RUSSIA: MOSCOW: PERFORMING CATS THEATRE
Russian/Nat
Forget Cats the musical.
Russia has its very own Cats theatre -- featuring a cast of 120 feline acrobats.
The show is a big hit - especially with youngsters - and though the stars may be temperamental - their salaries are low.
This is Russia's equivalent to the world famous Cat's musical - just taken a little more literally.
The Cats theatre in Moscow -- where furry felines are trained to perform like humans, much to the delight of the Muscovite audience.
These tricks might look pale in comparison to a performing canine -- but anyone who knows cats knows how difficult it is to make a cat do anything it doesn't want to.
Not so for Yuri Kuklachev -- a man who has found a way to master the cat psychology.
Don't believe for a minute that Russian cats are any more cooperative than their foreign cousins.
Kuklachev should know -- he's been performing with them for over 20 years.
SOUNDBITE: (Russia)
I started with the cats quite by chance. Back in 1971 I picked up a kitten from the street. And seeing him playing gave me an idea to do stage tricks - and so we started.
SUPER CAPTION: Yuri Kuklachev, Cats theatre director and showman
Now Kuklachev's Theatre -- as it widely known in Russia -- has 120 permanent feline artistes.
Kuklachev used to pick up strays from the streets but nowadays most of his artistes are bred by him.
Even Russia's volatile political climate has done little to curtail the cat's antics.
Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev loved cats just as much as the current mayor of Moscow, Yuri Luzhkov.
Russians as a whole are pretty partial to cats.
Crammed into tiny apartments in the capital, Russian families often can't afford a dog - but there is almost always enough space for a cat.
A Russian superstition has it that the owner of new house should let their cat enter first - or risk the consequences.
SOUNDBITE: (Russian)
The cat is a very playful species. It is a natural born acrobat and performer. The difficult part is to convince the cat to show it when you want it -- not when they want.
SUPER CAPTION: Yuri Kuklachev, Cats theatre director and showman
It can take hours to convince a cat to walk along a narrow pole - one small slip could be catastrophic.
And convince is the word - cats never submit to force.
SOUNDBITE: (Russia)
There one basic rule -- never offend the cat. It is very proud, very dignified animal.If you offended the cat once, it will remember it through the rest of his life.
SUPER CAPTION: Yuri Kuklachev, Cats theatre director and showman
These cats, like human performers can be very temperamental - but lap up applause and enjoy taking a bow for an appreciative audience.
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Kuklachyov Cat Theatre, Moscow
Performance at the Kuklachyov Cat Theare, Moscow, Russia.
Moscow Cat Theatre - Cats perform in Circus acts FULL Documentary short
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You'll be hard-pressed to find a more unusual circus, or father-daughter performing duo. The Moscow Cat Theatre is just that: a travelling show of cats that perform amazing tricks for the owners who love and train them.
Russia - Kuklachev's Performing Cat Theatre
T/I: 10:51:16
A theatre that features performing cats reopened in Moscow on
Wednesday (8/3) after a break of two years. The theatre in a
converted apartment block in the Russian capital is run by
acclaimed clown and animal trainer Yuri Kuklachev. Kuklachev and
his one hundred feline entertainers have defied the commonly held
assumption that cats cannot be trained.
SHOWS
MOSCOW,RUSSIA (8/3)
various shots of the show
cats performing tricks
kuklachev with cats performing
silly dressed up cats
dog carries cat
jumps into trainer's arms
cyclist and cats
ends 2.06
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Cat and Clown. Yuri Kuklachev
Kuklachev, Moscow cats theatre 4
Kuklachev, Moscow cats theatre
MOSCOW CATS THEATER
(Recorded December 4th, 2006)
A surprise present for Sean at the strangest theatre show in the world.
Yuri Kuklachev - Katzentheater
Moscow's cat theatre gets crowds purring
The Moscow Cat Theatre, which bills itself as one of a kind, has been wowing Russian audiences with its unusual combination of animal tricks and clowning about. Duration: 01:05.
