Lord of the Rings Musical to Bow in Toronto By Andrew Gans
15 Mar 2005
The Lord of the Rings, the musical version of J.R.R. Tolkien's acclaimed trilogy, will make its world premiere in Toronto.
Variety reports that Rings, originally announced for a West End bow, will open at the Princess of Wales Theater March 23, 2006. Previews are expected to begin Feb. 2. Matthew Warchus, who directed the Broadway revival of Stephen Sondheim's Follies, will helm the production, which will feature a 65-member Canadian cast.
About the upcoming musical, director Warchus told the Toronto Star, "We have not attempted to pull the novel towards the standard conventions of musical theatre, but rather to expand those conventions so that they will accommodate Tolkien's material. As a result, we will be presenting a hybrid of text, physical theatre, music and spectacle never previously seen on this scale."
The Lord of the Rings will feature music by the Finnish group Värttinä and Bombay Dreams' A. R. Rahman with book and lyrics by Shaun McKenna. Rob Howell will design both the costumes and the sets for the musical. The sets, according to Variety, will feature "three interconnected turntables containing 16 elevators."
Producers are Kevin Wallace, Saul Zaentz, Canucks David, Ed Mirvish and Michael Cohl.
The film version of Tolkien's trilogy — directed by Peter Jackson — has grossed more than three billion dollars worldwide. The final part of the trilogy, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King," won 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture.
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 1:03 am Posts: 24177 Location: Australia
_________________ Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear, Like criminals, they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer. The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay.
_________________ Oh, the flowers of indulgence and the weeds of yesteryear, Like criminals, they have choked the breath of conscience and good cheer. The sun beat down upon the steps of time to light the way To ease the pain of idleness and the memory of decay.
Worse, because the LoTR movies pale in comparison to the orignal Star Wars trilogy. I didn't want all of the characters in "A New Hope" to die a horrible, horrible death by the end of the film.
Worse, because the LoTR movies pale in comparison to the orignal Star Wars trilogy. I didn't want all of the characters in "A New Hope" to die a horrible, horrible death by the end of the film.
Yeah, I loved the original Star Wars trilogy...when I was 8.
BTW, anyone who calls Star Wars "A New Hope" is a major dorkus.
_________________ Unfortunately, at the Dawning of the Age of Aquarius, the Flower Children jerked off and went back to sleep.
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 1:14 am Posts: 37778 Location: OmaGOD!!! Gender: Male
I figured I'd post this story too, because it's so much funnier than the first one.
"Rings" Sings in Toronto
Wed Mar 16, 3:16 PM ET
By Charlie Amter
Middle Earth is relocating from London from Toronto--and taking Frodo and the singing Orcs along for the ride.
Producers of the musical adaptation of The Lord of the Rings announced Tuesday that they would premiere the stage spectacle in Toronto after being unable to find a suitable theater to house the production in London.
The extravaganza, replete with elaborate battle scenes, a cast of circus-trained performers and all sorts of tuneful J.R.R. Tolkein creatures, will open in March 2006 in the Princess of Wales Theatre with a budget of $22 million--the biggest ever for a theatrical production.
The show's British-born producer, Kevin Wallace, says Toronto fought hard to land the world premiere, and producers settled on the Canadian city because a large enough space wasn't available in London's West End district. The show had been aiming for a December debut in London.
"I know there will be a lot of disappointed British Tolkien fans who hoped to see the show in London, but we couldnt get a London theater in time," Wallace told BBC News.
He says the earliest it could reach the West End is autumn 2006. No word yet on where or when the show will play in the U.S.
Wallace says the LOTR musical is certainly "worth waiting for."
"It will be like nothing [fans] have ever seen before...the production will be a hybrid of text, physical theater, music and spectacle never previously seen on this scale."
Casting will begin soon, and Wallace says the initial ensemble will likely feature mostly Canadian performers. Rehearsals begin in October. Tickets will be available on May 15.
The show, first conceived in 2001, features a book and lyrics by Matthew Warchus and Shaun McKenna, with music being composed by A.R. Rahman and Vtinith Christopher Nightingale. The production will be directed by Warchus and choreographed by Peter Darling. The source material will adhere closely to Tolkein's original trilogy, published 50 years ago, as opposed to Peter Jackson's film adaptations.
Still, producers of the musical hope to bask in Jackson's reflected box office. The director's three LOTR films have grossed $3 billion worldwide, and if the stage producers follow suit, their show would indeed be bigger than Cats.
Speaking of Jackson, the filmmaker, who spent the better part of a decade converting Tolkein to the screen, recently sued New Line Cinema, claiming the studio has stiffed him on potentially millions of dollars in profits from the first Rings installment, 2001's The Fellowship of the Ring.
_________________ Unfortunately, at the Dawning of the Age of Aquarius, the Flower Children jerked off and went back to sleep.
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