Harlequin gets feline-friendly for Cats
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Filmed at Warner Bros Studios in Leavesden, Hertfordshire, the upcoming musical drama features a star-studded cast, including actors Jennifer Hudson, Judi Dench, Idris Elba, Taylor Swift and James Corden, as well as Royal Ballet principal dancers Francesca Hayward and Steve McRae.
Over 550sq.m of Harlequin Liberty panels were hired for the film set, to provide the cast a safe sprung floor on which to practice their lifts and jumps. The sprung dance floor panels were then covered in Harlequin Reversible Pro performance vinyl, which helps to prevent slips and falls. Ballet barres and 15 mirrors were also bought from the Tunbridge Wells-based manufacturer to complete the professional dance environment in which the cast could train.
Jamie Stirling, technical development manager at Harlequin, visited the set and oversaw the installation. "Working on projects of this scale and prestige, which are often technically challenging, is a real privilege, especially one such as this that combines film and performing arts,” he comments.
Cats is released on 20 December by Universal Pictures. The film is the second musical adaptation directed by Les Misérables director, Tom Hooper and is choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler, with Steven Spielberg as executive producer.
