#bustopher

Day 21: Bustopher Jones

-

Bustopher Jones enters the scene while the Jellicles are still looking at Grizabella and being sad. There's even a small spotlight on him, so the audience can see him entering and being super confused at what's happening. To break the tension, he waves cheerfully and when Jenny notices him, the music starts. I feel like that way there's not such a drastic mood change and we get the comedy of Bustopher being 😙🙂🤨🙁🙂😀.

When Macavity appears disguised as Old Deuteronomy, after Demeter notices it's him, Macavity tries to approach Munkustrap, who still thinks it's his father. Demeter realises what Macavity wants to do is attack the Protector. Before he can reach him, she throws herself on top of Macavity to reveal his real identity and stop him from harming Munkustrap.

Bustopher Jones was not always a Jellicle. He spent his time far away from the junkyard. But when his mate died giving birth to a litter of two kittens, Quaxo and Mistoffelees, he needed help. The kittens had magical abilities, and as you can imagine, magical kittens are not easy to handle.

He was approached by Macavity, who had witnessed the twins’ peculiar abilities. The only magical cat he had seen before was himself. He saw this as a chance for even more power. He offered to help Bustopher with his sons, even teach them to control their powers. Being from high-class society, Bustopher Jones was unaware of this master criminal or the atrocities he had committed, so he happily accepted. This began the point in Mistoffelees and Quaxo’s life where they became Macavity’s magical apprentices.

As they grew up, Mistoffelees displayed wondrous abilities! Conjuring, disappearing acts, illusions! He could even seemingly be in two places at once! Quaxo, on the other hand, possessed more psychic abilities, such as telekinesis and telepathy. He could read minds, move objects with his own, and even send messages to the minds of others. On top of this, both toms could sense energy in the world around them, and seemed to possess some sort of soothsaying abilities. Not exactly seeing into the future, but a very powerful intuition that was almost always right.

They spent their days with their father, going about his daily activities, feasting at high-class establishments on leftovers given to them by the cooks, visits to the tomb, and going to the theatre. Their nights, however, were spent under strict training with Macavity. He intended to raise them to become like him and use their powers for his own personal gain, to satisfy his hunger for power. He wanted to have them study more underhanded forms of magic, have them reading tomes that told of dark magic such as necromancy and mind control. The brothers, however, had not an interest in manipulating others to their will as Macavity did. They did as they were told, however, as kittens, because they didn’t know any better. Bustopher Jones was unaware of what his sons were learning, so he hadn’t the ability to stop it.

As the twins aged, they began to realize that the things they were studying didn’t seem quite right. Not quite moral . This was right around the time when Mistoffelees met The Rum Tum Tugger.

Mistoffelees was taking a walk along The River Thames when he came across the leonine tom scavenging for food in a trash can. He found it peculiar that such a well-groomed tom with a nice collar would be scrounging around in the trash for food, as he must have an owner. He began to speak to the bigger cat and grew to like him. One night, he was telling Quaxo of his time with Tugger when Macavity overheard. In anger and fear of someday having to confront the family who he felt so unloved by, he lashed out, screaming at Mistoffelees never to talk to him. But Mistoffelees didn’t listen. Something about Tugger made him feel safe. And Macavity just… Didn’t . He had already been thinking of getting away from Macavity, but meeting Tugger sealed the deal. He didn’t want to spend time around someone who made him learn all of this evil magic. So one evening he confronted his father and told him of what Macavity was teaching them. From there, he, his brother, and their father went to find Tugger once again. He was where he always was, waiting for Mistoffelees to take their nightly walk.

Tugger had told Mistoffelees of the Jellicle tribe during their time together. It sounded so nice, and safe, and he wanted to be a part of that family so badly. So Tugger showed the three tuxedo cats the way and introduced them to the tribe.

Bustopher Jones felt that Mistoffelees and Quaxo were old enough to be on their own now, so he opted to continue his life elsewhere. Though he still came around from time to time to visit his sons and tell of his adventures in the city. What plays he saw, the food he tried, and he would sometimes bring some fancy food back for them and the rest of the tribe. He grew to be very respected among the tribe, due to him being very knowledgeable on the many different sources of food throughout the city.

When the tribe first met Mistoffelees and Quaxo, they were apprehensive to accept them. They were magical , after all. And Macavity had trained them. Would they be like him ? Was this all just a trick to get close to the tribe? Had Macavity sent Mistoffelees and his brother as spies? Eventually, though, the tribe grew to accept the twins as two of their own. Munkustrap even went so far as to begin training Quaxo to become the tribe’s storyteller when he himself would eventually leave that role and become the Jellicle leader upon the passing of his father.

Bustopher Jones!

The movie’s hot garbage, but the idea of him having a bowtie shaped marking under his bowtie is kinda cute?? Also random chin spot that I made look more like a mole here.

CATS Hunks

Josh Piterman