The Amazing Acro-Cats

There are some new cats in town. In what has become an annual event Samantha Martin brings her Amazing Acro-Cats to Houston for several purrformances starting Thursday, January 21 and running until Sunday, January 31. From the Acro-Cats press release: “These cats are not kitten around.”

In the interval from their last Houston appearance the Amazing Acro-Cats made their national television debut on The Late Show hosted by Stephen Colbert. Those familiar with the act know that felines can be fussy. Tuna, one of the stars of the sleek troupe used the national exposure to start pawing at the carpet on the stage. The audience applauded as loudly as if Tuna had actually performed his trick without grandstanding for the cameras.

All of the cats are rescue or stray animals that now enjoy life on the road, traveling from each destination in a decked-out tour bus. After a series of cute tricks the cats perform in a band, along with a chicken, Cluck Norris, on tambourine.

Dakota plays a drum kit where the sticks are mounted like row-boat-paddles. Oz strums a guitar, while Nue plays keyboards and Sookie plays chimes. Tuna plays the cowbell natch. The thing is, as crazy as this sounds, these cool cats are capable of playing actual music. Certainly, if you’ve ever attended a concert of John Cage music you have been exposed to the kind of discordant avant-garde tunes that are heard from the Amazing Acro-Cats.

Souvenirs available for sale include refrigerator magnets of the individual cats as well as a cat training kit, which includes an instructional video and a kitty clicker. The show lasts around an hour, because let’s face it – cats are only going to entertain the notion that they are interested in what we think for about that long.

All the shows will take place at the Frenetic Theatre (5102 Navigation). Tickets can be purchased in advance at the Acro-Cats website.

— Michael Bergeron

by Michael Bergeron