It was a while ago that I went to see this production (10th January to be exact) but listening now to the soundtrack has created some inspiration inside of me and I feel the need to write a review of it.
When it comes to Lord of the Rings I'm a big fan of both the books and the films and so was somewhat unsure about seeing a stage version. I recollect sometime in primary school seeing The Hobbit on stage but try as a I might I can't remember much of the production or what I thought of it.
On entering the theatre, the first thing that immediately amazes you is the stage curtain. Made to look like hundreds of branches not only do they cover the curtain but they come out over the side boxes and up over the ceiling. centre of the curtain is a large gold ring and through the ring is gauze which at points allows you to see the action behind.
The set it's self is amazing. It's essentially a large revolve although the parts of the revolve rise and fall creating many different levels. This created many effective moments such as when Frodo and Sam are climbing the slopes of Mount Doom and the revolve turned with the front sections rising at the same time to create the effect that looked as though they were climbing.
Special effects in this show are definitely worth a mention. The Orcs themselves used (no to be completely un-technical as I don't know what they are called) these springs attached to their legs, almost like kangaroos, which allowed them to jump and flip across the stage at amazing speeds. The Ring wraiths looked incredibly creepy onstage, with flowing cloaks and the horses heads controlled in a very realistic way by the actors. The most spectacular elements of the show had to be the way that characters were flown in, such as in the scenes in Lothlorien. Also at the beginning of the Second Act when Gollum is seen to climb down the branches over the stage curtain.
What lets this production down I felt was unfortunately, the acting. For me the actor portraying Frodo played him as wooden, unemotional and at times stupid. Not what you want for your protagonist. By the end of the show I really did not mind whether he destroyed the ring or not. The actor playing Gandalf started off in the same way but luckily he improved as the performance went on, which was good because his early conversations with Frodo were rather dire. Having said that some performances were excellent. Sam was brilliant and really made the show.
This show has some spectacular effects and some of the performances were good but it was let down by the overall acting. Also the fact that a hugely long book has had to be condensed into just under 3 hours of performance (the films alone total over 9 hours and cut out tons of the storyline) you do feel as though you are missing out on something. If special effects are your thing go see this show. I got a discounted student ticket at £25 which I felt is reasonable and personally if I had paid the full price I think I might have been more disappointed than I was.
Official Show Website
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