick

Rumpelteazer

Jo Gibb

Kristi Lynes

Bombalurina

Rosemarie Ford

Marlene Danielle

Geraldine Gardner