Lord of the Rings (musical)


The Lord of the Rings is the most prominent of several theatre adaptations of J. R. R. Tolkien's epic high fantasy novel of the same name, with music by A. R. Rahman, Christopher Nightingale and the band Värttinä, and book and lyrics by Matthew Warchus and Shaun McKenna.
Set in the world of Middle-earth, The Lord of the Rings tells the tale of a humble hobbit who is asked to play the hero and undertake a treacherous mission to destroy an evil, magic ring without being seduced by its power.
The show was first performed in Toronto in 2006, before transferring to the West End in June 2007 with a record £25 million budget. By the time The Lord of the Rings closed one year later in July 2008, it had become the biggest commercial flop in West End history.

Productions

Toronto

London-based theatre producer Kevin Wallace and his partner, Saul Zaentz—stage and film rights holder and producer of the animated film version of 1978—in association with Toronto theatre owner David Mirvish and concert promoter Michael Cohl, produced a stage musical adaptation with a book and lyrics written by Shaun McKenna and Matthew Warchus, and music by A. R. Rahman and Värttinä, collaborating with Christopher Nightingale.
The three-and-a-half-hour-long three-act production, with a cast of 65 actors, was mounted in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, at the Princess of Wales Theatre, at a cost of approximately C$30 million. It was promoted as a spectacle of unusual scale. It starred Brent Carver as Gandalf and Michael Therriault as Gollum, and was directed by Matthew Warchus and choreographed by Peter Darling, with set and costume design by Rob Howell. The production began performances on February 4, 2006 and had its press opening on March 23, 2006. It received mixed reviews from the press and had its final performance September 3, 2006.
The show played to almost 400,000 people in Toronto. It was nominated for 15 Dora Awards, winning 7, including "Outstanding New Musical" and awards for direction, design and choreography. Richard Corliss of Time Magazine described it as "ingenious" and a "definitive megamusical". Ben Brantley of the New York Times said "Everyone and everything winds up lost,"... "includ plot, character and the patience of most ordinary theatergoers."

London

The significantly re-written show, shortened to three hours, began previews at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on May 9, 2007, with its official premiere June 19, 2007. The same creative team as the Toronto production was involved in the London production, with only three cast members reprising their roles from Toronto—James Loye, Peter Howe and Michael Therriault. The production featured a cast of 50 actors and reportedly cost £12 million, making it one of the most expensive musicals ever produced in the West End. In order to break even the production needed to take £350,000 a week.
The National Geographic Channel produced a 50-minute television program as part of their INSIDE series that followed the London production from the first day of rehearsals to the first performance. Since July 2007 the program has aired on international National Geographic channels in over 30 countries, and on PBS in the United States.
On May 30, 2007, a preview performance was suspended after a cast member caught his leg in the moving stage and was taken to hospital. As a result, preview performances were cancelled for several days. Salter made a full recovery and later rejoined the production.
The London production, which starred London's original Mary Poppins Laura Michelle Kelly as Galadriel, received mixed reviews. The Times called it "a brave, stirring, epic piece of popular theatre" and The Guardian gave the show a four star rating, calling it "a hugely impressive production". While the Toronto version was dubbed "Bored of The Rings", the London production was labelled by The Sun as "Flawed of The Rings". It was nominated for 7 Whatsonstage Theatregoer's Choice Awards in 2007 and 5 Olivier Awards in 2008, including book and lyrics, lighting, sets and costumes and sound. Abbie Osman later replaced Kelly as Galadriel on February 4, 2008. On June 19, 2008, many of the original cast members left the production, having not extended their contracts for the final month. They were all replaced by their understudies.
The production took its final bow on July 20, 2008, after 492 performances over a 13-month run.

Potential world tour

On November 11, 2013, Playbill announced that the show would be revived for a world tour in 2015. The first location for the tour would be in New Zealand but dates and other locations were never announced. As of 2020, the status of the tour remains unknown.

