SUBMITTED BY Jessica Whitehouse
The thrilling spectacle of The Amazing Acro-Cats, prominently featured in the Netflix series Cat People, is set to return to Orlando, creating a purrfect start to the new year. Presented in partnership with Orlando Cat Cafe, the talented troupe of cats is prepared to captivate audiences at Orlando Family Stage, located at 1001 Princeton St. in Orlando, from January 24 to January 26 with seven scheduled shows.
This group of trained domestic house cats, all former orphans, rescues and strays, give a one-of-a-kind “purrformance” that includes cats riding skateboards, jumping through hoops, ringing bells, balancing on balls and performing other feats of agility and entertainment. The show finale is the only all-cat band in the world: Tuna and the Rock Cats. The Rock Cats play guitar, drums and piano, and they’ve recently been joined by the Jazz Cats on saxophone, trumpet and clarinet.
So how do you train a cat to do complex stunts? Chief Executive Human (CEH) Samantha Martin uses clicker training, a technique involving only positive reinforcement, to train her troupe. Samantha and her human assistants and the Acro-Cats tour the U.S. in their “catified” bus, which is also home to a litter of foster kittens.
Samantha and her troupe will be doing a special show at The Orlando Cat Café on Wednesday, January 22, 2025. In addition to her professional felines, Samantha will demonstrate clicker training on a few lucky felines at Orlando Cat Café. This performance is by reservation only and space is very limited. “We were fortunate to host Samantha and her troupe last year and it was amazing,” said Sandra Cagan, owner of The Orlando Cat Café. “She had one of the kittens jumping through hoops and riding a skateboard in no time at all, all using positive reinforcement.”
In addition to being on Cat People, the Amazing Acro-Cats have been featured on national TV shows including The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Animal Planet’s Puppy Bowl, CBS News Sunday Morning, and PBS Nova’s Cat Tales.
Tickets for the shows in Downtown Orlando range from $20 to $70. For show dates and times and to purchase tickets, visit www.rockcatsrescue.org. Tickets are also available at the door.
Tickets for the special performance at Orlando Cat Café are available at www.orlandocatcafe.com.
ABOUT THE ACROCATS:
The Amazing Acro-Cats tour supports Rock Cats Rescue, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and is focused on saving cats “one click at a time” through cat welfare, rescue and adoption. Rock Cats Rescue has found homes for more than 300 kittens since 2009. For more information, visit www.rockcatsrescue.org.
ABOUT ORLANDO CAT CAFÉ
The Orlando Cat Café opened in September 2016. Working together with SPCA Florida, Cagan Management Group, Inc., and Axum Coffee, our joint mission is to save the lives of homeless cats in Central Florida while drinking good coffee. Visit orlandocatcafe.com for more information.
ABOUT SPCA FLORIDA
Founded in 1979, SPCA Florida is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization headquartered in Lakeland, serving all of Polk County and the surrounding communities. Dedicated to improving the lives of pets and people, SPCA Florida provides caring, compassion and hope to more than 4,000 homeless animals entering our doors each year.
Simplistically, every $100 donated to SPCA Florida, or essentially the cost of an average adoption, equates to $3,000 worth of positive economic impact throughout Polk County, Central Florida, and the state. Additionally, we are proud of the fact that 91% of every dollar goes to program resources and helping homeless animals.
