The youngest kitten of her tribe, Jemima is jovial, idealistic and free of prejudices. She serves as a juxtaposition to the aged and downtrodden Grizabella. Unlike the other cats, the wide-eyed Jemima is receptive to Grizabella when they first meet. She is sympathetic to the older cat's plea for acceptance, and when Grizabella collapses while singing "Memory" towards the end of the musical, Jemima joins in briefly to encourage her to press on. While "Memory" is sung primarily by Grizabella, melodicpreludes are performed twice in a higher D majorkey by Jemima. The first instance occurs at the beginning of the second act after "The Moments of Happiness", and the second instance occurs near the end of the second act right before Grizabella's final appearance. Vocally, Jemima is meant to have a pure and youthful-sounding sopranohead voice.
Appearance
Jemima is a tiny kitten with a short wig and a spiked collar. Her coat is a rich satin red with black, brown and white tinges and a white chest. Her gloves/leg warmers are black and white, and the actress portraying her often has large eyes to make the character seem more innocent. When the show was reworked in 2014, her wig colors were changed from red and black to a less blocky, scruffy brown.
Sillabub
When the show transferred from London to Broadway, the name "Jemima" was believed to carry negative racial connotations in the United States through its association with Aunt Jemima. The character was renamed using another of T. S. Eliot's Jellicle names, "Sillabub". The name "Sillabub" has since been used by other productions such as the Australian ones. In the long-running Japanese production by the Shiki Theatre Company, Jemima and Sillabub are two separate characters. Sillabub would eventually be used as Jemima's name in the film adaption.
Notable casting
The role of Jemima was originated by Sarah Brightman in the original West End production in 1981. Whitney Kershaw originated the role on Broadway in 1982. Other notable performers include Anita Louise Combe in the 1985 Sydney production, and Ruthie Henshall as a replacement actor in the original London production in 1988. Arianna Rosario played Sillabub in the Broadway revival from July 2016 to June 2017, after which the role was taken over by Jessica Cohen. On screen, Veerle Casteleyn played Jemima in the 1998 film adaption with Helen Massey providing the character's singing voice. Jonadette Carpio portrays the role in the 2019 film.
