The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
Arwen
Gollum
Orcs Battling Men
As a cinematic event it was also unparalleled. Peter Jackson brought something unique to the screen: he took the “unfilmable” and turned it into celluloid genius.
So when a stage adaptation of the book opened in the West End last year it was no surprise that people were sceptical. After all, it took over twelve hours to bring the trilogy to film – and that was after substantial cuts to the original story.How on earth would anyone be able to make a stage production that didn’t involve sore bottoms and a sleep over in the theatre?!
In all honesty, Hobbits and Orcs to music was not really something I felt compelled to see and it was only because of my love of the books and films that I was persuaded to view the play at all.Some three hours later, I left the theatre with mixed feelings.
As a visual spectacle I would have to say it is unequalled. I have certainly not seen anything to match the stage impact and it is here that in some respects the show engineers its own undoing.For if the quality of the songs (which are in the main forgettable) and the performances of the majority of the lead characters matched the impressive set designs and onstage effects, I doubt very much that The Lord of the Rings would be seeing its run coming to an end after just over 12 months.
It was pretty much all eye-candy and very little substance; everything felt a little rushed, surreal, as though the characters themselves realised they were racing against time. Any college student who’s left a year’s revision for the night before the exam will know what I mean.However, it would be unfair to not talk up the positives for there are many.
The physical side of things is impressive and the visual effects really lift the overall production. Stand out moments such as Gandalf’s confrontation with the Balrog and the appearance of Shelob, really take the breath away.I also enjoyed the audience involvement prior to the start and also between intermissions (of which there are two). Hobbits filter through the stalls, chasing fireflies whilst later on, Orcs dart around the theatre snarling menacingly as they stomp around you.
The children in the audience really appreciated this involvement and I think that for many young people familiar with the story, it is an adventure not to be missed.In the performance stakes – for a story that is essentially a male driven, fantasy epic - the stand out characters are the two main female leads and much credit should go to Abbie Osman and Rosalie Craig.
If you go in expecting to be entertained then you won’t leave disappointed. Just don’t look for the involvement of the novels or the high art of the cinema because neither is present here.The show runs until the 19th July at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and for more information check out the website at www.lotr.com
*** George R Vaughan
Mon, 05/12/2008 - 15:31 — George Vaughan