The producing team behind Cats: The Jellicle Ball continues to expand. John Legend and producer Mike Jackson have joined the Broadway production through their banner, Get Lifted Film Co., adding another high-profile name to the creative roster as the musical prepares to open this spring at the Broadhurst Theatre.
Their involvement follows the recent announcement that Lena Waithe and Cynthia Erivo had signed on as producers. They join lead producers Michael Harrison and Mike Bosner as the production moves toward its Broadway premiere, with previews set to begin March 18 ahead of an April 7 opening night.
The production reimagines Andrew Lloyd Webber’s long-running musical Cats within New York’s underground LGBTQ+ ballroom scene. Directed by Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, with choreography by Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons, the show premiered at the Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC) in 2024, where its run was extended three times before announcing a Broadway transfer.
The Broadway company includes André De Shields, Ken Ard, Kya Azeen, Bryson Battle, Sherrod T. Brown, Jonathan Burke, Baby Byrne, Tara Lashan Clinkscales, Bryce Farris, Sydney James Harcourt, Dava Huesca, Dudney Joseph Jr., Junior LaBeija, Leiomy, Robert “Silk” Mason, Tempress Chasity Moore, Primo Thee Ballerino, Xavier Reyes, Nora Schell, Bebe Nicole Simpson, Emma Sofia, Phumzile Sojola, Kendall Grayson Stroud, B. Noel Thomas, Kalyn West, Donté Nadir Wilder, Garnet Williams and Teddy Wilson Jr.
Through Get Lifted Film Co., Legend and Jackson have built a growing presence in theater production. Their credits include the 2017 Broadway revival of August Wilson’s Jitney, the musical Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of The Temptations, and the Off-Broadway production of Turn Me Loose starring Joe Morton. The company is also producing a stage adaptation of Imitation of Life, featuring music and lyrics by Legend and a book by Lynn Nottage, which is set to premiere Off-Broadway at The Shed.
With Legend and Jackson now attached, Cats: The Jellicle Ball continues to assemble a producing team spanning music, film, television, and theater as the ballroom-inspired reimagining prepares for its Broadway run.