Because of the vague and fluid nature of the show, character backstories and portrayals often vary depending on the production and actor. The following are quotes from creatives and cast members on how they interpret and/or portray the character of Bombalurina.
[Demeter]'s under the protective wing of Bombalurina [...] Her sister cat. She's her protector. I also see her as a frenemy in a way. Even though Bomb is there for her, Bomb is still taunting her in a way. That in itself is also kind of a dysfunctional girlfriend relationship.
Bombalurina is the ultimate good-time girl. The party girl. Demeter's such a freak show and she's got some issues. I've got it together a little bit more so I take a leadership role. So she's always under my wing and I'm a little bit more of a calming force.
It's a complicated relationship. She has a very close relationship with Macavity and she knows more about his whereabouts than any other cat. I think she's been burned by him. She was in an abusive and messed up relationship with this cat. [...] As much as this relationship was dark and scarring, there's a reason why she entered into it, because it was thrilling and it was sexy. [...] With Demeter, it scarred her and really frazzled her, whereas Bomb has been through a lot of stuff so it didn't faze her as much.
She has empathy for Grizabella. She feels for Griz because she was almost Griz. She was one step away from turning to the dark side. She wants to protect the younger cats from her, not in a judgmental way, but a 'you really don't want to go down that road'.
They're the classic on-again, off-again. That's the lighter version of her relationship with Macavity. With Tugger, it's fiery, it's playful, it's kind of messed up, but not in an abusive way.
On what she was told about Grizabella's relationship with Bombalurina and Demeter:
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Her relationship with Bombalurina and Demeter is that they all went through the same thing. Grizabella went off with Macavity, was seduced by Macavity into this other life and then got too far into it with the drinking and the drugs. When she wanted to rejoin the tribe, it was too late. They saw it as she had already made this choice. [...] I don't know if [Bombalurina and Demeter] necessarily chose to go with Macavity in the first place, or if they were coerced into going away with Macavity. But, they both returned to the tribe willingly, and didn't leave the tribe willingly, whereas Grizabella did leave willingly. While [Grizabella] looks for sympathy with them, they don't give that to her, even though in Grizabella's mind they went through the same thing.
