#i'll only tag productions that i had anything of substance to say about

[sevenkittensinatrenchcoat]

Would You Sit On His Throne: Old Deut and His Kids

So, it’s generally understood that Old Deuteronomy has a lot of kids, but the two cats that are definitely his kids are Munkustrap and Tugger. That’s the explanation that most people who’ve been in a production, or near a production, will give you. Sometimes Macavity might be thrown in there as well, but that’s really more of a popular headcanon that’s popular with actors as well as fans. It’s not official.

Other than that, everything else is speculation that varies from production to production. The only other cat that’s ever been confirmed as a son of Old Deuteronomy is Mistoffelees in Jacob Brent’s commentary. I’ve seen this as a headcanon in fan circles, but he’s the only one officially tied to a production to say it. Because of how that stands out, I’ve always been curious about where it came from. Why is this production, the most well-known production, apparently so different from the others? Brent didn’t mention Munkustrap or Tugger as Old D’s sons or as Misto’s brothers either.

Because of that last sentence, I don’t consider this a debunking of Tuggoffelees. It wasn’t being done intentionally here, but this doesn’t make it into an Incestuous Sin Ship. Tugger might not be Old D’s son in this version. But, Tugger feels like Old D’s son in this version. So does Munkustrap. But, for the most part, Mistoffelees doesn’t. No matter what’s said, if I hadn’t been told about it, I never would’ve suspected any relation between Old D and Misto. Yeah, they both have magic, but it’s not the same. Old D has this sort of vague, spiritual power while Misto’s powers are far more direct. Also, Misto can teleport cats to him from unknown locations and Old D can’t use magic to escape a net being thrown over his head. And magic isn’t always hereditary in fiction anyway.

I don’t need to do a whole essay to explain why Old D as Misto’s dad doesn’t work for me. That’s not actually what I’m doing here. I’m not thinking about the logical reasons why this might not make sense, but rather, what I said about it not feeling like Old D and Misto are father and son. When watching them interact, it doesn’t feel like watching a father and son interact, except for the reunion after Misto brings Old D back.

Then I started watching other productions.

When I watched the Zurich 1992 bootleg, it felt more like Misto could be Old D’s son, because they interacted slightly differently. Misto in that bootleg was played by Lindsay Chambers, who was playing Misto on Broadway when Jacob came onto the project, which is probably why their characterizations seem so similar, and might be where the idea of Misto as Old D’s son came from. They could’ve been playing it that way in Zurich and Chambers just continued it on Broadway, and that’s what Jacob learned.

But, there was really one specific moment that stood out to me when it came to Old D and Misto. This doesn’t just apply to the two versions I’ve mentioned previously, but to all of them. I think there’s one moment that establishes who Old D’s kids are in each production, or at least what an audience without context might be able to guess.

It’s the end of the Old Deuteronomy number, when he’s first seated on his throne.

So, Old D appears, he sits on the tire, which becomes a sort of throne, and most of the cats sit on the floor, facing the tire. But, a few remaining standing, on or near the tire, facing the crowd, almost on the same level as Old D. They’re associated with Old D and they seem important up there. This is the Jellicle Royal Family.

I’m going to show a lot of pictures from different productions, many of them bootlegs or cheaply filmed pro-shots where it’s difficult to see who’s who at times, which is why I’m circling the characters standing by the throne. It’s unnecessary here, but I need everything to be consistent because I’m just Like That, I guess. So, from here on out, Tugger will be circled in red, because it’s the sexy color. Gray fur on cats is often called blue, so Munk gets blue. Also it contrasts with red. In productions where there’s someone else up there, they’ll be circled in white, because it’s neutral and contrasts with both red and white. The choice of red, white, and blue is not meant to contain any patriotic message. It might look a bit silly though.

Anyway, Munkustrap and Tugger end the number standing beside Old D. They also performed the number. It makes sense, with them both taking the lead, to see them as connected to Old D. Munkustrap has taken a leadership role throughout the show, but Tugger disappeared after his own number and this is something new with him. It’s pretty clear by now that they’re both important in the tribe’s hierarchy. You’ll also notice that Munk’s standing a bit closer to Old D than Tugger is. He generally seems to prefer to keep the others at a distance and, as the younger son, he’s not as important in this moment.

Now, this is just one version. Here’s another one:

This is from Madrid. It’s pro-shot and in good quality, so it’s also pretty easy to see everyone, though Munkustrap is kind of fading into the shadows here.

This UK Tour bootleg is terrible, so the circles were definitely needed here. Tugger is even further away in this version. And Munkustrap, Cat of the People, is still on the ground, but he’s holding Old D’s hand.

The German Tent Tour bootleg is a bit better quality, but Munk and Tugger are on opposite sides of the tire from where they usually are.

So far, I’ve been showing London-based productions. Are Broadway-based productions any different? Well...

The Troika tour used different staging, so Old D’s still standing at the end, surrounded by various members of the crowd. However, most Broadway-based productions aren’t like this.

Buenos Aires was, like most international productions before the VHS, Broadway-based. Tugger is camouflaged on the pipe, but everyone’s in a similar place to where they usually are.

Even in the Broadway Revival, which restages some of the numbers, it’s the same cats up front. The only major difference is that Tugger isn’t off to the side. This Tugger is less standoffish and more openly affectionate than most Tuggers, so this makes sense.

So, Old D is always surrounded by his two sons. But, then there are Vienna-based productions:

Munkustrap is where he usually is and Tugger is only slightly closer than he usually is, but look: Mistoffelees, after bringing Old D on stage, instead of joining the others as he usually does, goes up front and sits down next to him, so there are three cats on Old D’s throne.

The Paris version, despite being pro-shot, turned into such a blob that not even circles would save it:

Tugger and Misto cuddle up to Old D, but good luck figuring that out.

And here’s the all-important Zurich production. Tugger is behind the throne, while Munk and Misto are on either side, framed almost equally. This is the version where Misto spends most of the first act being awkward and getting into trouble. He’s usually not allowed around the important people. But, with Old D, nobody questions it. He’s supposed to be there.

In these versions, Misto is placed with the cats who sing the song. Along with having the job of getting Old D, this puts him on their level. He seems like another son here. If the VHS was staged this way, more people probably would’ve headcanoned Misto as Old D’s son.

As an added bonus, here’s the Hamburg version. It’s not Vienna-based, but it also puts Misto up front. Tugger still sings his verse in this version, but he doesn’t get near the throne. It might be that he’s just out of frame, since this is a bootleg, filmed by people who probably didn’t know exactly what to film, but he’s usually placed somewhere where he’d be visible from this distance. Instead, Munk and Misto are at Old D’s two sides, in a near equal way, similar to Zurich.

So, that’s my take. In any given productions, the characters I see as Old D’s sons are the ones who stand by his throne when he gets there. That framing gives off that vibe. Because the VHS didn’t do this, it’s hard to see Misto as Old D’s son there.

I’ll end with the other pictures I took that I didn’t use, because I put too much effort into this:

Mexico 1991. Pretty normal.

Moscow. Old Munkustrap’s in frame in this one, so interpret that how you will.

The Forbidden Korean Non-Replica also only has Munk up there. He appears to be crying tears of joy because his dad showed up.

#old deuteronomy #munkustrap #mr mistoffelees #rum tum tugger #i'll only tag productions that i had anything of substance to say about #cats 1998 #cats madrid #cats buenos aires #cats 2016 #cats vienna #cats zurich #cats hamburg