'Cats: The Jellicle Ball' Completes Broadway Cast with Ballroom Icon Leiomy and Original Star Ken Ard

Producers of Cats: The Jellicle Ball, a vibrant reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber's iconic musical framed as a queer ballroom competition, announced the complete Broadway cast on January 26, 2026. The production, which smashed records and won awards during its Off-Broadway run at the Perelman Performing Arts Center, will transfer to the Broadhurst Theatre for previews starting Wednesday, March 18, 2026, and an official opening on Tuesday, April 7, 2026.

Newly announced principal cast members include Leiomy, known as "The Wonder Woman of Vogue" and a lead judge on HBO's Legendary, in the role of Macavity. Leiomy, a transgender woman and pioneering figure in ballroom culture, made history as the first transgender woman of color featured in Nike's BETRUE Campaign in 2017, choreographed and acted in FX's Pose, judged the first worldwide ballroom competition series on HBO Max's Legendary in 2019, appeared in Rihanna's Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 3 in 2021, and became the first model of trans experience in a Black Opal campaign. She expressed excitement about her Broadway debut, stating she is "beyond excited to make her Broadway debut apart of the CATS family."

Joining her is Ken Ard, who originated the role of Macavity in the 1982 Broadway production of Cats, now portraying DJ Griddlebone. Other new cast members include Kya Azeen as Etcetera or Coricopat, Bryson Battle as Jellylorum, Sherrod T. Brown , Bryce Farris , Phumzile Sojola , Kendall Grayson Stroud , B. Noel Thomas , Kalyn West , and Donté Nadir Wilder .

The ensemble features returning performers from the Off-Broadway premiere, including Tony and Grammy winner André De Shields as Old Deuteronomy, Jonathan Burke as Mungojerrie, Baby Byrne as Victoria, Sydney James Harcourt as Rum Tum Tugger, Dava Huesca as Rumpleteazer, Dudney Joseph Jr. as Munkustrap, Junior LaBeija as Gus the Theatre Cat, Robert “Silk” Mason as Magical Mister Mistoffelees, “Tempress” Chasity Moore as Grizabella, Primo Thee Ballerino as Tumblebrutus, Xavier Reyes as Jennyanydots, Nora Schell as Bustopher Jones, Bebe Nicole Simpson as Demeter, Emma Sofia as Cassandra/Skimbleshanks, Garnet Williams as Bombalurina, and Teddy Wilson Jr. as Sillabub, with Tara Lashan Clinkscales also listed.

Directed by OBIE Award winners Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch, the production features choreography by Chita Rivera Award winners and New York City ballroom legends Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons . Based on T.S. Eliot's Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats with music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Cats: The Jellicle Ball transforms the story into an immersive ballroom spectacle blending glittering runway walks, club beats, and electrifying choreography.

This casting announcement underscores the production's deep ties to ballroom culture, a vital space for LGBTQ+ communities, particularly Black and transgender performers like Leiomy and Junior LaBeija. The involvement of icons from Pose, Legendary, and voguing houses highlights growing mainstream recognition of queer ballroom artistry on Broadway stages.