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TOP CAT – The Musical Home
Story.....Show.....Songs.....Characters.....Productions
TOP CAT – The Musical is specifically written for a large cast of young performers, suggested age range: 12–18. Most of the musical numbers feature the chorus, with a few solos to showcase the talents of individual performers. There are a variety of smaller roles so that all the cast – regardless of their ability – can be involved. The main set is a dirty, rubbish-strewn alley with a fence, a telegraph pole, a police call box and a trashcan. Other settings include New York street scenes, a diner, a prison and a secret hideout. All can be suggested with the minimum of scenery. Unfortunately, due to licensing difficulties, the show remains unavailable at the moment. Act I 1.
Let’s Take This Town ..Gang/Benny/Belle/Company....
Act II 1.
Rattle My Cage ..Top
Cat/Gang/Prisoners
Featured recording performers: Danny Washington, Rachel Jordan, Adrian Waller. TOP
CAT
The indisputable leader of the gang GANG CHOO-CHOO
(female) the sensible one MOB MUGSY
The least educationally-challenged - just GIRLS JUDY
Naïve girlfriend of Fancy’s FEATURES MRS
DELMORE
The richest woman in New York COMPANY COPS, MILKMAN, NEWSBOY, NEW YORKERS & PRISONERS TOP
CAT – The Musical was developed in 1992 for St. David’s
College, Cardiff, as a large-cast show for teenagers. Subsequently,
it was performed as a leavers’ show at Arts Educational School,
London. Difficulties obtaining the musical rights have meant that this show is currently unavailable for production. ACT 1 SCENE 1: INT/EXT. MUSEUM/ALLEY At the grand opening of the new wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Officer Dibble stands guard over Mrs Delmore and her fabulous Delmore Diamonds. As she peruses the Laughing Cavalier and the Mona Lisa, the figures in the paintings come to life and grab her jewels. The daring robbers flee into the night and the cops give chase. In a deserted alley littered with carnival paraphernalia they remove their disguises to reveal themselves as the notorious jewel thieves, Bonnie and Clive. They meet with their henchmen (The Mob), hand over the jewels for the Mob to deal with and walk calmly away. Hearing Dibble approach, the lug-headed mobsters stash the gems in a toy parrot they won at the carnival and hide it in a trashcan, resolving to return when the heat is off. They are startled by the screech of a cat. MUSIC: TOP CAT THEME SCENE 2: EXT. ALLEY After a restless night’s sleep, Top Cat emerges from his trashcan, clutching a lumpy, stuffed, toy parrot. He throws out other carnival junk discarded in his boudoir. Having dreamt about money, TC is certain wealth will be heading his way and presumes he will clean up at the regular Friday night poker game. However, upon summoning his gang of alleycats (the Gang), he finds them all broke. SONG: LET’S TAKE THIS TOWN Hope appears when Benny arrives with his childhood sweetheart, Belle, but, not only is she poor, she has been led to believe that Top Cat and the Gang are rich, important businessmen. To save Benny’s embarrassment, the Gang go along with the ruse, but Officer Dibble shows up and exposes their dishonesty. Not only that, he also bans their Friday night poker game. Benny discovers the diamonds inside the parrot and proclaims all their problems to be over, but TC dismisses it as cheap costume jewellery - what knucklehead would throw real diamonds in a trashcan? SCENE 3: EXT. STREET Benny and Belle are sent to pawn the carnival paraphernalia, including the parrot and the ‘paste’ jewellery. SONG:
ANY OL’ MILLIONAIRE SCENE 4: EXT. ALLEY The Mob are searching through the trashcans for the parrot when Choo-choo arrives to inform Top Cat of last night’s robbery which bears all the hallmarks of Bonnie and Clive, but everybody knows they’ve been locked up in prison for the past three years. Whoever it was, though, stole the fabulous Delmore Diamonds and actually made their getaway through the alleyway. TC realises Benny is walking the streets of New York with a million dollars worth of gems in a large, cuddly toy. They set off to find him, closely followed by the Mob. SCENE 5: INT. DINER In Gina’s diner, Fancy’s girlfriends argue about who is his favourite - each one wears a large fake diamond eternity ring. The argument starts to get heated until Belle intervenes and says they should stop fighting amongst themselves and use their anger against Fancy and his boss, Top Cat. The girls decry Belle’s bumpkin ways but Gina steps up to defend her. SONG: STAND UP FOR YOURSELF SCENE 6: EXT. STREET Getting caught up in the carnival parade, Benny is missed by TC and Chooch but, quite literally, falls into the hands of the Mob when he is bucked from a giraffe. Searching inside the parrot, the Mob discover the Delmore Diamond ring is missing