Munkustrap
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Munkustrap is a character in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical Cats.
Munkustrap's name comes from the poem "The Naming of cats" in T.S. Eliot's poetry book Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats. He is usually depicted onstage as a tall, silver tabby cat, but has occasionally been costumed differently. He is believed to be Demeter's mate as he is with her often and goes to great lengths to protect her.
In the show, Munkustrap functions as a narrator, singing several songs and introducing many of the other cats. He is also the protector and leadership leader of the cats, after patriarch Old Deuteronomy; and directs them in the "Awfull Battle of the Pekes and Pollicles".
Although Munkustrap does perform a substantial amount of dancing in Cats, the role requires strong singing and acting as well. Actors who have portrayed Munkustrap have included Harry Groener, Bryan Batt, Jack Rebaldi, Rob Marshall and Jeffry Denman. From 1983, Steve Barton was engaged in the German-speaking world premiere of Cats, in the role of Munkustrap, (Dance Capitan), in Austria with the Vereinigten Bühnen Wien, in the Theater an der Wien. The first night of the German-speaking premiere of the Musical Cats took place in Vienna, on September 24th, 1983. Michael Gruber, an alumnus of the Broadway production, was chosen to play Munkustrap in the 1998 Cats movie.
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[edit] External links and references
- Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats, T.S. Eliot, Harcourt, 1982, ISBN 0-15-168656-4
- A Cat's Diary: How the Broadway Production of Cats was born, Stephen Hanan, Smith & Kraus, 2002, ISBN 1-57525-281-3
