Original Cats Star Returns in Broadway's Reimagined Jellicle Ball
A reimagined production of Cats on Broadway features a remarkable connection to the original 1980s musical—an actor from the iconic first cast has returned to the stage. Ken Ard makes a triumphant comeback to Broadway in Cats: The Jellicle Ball after being away for 25 years, now dancing alongside performers four decades younger than him.
A Clever Connection Between Past and Present
The show opens with a DJ sporting a high-top fade and a crate of vinyl records. This character carefully selects two LP sleeves, blows off dust, and settles on a familiar cover featuring glowing yellow cat eyes against a black background—the original 1983 cast recording of Cats. This clever staging connects the past iconic musical theater production with its reimagined, contemporary counterpart currently playing at the Broadhurst Theatre.
What makes this connection even more thrilling is that the DJ is portrayed by Ken Ard, who starred in the original Broadway cast. It's a full circle moment for the veteran performer, whose career initially exploded with the early 1980s production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.
A Story of Redemption and Resilience
Ard's return to Cats represents a powerful narrative of redemption and personal resilience that echoes New York City's recovery following the 2001 terror attacks. The actor lived close to ground zero, and the trauma of that day left him with PTSD that significantly impacted his confidence and career trajectory.
Cats: The Jellicle Ball marks his first Broadway show since the attacks. "My first audition after 9/11, I burst into tears and left the room because I had no idea what to do or how to feel," Ard recalls from his dressing room. "I just was not getting booked anymore. And before that I was getting booked all the time."
The California-born performer studied dance and moved to New York inspired by shows like The Wiz and Ain't Misbehavin' and performers including Ken Page and Andre De Shields—the latter now serves as his co-star in the current production.
From Original Phenomenon to Radical Reinvention
Ard made his Broadway debut in the chorus of Marlow in 1981, with Cats becoming his third professional show. The original production—where Ard played Macavity, Plato, and Rumpus Cat—became a cultural phenomenon that attracted celebrities, generated soaring ticket sales, and inspired devoted fandom years before Hamilton achieved similar status.
The actor expresses particular enthusiasm for the current reimagining, which transports audiences into the Black and Latino queer ballroom scene of Harlem that inspired documentaries like Paris Is Burning and television series including Pose. "It's really just the most spectacular reinvention of a show I have ever seen," Ard declares, noting that he returned to watch the production multiple times after his initial viewing.
A New Role in a Transformed Production
While the musical score remains recognizable—albeit with contemporary house beats—the energy and presentation have been completely transformed. Directed by Zhailon Livingston and Bill Rauch with choreography by Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons, the production reinterprets T.S. Eliot's original poems about feline competition for kitty heaven as a celebration of human competition for recognition and prizes.
When Ard learned the production might transfer to Broadway, he reached out and was offered the expanded role of DJ Griddlebone—the ball's hype man who appears in various costumes and dances throughout the performance. "Having Ken Ard in rehearsal was a magic portal to the original production," says director Bill Rauch. "He gave us thrilling perspective on the original staging and the artists' intentions from 45 years ago."
Celebrating Representation and New Beginnings
Ard describes the show as a celebration of gay and trans joy that avoids didactic preaching. "I think it's going to introduce a whole new generation to Cats and musical theater," he predicts. "People who haven't seen themselves on stage are really going to be inspired."
The musical that changed his life decades ago has now done so again. After working in corporate kitchens for the past decade, Ard hopes his time peeling potatoes has concluded permanently. "I think those days are over, really," he states with determination. "I'm going to manifest that they are because, basically, I've been wanting to get back to Broadway ever since my last show."