and so they ‘cat-nap’ the hapless feline. SCENE 7: EXT. ALLEY The Gang receive a ransom demand stuffed into the parrot - to save Benny they must hand over the Delmore Diamond ring. Top Cat figures his absent-minded chum must have lost the ring somewhere. But where? Belle and the Girls arrive to confront Top Cat and hand back Fancy’s paste eternity rings. Belle realises Benny is missing and demands to know what’s happened to him. SONG: THE 9 LIVES OF BENNY THE BALL SCENE 8: INT. BONNIE & CLIVE’S HIDEOUT Bonnie is an ice-cool, sophisticated, gentlewoman thief with cut-glass accent and a penchant for $10 words, Clive is her simple, adoring muscle-man. They interrogate Benny but he is suffering memory loss after his fall and cannot remember anything about the ring. Clive threatens him with ‘a new home - in the East River’ unless he regains his memory. SONG: THE LITTLE GUY SCENE 9: EXT. ALLEY Whilst Belle and the Girls are searching for Benny, Top Cat tells the Gang about his plan to distract the ‘cat-nappers’ with song and dance whilst fobbing them off with a paste ring. However, without their regular fall-guy, Benny, they need a patsy; enter Officer Dibble. Dibble is down in the dumps because news has leaked out about his bungling during the Delmore Diamond heist. TC offers him redemption with a role in their plan. SONG: STEALING THE SHOW When Dibble is shown the fake ring, he mistakes it for the real diamond and arrests Top Cat and the Gang, having known all along that they must have been involved somehow. ACT 2 SCENE 1: INT. PRISON TC and the Gang are cleared of stealing the diamonds but, as they are being tried by Judge Delmore, are convicted of being accomplices and sent to jail anyway. In the Happy Valley Penitentiary Top Cat sets about being top dog. SONG: RATTLE MY CAGE His attempt at dominance however is unsuccessful as the prison is already being run by Bonnie and Clive, who are co-ordinating their operation from the heart of the penitentiary courtesy of a corrupt warden. SCENE 2: INT. DINER Dibble hangs about the diner, bored, having nothing much to do now that TC and the Gang are locked away. Belle enters, clutching the parrot which she found in the alley. She discovers Benny’s ransom note. SONG: BLUES FOR BENNY Belle realises that she is wearing the Delmore Diamond ring. SCENE 3: INT. BONNIE & CLIVE’S HIDEOUT Top Cat tries to charm Bonnie, bluff his way out, even gamble for their freedom but she is unshakeable - and a good deal more verbally dextrous than even TC. He realises he is out of his depth, especially as Clive is holding all the firepower. All that can save them is the ring. Top Cat says he knows where it is and that he’ll fetch it for them. SONG:
NICE GUY LIKE YOU SCENE 4: EXT. ALLEY The Mob have lost Top Cat and phone Bonnie and Clive for instructions. Belle and the Girls overhear them. Putting the ring into the trashcan for safekeeping, Belle confronts the Mob and tells them that she is the one they’ve got to deal with. SONG: ONE CHANCE When the Mob have gone, Belle goes to retrieve the ring, only to find Top Cat inside the trashcan holding it. He suggests a plan whereby they can get Benny back and keep the Delmore Diamonds as well. Belle is disgusted and tells him that she is calling the shots from now on. TC is ejected from the alley. SCENE 5: EXT. MUSEUM STEPS Under cover of night, Bonnie and Clive lead out the Gang. Belle and the Girls hand over the ring. Bonnie tells the Mob to kill them all anyway. Dibble appears and tries to arrest them all but is easily overpowered. They are being led away when Bonnie stops them. The ring is a fake. Where is the real Delmore Diamond? Nobody knows. The last person to touch it was...Top Cat appears in a bright spotlight. SONG: DON’T MESS WITH ME He scatters ‘diamonds’ about the place, Clive and the Mob run about trying to retrieve them. Bonnie, however is not so easily distracted. She stays ice-cool in command of the situation. It is only when TC engages her in word-play that her mask begins to slip. When TC bests her with increasingly silly words, Bonnie is enraged; she spews forth an invective in pure New York-ese. Clive and the Mob are stunned - their image of Bonnie is shattered. While they are all distracted, Top Cat kicks the gun out of her hand. The rest of the Gang grab the guns from the Mob and Dibble arrests them all. SCENE 6: EXT. ALLEY Mrs Delmore wants to present Top Cat with something for returning her jewels; she offers him the post of Chairman of the Delmore Foundation. TC is touched but, modestly, demurs preferring Officer Dibble to take the credit. Dibble is humbled and accepts. Mrs Delmore says she’ll expect him at the Foundation meetings - every Friday night, ‘til late. Top Cat announces, gleefully, that poker night is back on. Everybody cheers. SONG: YOU CAN’T KEEP A GOOD CAT DOWN/TOP CAT THE END |