Cats (musical) Cats (musical) Cats is a sung-through musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats" by T. S. Eliot. The musical tells the story of a tribe of cats called the Jellicles and the night they make what is known as "the Jellicle choice" and decide which cat will ascend to the Heaviside Layer and come back to a new life. Directed by Trevor Nunn and choreographed by Gillian Lynne, "Cats" first opened in the West End in 1981 and then with the same creative team on Broadway in 1982. It won numerous awards, including
They Knew What They Wanted (film) in the role. Years later, in 1956, Frank Loesser turned the play into a semi-operatic musical entitled "The Most Happy Fella". This was not filmed, but was videotaped in 1980 and shown on PBS. They Knew What They Wanted (film) They Knew What They Wanted is a 1940 film directed by Garson Kanin, written by Robert Ardrey, and starring Carole Lombard, Charles Laughton and William Gargan. It is based on the 1924 Pulitzer Prize winning play "They Knew What They Wanted" by Sidney Howard. For his performance Gargan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. When visiting