RECAP: The Original Cast of CATS Shared Backstage Secrets on STARS IN THE HOUSE

Stars in the House continued Friday night (8pm) for a CATS Original Broadway Cast reunion with Betty Buckley, Ken Page, Terrence Mann, Donna King, and Charlotte d'Amboise.

Ken Page talked about how he got the role. "I had heard about the show...and I heard it was all dances and things so I didn't think much about it. I went to the closing performance of AIN'T MISBEHAVIN as an audience member and Bernie Jacobs came up to me and said 'Kenny, I think there might be a part in CATS for you.' I said 'oh ok, what should I do?' He said 'I want you to go up to Vinny Liff's office and get the music and learn it...' I came in on a Monday and I sang and Trevor came down to the end of the stage and he says 'that was wonderful...we'll have you back...' I came back on Wednesday and did a monologue and sang again and he came again to the edge of the stage and he said 'your talents are many fold and manifest...' I got back home Monday and the phone was ringing when I walked in and it was Tyler Gatchell who said...'would you like to play Old Deuteronomy in CATS?'"

Betty Buckley shared her audition story. "Everyone had the London cast album and we were all intrigued. It was so powerful and great. The little pictures in the album were so tiny, you couldn't really get a sense of what the show was. My agent was this wonderful agent...she called me and she said 'We're submitting you for CATS...' I said 'what's it about?' and she said 'cats.' 'Is there a story? What do I need to know before my audition?' 'It's about cats.' So I learned the song from the album...and I went in and auditioned and they thanked me and I left and they called my agent and said 'no we're not going to go with her because she radiates health and wellbeing and we're looking for someone who radiates death and dying.' I had such a powerful feeling about it...Six months later [my agent] called and said 'they want to see you tomorrow for a callback for CATS. They auditioned everybody they could in New York and Los Angeles, all across the country. I went the next day...I sang Memory and Trevor came to the corner of the stage and had me sing it again 'more suicidal, more suicidal...' So I turn myself inside out and said that's the best I can do. So I finished and they nodded and said thank you. I said 'Mr. Nunn, can I speak to you?' He comes down to the edge of the stage. I say...'no one can do it better.' And then I felt really stupid so I said 'I'm a really good actress so if you want me to be smaller I'll be smaller...explain to me what you want and I'll do it...' I took myself to lunch...the phone rang and they said 'are you sitting down?' She said 'You got CATS.'"

Terrence Mann talked about the night Bob Fosse was in the audience. "I used to go out in the audience and pick somebody up...and we would go up on stage and we would dance around and then I would take them back to their seat...This one night, a special person was in the audience and it was Bob Fosse and I'm up in my perch stage left...scanning who I was gonna pick up in the audience...I look across and there's Bob Fosse...I run out into the audience, I see him looking at me and I see just terror in his eyes as I approach him and I start to grab his hand and he says 'don't you f****ing touch me.'"

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Photo Credit: Walter McBride / WM Photos