Imogen Capes
With a story so well-known and beloved as JRR Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, it is a difficult task to successfully cram the epic tale into anything the average theatre-goer can comfortably sit through. At barely less than 3 hours, The Lord of the Rings - A Musical Tale manages to weave the familiar story, ostensibly told from the Shire hobbits’ perspective, in such a way that the audience is drawn into Middle Earth to join on this quest. Though not without its pitfalls, the show is an energetic and engaging retelling of the seminal fantasy saga.
As we take our seats in the Civic, those seated in the front few rows are playing simple garden party games with the hobbits in celebration of Bilbo Baggins’ 111th birthday, while late comers are halloo’d at and waved in as though long parted friends.
Cast members seem to appear out of the very fabric of the theatre, greeting, teasing and laughing from the stalls, the circle and box seats. Infectious good cheer abounds and the games continue. As such it is difficult to say when the show begins, with the house lights still up and cast members scattered among the seated audience well after the doors have closed. The chaotic fun might run on longer than the audience may have liked but it is rather charming, and you can’t expect hobbits to start a show on time.
As the show progresses, the beautifully simple and versatile set design morphs to embody varied settings across Middle Earth, and when paired with the stunning lighting design provides an enthralling world you feel you could almost reach out and touch. The sense of tangible magic is heightened by the hauntingly beautiful and terrifying puppetry bringing life to the Ringwraiths/Black Riders, and the great spider Shelob.
With score played by the cast themselves, the seamless integration of musical instruments into the scenes, adjusting genre and timbre to suit the context of the setting, is one of the highlights of the performance; whomsoever can make a cello unobtrusive within a scene is bound to impress. As does the quality of the casts’ skill in performing with their various instruments while remaining in character.
Whilst characters such as Rick Hall’s Bilbo and Tom Amandes’ Gandalf appear so faithfully represented they feel as dear friends upon the stage, the same cannot be said for all. The amalgamation of the characters of Theoden, King of Rohan and Denethor, Steward of Gondor is disappointing but understandable given the time constraints of a stage show. Some cherished characters, Eowyn and Faramir for instance, are absent altogether while others remain even though they are surplus to the plotlines explored onstage.
Will James Jr’s Strider/Aragorn seems to more closely resemble a linebacker who wound up in the hero’s role, with all the attendant subtlety therein, rather than the noble and wise leader of men. Arwen somehow manages to retain a place in the show despite contributing even less to the story than she did in the film adaptations. Her duet with Strider, The Song of Hope, is at least a chance for Alina Jenine Taber to showcase her impressive vocals.
Tolkien’s elves have ever been a tricky element to adapt faithfully into a medium other than the page. The re-imagining of the elves, pulling on costume and dance choreography from South Asia, gives them a freshness which kept them from falling into the airy-fairy trap all too common in fantasy material. Lauren Zakrin’s Galadriel was as awe-inspiring as any version of the character I have yet seen and her superb vocals in Lothlorien and Wonder bolstered the impression, resulting in one of the most captivating portrayals of the night.
Tony Buzzuto’s Gollum, drawing heavily upon Andy Serkis’ performance in the films, is a crowd favourite. It is only a shame we must wait until the second act to experience his lithe physicality and whipping dialogue.
The glowing heart of the show is to be found, as it almost always is, with the hobbits, who are undoubtedly the soul of the production. Spencer Davis Milford’s Frodo fracturing under the weight of his insidious burden, and Michael Kurowski’s Sam providing such warmth and loyalty it spills off the stage in waves. Eileen Doan and Ben Mathew are suitably charming and cheeky rounding out the group as Merry and Pippin respectively. The most endearingly catchy songs do tend to have hobbits at the centre of them, and I expect The Road Goes On and Now and for Always will be playing in my head for the next wee while.
The musical does suffer from meandering and ungainly pacing; lingering where it ought to push forward, and lamentably racing through compressed events without giving them their fair due. However, full of heart and peppered with comedic nuggets, I am pleasantly surprised by the joy I received from this production.
No adaptation will fully satisfy the die-hard purist fans, however, despite its faults, The Lord of the Rings - A Musical Tale is a worthy addition to the canon. Find more info here.
Cast members seem to appear out of the very fabric of the theatre, greeting, teasing and laughing from the stalls, the circle and box seats. Infectious good cheer abounds and the games continue. As such it is difficult to say when the show begins, with the house lights still up and cast members scattered among the seated audience well after the doors have closed. The chaotic fun might run on longer than the audience may have liked but it is rather charming, and you can’t expect hobbits to start a show on time.
As the show progresses, the beautifully simple and versatile set design morphs to embody varied settings across Middle Earth, and when paired with the stunning lighting design provides an enthralling world you feel you could almost reach out and touch. The sense of tangible magic is heightened by the hauntingly beautiful and terrifying puppetry bringing life to the Ringwraiths/Black Riders, and the great spider Shelob.
With score played by the cast themselves, the seamless integration of musical instruments into the scenes, adjusting genre and timbre to suit the context of the setting, is one of the highlights of the performance; whomsoever can make a cello unobtrusive within a scene is bound to impress. As does the quality of the casts’ skill in performing with their various instruments while remaining in character.
Whilst characters such as Rick Hall’s Bilbo and Tom Amandes’ Gandalf appear so faithfully represented they feel as dear friends upon the stage, the same cannot be said for all. The amalgamation of the characters of Theoden, King of Rohan and Denethor, Steward of Gondor is disappointing but understandable given the time constraints of a stage show. Some cherished characters, Eowyn and Faramir for instance, are absent altogether while others remain even though they are surplus to the plotlines explored onstage.
Will James Jr’s Strider/Aragorn seems to more closely resemble a linebacker who wound up in the hero’s role, with all the attendant subtlety therein, rather than the noble and wise leader of men. Arwen somehow manages to retain a place in the show despite contributing even less to the story than she did in the film adaptations. Her duet with Strider, The Song of Hope, is at least a chance for Alina Jenine Taber to showcase her impressive vocals.
Tolkien’s elves have ever been a tricky element to adapt faithfully into a medium other than the page. The re-imagining of the elves, pulling on costume and dance choreography from South Asia, gives them a freshness which kept them from falling into the airy-fairy trap all too common in fantasy material. Lauren Zakrin’s Galadriel was as awe-inspiring as any version of the character I have yet seen and her superb vocals in Lothlorien and Wonder bolstered the impression, resulting in one of the most captivating portrayals of the night.
Tony Buzzuto’s Gollum, drawing heavily upon Andy Serkis’ performance in the films, is a crowd favourite. It is only a shame we must wait until the second act to experience his lithe physicality and whipping dialogue.
The glowing heart of the show is to be found, as it almost always is, with the hobbits, who are undoubtedly the soul of the production. Spencer Davis Milford’s Frodo fracturing under the weight of his insidious burden, and Michael Kurowski’s Sam providing such warmth and loyalty it spills off the stage in waves. Eileen Doan and Ben Mathew are suitably charming and cheeky rounding out the group as Merry and Pippin respectively. The most endearingly catchy songs do tend to have hobbits at the centre of them, and I expect The Road Goes On and Now and for Always will be playing in my head for the next wee while.
The musical does suffer from meandering and ungainly pacing; lingering where it ought to push forward, and lamentably racing through compressed events without giving them their fair due. However, full of heart and peppered with comedic nuggets, I am pleasantly surprised by the joy I received from this production.
No adaptation will fully satisfy the die-hard purist fans, however, despite its faults, The Lord of the Rings - A Musical Tale is a worthy addition to the canon. Find more info here.