In The Catbird Seat

Cast member Jacob Brent, currently appearing in the Broadway company as Mr. Mistoffelees, informed Back Stage that he had been "hand-picked" by Gillian Lynne, the choreographer charged with the musical staging of the piece, to perform in the video. Brent and the other two Americans in the cast (Ken Page and Michael Gruber) negotiated their own contracts, which he believed were commensurate with the Broadway production contract rate; and according to Brent, it was a "buyout across the board." As far as he knows, Actors' Equity was not involved, and he "wasn't exchanged for anyone."

Apparently, the original plans for the video were to select half the cast from among American actors, and the other half from British performers, but that didn't happen, because Equity was reluctant to negotiate contracts and visas for so many performers.

"It's really a shame," Brent said, "because the American company is so good."

Brent provided Back Stage with an insider's peek at the production process. The vocals were recorded first in a studio, then two run-throughs of the show were shot with the 16 cameras, followed by weeks of close-ups and pick-up shots. "It was really weird to take what you've been doing for three years and not have an audience, but you get used to it after a few days," Brent said.

He characterized his experience as "great," reiterating that it was an "amazing time to be in London. Princess Diana had just died, and we shut down production for a few days."

How might jaded New Yorkers react to the video? Brent feels, "Like everything else, some people will hate it...but for others, it will be new and fresh. Ultimately, what will happen is that people will want to see the show again."