Moscow Cats Theater
Cats perform Cats at the Moscow Cats Theater.
Happy ending to a cat's tale
RUSSIA CAT THEATRE
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LENGTH 3:39
SHOTLIST :
Moscow, July 5-6
1. Wide of Yuri Kuklachev and cats on stage
2. Cutaway audience applauds
3. Close up Kuklachev with cat, cat uses legs to walk across rope
4. Wide stage
5. Mid cat pulls Kuklachev along stage
6. Wide children laughing
7. Wide set up Yuri Kuklachev
8. Cutaway stroking cat
9. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Yuri Kuklachev, Cat Theatre
I turned to the people of Moscow and the media for help and I didn't expect, didn't think that the country loves me so much. It was as if the whole country rose up in my defence and those people understood that their plans would go nowhere.
10. Wide audience leaves theatre for interval
11. Mid same
12. SOUNDBITE : (English) Steve Rocklyn, tourist from California
I thought it was very nice. I've seen it once before, seven or eight years ago and it seems even better today. It's different than it was and the kids enjoy. I've got kids here, so it's very nice.
13. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Natalia, Vox Pop
I don't think it's right to move the theatre. Everyone knows that the theatre is here, in its rightful place. I was surprised to hear about it. Maybe the rent's too expensive or some other financial reason. Probably someone wanted the building, as usual here
14. Wide cat leaps up pole
15. Cutaway audience
16. Mid cat pushes dog in pram across stage
17. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Yuri Kuklachev, Cat Theatre
Our main aim is to bring good energy to the stage and that's what we do. You can't be any other way with cats. They don't react to aggression and can react themselves aggressively at any moment. You can't fool them. If you're a bad person they won't let you get near enough to stroke them. So everything is going well here.
18. Wide Kuklachev carries cat into the audience
19. Cutaway audience
20. Mid cats stand on top of toy horses
21. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Yuri Kuklachev, Cat Theatre
If a person smiles during one of my performances and smiles on the way home and then smiles again when he goes to sleep, I consider my job well done. I have achieved my aim in life. I have given someone the present of a smile.
22. Wide Kuklachev ends performance
23. Mid Kuklachev takes bow
LEAD IN :
Moscow's cat theatre is one of the city's most popular tourist destinations.
But its valuable location in the city centre has brought unwanted attention from real estate developers, and more recently the city's economic crimes department.
A vigorous media campaign has saved the theatre from eviction.
STORYLINE:
Moscow's Cat Theatre is a city institution.
Persuaded by generous portions of cat food, the feline stars climb poles, push prams and take on obstacle assault courses.
But recently the theatre's prime location in the city centre prompted a raid by real estate developers who wanted to seize the land.
Moscow Cat Theatre founder Yuri Kuklachev was on stage when the raid started.
The men had bought tickets for the afternoon performance and were watching from the audience.
But they hadn't come to see Kuklachev or the hundred or so cats he uses in his unique show.
Soon after the curtain went up, they sealed off backstage offices and seized the theatre's accounts.
It was the latest in a long line of attempts to evict the theatre from its prime location in the centre of Moscow, where real estate is worth up to $4,000 per square metre.
But they hadn't reckoned on Kuklachev who was determined not to let anyone get their claws into his precious theatre.
He says he approached the media for help and was overwhelmed by the attention his case received.
Kuklachev says the public's backing forced the real estate developers to change their plans.