Synopsis

Act I

The half-Elven maiden Arwen sings the prologue, urging those to whom she sings to trust their instincts. In the region of Middle-earth known as the Shire, Bilbo Baggins, an eccentric and wealthy Hobbit, celebrates his eleventyhundredth birthday by vanishing from his birthday party, leaving his greatest treasure, a mysterious magic Ring, to his young relative Frodo Baggins. The Ring is greatly desired by the Dark Lord Sauron, who could use it to conquer the world, and must be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom in Mordor. Frodo and his friends Samwise Gamgee, Merry Brandybuck and Pippin Took set out along the road that leads out of the Shire. Meanwhile, the corrupt wizard Saruman also desires the Ring.
At the Inn of the Prancing Pony in the village of Bree, Frodo and his friends sing and dance for their fellow guests. With the assistance of the Ranger Strider, the four Hobbits escape pursuit by the Black Riders, servants of Sauron, and safely reach the Ford of Bruinen. Awaiting them at the Elven settlement of Rivendell is Arwen, the beloved of Strider, whose true name is Aragorn, heir to the throne of Gondor. Arwen's father, Lord Elrond, calls a Council of Elves, Men and Dwarves at which it is decided that Frodo will carry the Ring to Mordor. The Fellowship of the Ring sets out from Rivendell: Frodo and his three fellow Hobbits, Aragorn, the warrior Boromir, the Elf Legolas, the Dwarf Gimli, and the wizard Gandalf. Arwen and the people of Rivendell invoke the power of the star Eärendil to protect and guide the Fellowship on its journey. In the ancient, ruined Dwarf-mines of Moria, Gandalf confronts a Balrog, a monstrous creature of evil, and falls into the darkness.

Act II

The Fellowship takes refuge in Lothlórien, the mystical realm of Galadriel, an Elven lady of great power and wisdom. As their journey south continues, Boromir attempts to take the Ring from Frodo; Frodo and Sam flee from the rest of the Fellowship, and Boromir falls in battle. Gandalf returns in time to intervene at the Siege of the City of Kings, where the Lands of Men are under attack by the forces of Saruman and the Orcs of Mordor. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam are joined on their journey by Gollum, a wretched creature who possessed the Ring for centuries and desires to have it for his own again. As they approach Mordor, Frodo and Sam sing to each other about the power of stories. Gollum is moved by their song, but the evil side of his personality asserts itself and he plans to betray the Hobbits.

Act III

If Aragorn can defeat the forces of evil and reclaim the kingship of Men, he will receive Arwen's hand in marriage. Meanwhile, Gollum leads Sam and Frodo to the lair of an enormous spider named Shelob so he can take the Ring from Frodo when he is dead, but the hobbits manage to survive and make their way to Mount Doom. Galadriel casts spells to protect the forces of good in the final battle. Frodo and Sam finally reach the Cracks of Doom to destroy the Ring once and for all, but Frodo is consumed by the Ring's power and claims it for himself. Suddenly, Gollum reappears and takes the Ring from Frodo, but he loses his balance and falls into the fire with it. With the Ring's destruction, Sauron is defeated and the dominion of Men begins. Aragorn becomes King and marries Arwen, but Frodo, wearied by his quest, decides to leave Middle-earth forever and sail with Bilbo, Gandalf and the Great Elves to the lands of the West. After bidding farewell to their friend, Sam, Merry and Pippin return to the Shire.

Casts

Musical numbers

; Act I
; Act II
; Act III
Some of the lyrics are directly inspired by Tolkien's novels, poems and related work. 'The Road Goes On' is loosely based on Bilbo's walking song spoken by Bilbo and Frodo in The Hobbit and The Fellowship of the Ring respectively. 'The Cat and the Moon' takes some of its lyrics from Frodo's drinking song in The Fellowship of the Ring. 'The Song of Hope' includes Elvish lyrics, which are a reworking of Galadriel's lament, though the song is sung by Arwen in the musical. 'Lament for Moria' takes lyrics from Gimli's lament in The Fellowship of the Ring.
The song 'Lothlórien' is performed by Legolas as an introduction to Galadriel. At the same point in the novel Legolas sings about the Elf-maiden Nimrodel, and although the two songs share a similar sentiment their lyrics are unrelated.
The song 'Now And For Always' is taken from a conversation between Frodo and Sam in The Two Towers.
The lyrics to 'Wonder', performed by Galadriel, are reminiscent of the Song of Eldamar—a lament sung and played on the harp by Galadriel in The Fellowship of the Ring.
Many of the songs feature lyrics in Quenya, one of the fictional languages developed by Tolkien, despite the fact that the Elves during the Third Age communicated in Sindarin. The writers opted for Quenya because Tolkien had developed this language the most and it is a form of Elvish appropriate to the characters.

Original London cast recording

The London original cast recording was released on February 4, 2008, and features 18 musical numbers from the show. The CD release was accompanied by a DVD with superior sound quality and DVD bonuses. Disc 2 features an alternative version of "The Song of Hope " and a slideshow of production images. It does not contain any video material although six official music videos had been filmed.

Critical reception

The Lord of the Rings received mostly negative reviews from critics.

Awards and nominations