====
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Handstands and hulas from the Moscow Cat Circus
1. Woman riding bike with cats
2. Cat jumping along people's backs
3. Yuri Kuklachev, show's creator, urging cat to climb pole
4. Cat performing handstand
5. Cat balancing on disco ball
6. Cat spinning beach ball
7. Yuri Kuklachev spinning cat in hula hoop
8. Cat walking between Kuklachev's legs
9. Cat on tightrope
10. Cat walking on two tightropes
11. Cat pushing dog in cart
12. Yuri Kuklachev being scratched by cat
13. Close-up Kuklachev with cat doing handstand on his hand
14. Cat straddling tight rope, eating treat
15. Cat being dressed up
16. Cat climbing into pot
17. Cat sitting on top of pole stand
18. Cat being swung on pole stand
THE REAL CATS HIT BROADWAY
Those who say you cannot train cats to do tricks should take a look at the Moscow Cats Theatre, now playing off Broadway at the Lambs Theatre in New York.
The show's creator Yuri Kuklachev has turned dozens of cats into a team of four-legged acrobats that perform on cue.
These felines are multi-talented and can do handstands, balance on rolling disco balls, spin beach balls, swing from hula hoops, walk the tightrope, and even walk the dog.
Kuklachev says he teaches the cats by first figuring out what each cat likes to do, then bonding with the animal.
He also uses a lot of tasty cat treats to persuade them to perform.
Kuklachev founded the show in Russia three decades ago while working as a circus clown.
He started befriending stray cats, including one that liked to hide in his wife's cooking pot, so he worked the curious cats into his act.
After New York, the Moscow Cats Theatre will tour other cities across the United States.
keyword-wacky
keyword-animal
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The Moscow Cats Theatre
The Moscow Cats Theatre
KUKLACHEV IN NEW YORK
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Russian cat theatre opens Nutcracker' in Tokyo.
1. A cat on a rocking horse
2. People watching
3. A cat on a rocking horse
4. Cat on the mirror ball
5. Various of the audience
6. Various of the cats hanging on the poll
7. Various of a cat and a dog on the skateboard
8. A cat on the high poll
STORYLINE:
It's not the sort of cast Tchaikovsky probably had in mind when he wrote his famous 'The Nutcracker'.
On Thursday in Tokyo a Russian travelling theatre staged a production of the ballet without the usual men in tights and women in tutus.
Instead an audiece of hundreds was treated to the sight of thrity or so cats and five dogs performing to the great composer's masterpiece, assisted by group of clowns.
Abandoning the more conventional leaps and pirouettes, the animals balanced on rocking horses, teetered on poles and even walked on tight ropes.
The Kuklachev Cat Theatre, the brainchild of a former Russian circus clown, Yuri Kuklachev, has been wooing audiences around the world for some twnety-five years.
It's the brainchild of Yuri Kuklachev, a former circus clown, who tours the world with his all feline and canine cast.
Keyword-WACKY
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Russia - Performing Cats Stage A Comeback
T/I 10:04:02
PERFORMING CATS STAGE A COMEBACK
Moscow Eng Comm Duration: 0.53
A theatre that features performing cats has reopened in Moscow after two years of reconstruction. The theatre in a converted apartment block and is run by acclaimed clown and animal trainer Yuri Kuklachev. Kuklachev and his one hundred feline entertainers have defied the commonly-held assumption that cats cannot be trained.
SHOWS:
MOSCOW. Kuklachev and assistants presenting cat act. Audience applauding. Kuklachev swinging cat round on rope. Cats jumping through hoop. Cat looking on from swing. Dog with large hat, and cat placed on its back. Audience clapping. Kuklachev throws and catches dog and cat.
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2007 07 03 yuri kuklachev 02
Dmitri Kuklachev & “Cats Theater”
Dmitri Kuklachev & “Cats Theater”
presents in Switzerland the show I AM CLOWN
03-04 March - Zurich,
06 March -Suhr,
07 March, Geneva,
08 March, Bern.
!!!! UNIQUE SHOW IN THE WORLD !!!!
Buy tickets NOW:
2007 07 03 yuri kuklachev 01
Cats Show in Switzerland 2016!
Cats show of Kuklachev Cats Theater
soon in Zurich ( April,14th) ,
Geneva ( April, 15th) ,
Lugano ( April, 16th)
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tickets on :