Behind the Scenes: Lord of the Rings the Musical

[edenespinosalover]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 2:07pm

http://mfile.akamai.com/10676/wmv/ondemandwm.chumtv.com/2005/mar5/mar1605-stagelotr220.asx

[ckeaton]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 2:27pm

Thanks for this. :)

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 3:11pm

Well I am extremely itnerested now. Thanks for the link!

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 3:21pm

WOW...They are putting A LOT of work into this. The effects look like they are going to be amazing...and the music is very intriguing. Looks like they're putting a lot of research into this...no doubt they have producers with very deep pockets.

My question is...The set looks like it's going to be massive along with the effects...will there be a big enough Broadway theatre available when this show comes around?

Updated On: 3/30/05 at 03:21 PM

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 3:29pm

Yeah it does bring up some questions but on the whole it looks like its going to be spectacular. I mean, wow.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 3:35pm

It would be amazing if this could be staged at the Belasco. It's so dark and gothic inside...it would really set the mood. But, it's too small of a theatre, unfortunately.

[chinkie azn jai]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 4:28pm

Wow, this looks very cool! I hope I will be able to see this when it's in Toronto.

Although, after watching the video, I kind of wished Julie Taymore could have done the puppets and effects. the black horse already looks like one of her designs.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 4:39pm

Yes, the designs look influenced by THE LION KING's staging. I'm so excited that they're actually including the Ents!

Overall I'm very impressed by what I see, although I'm still scratching my head as to how they're going to approach the narrative.

Another caveat I have: it seems like the production team are very skilled, but are still Tolkien novices. What made the movie versions so magical was that the people who worked on them LOVED Tolkien, and knew his work inside-out; you could ask Peter Jackson any question about the history of Middle-Earth and he'd know it. That's why the movies are so detailed and well-researched; it was lifelong fans who made the movie.

The stage show's production team know the gist of what Tolkien was going for, but from their interviews they don't seem quite as engaged with the material. I wonder if they'll really capture the depth of Tolkien's world, or just the surfaces of it.

[EponineThenardier]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 4:53pm

The Black Riders look increrdible! Design wise this is going to be great I think.

I'm not so sure about the music though. Then again I'm very partial to Howard Shore's score from the films.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 4:58pm

I actually thought the music was very intrancing. I think it's going to be something unlike Broadway has ever seen. Will that be in a good way or a bad way? I don't know.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 4:59pm

Me too -- for me, Howard Shore's musical opus IS the musical representation of Lord of the Rings. (Come to think of it, the film is probably untoppable as the definitive dramatization of Middle-Earth).

Having said that, though, I really like the snippets of music we've heard from the stage show, and I think it'll serve the show well (at least the music is rich, and isn't the generic pop fluff that they could have gone with). I'm glad they've hired a Finnish songwriting group, so we get some of that Norse cultural sound to it.

[stylinbohemian]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 6:48pm

wow before i thought it was gonna be stupid but now wow i must say im definetly intrigued by this the effects look amazing already oh now i cant wait for it!

[TheatreDiva90016]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 8:11pm

WOW! Thanks for the link. It looks liike it's going to be amazing.

And I can't get over how TALL those guys are on the stilts!

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 8:57pm

Hmmm...
Looks pretty cool...
Interesting...
I think I'd want to see this when it comes out.
Thanks for the link!

~Steven

[apdarcey]

Posted: 3/30/05 at 10:40pm

this really is going to be the most awkward thing ever. i for one do not support it.

[Elphaba]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 1:58am

awkward is bad? Guess I was lucky not to fall for that notion

I am much more excited about this than when I first heard about it.

edene, thank you for posting the link.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 2:00am

awkward isn't bad necessarily. but lord of the rings is bad. i just do not want to see it. that said, if others do, so be it.

[Dreamcatcher]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 2:08am

Yes, I am still completely biased (music wise) after listening to Howard Shore's work over and over again but the music that the link was showing was certainly not bad. It was very different but I liked it. As for the design, they are doing a spectacular job so far. Just the concept of taking such a special effects dependant story and trying to put it on stage is something I couldn't wrap my mind around but now that I've actually seen it, my hopes for this have raised. I'm interested to see how this progresses and a more detailed cast list.

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 2:16am

awkward isn't bad necessarily. but lord of the rings is bad. i just do not want to see it. that said, if others do, so be it.

That is perhaps one of the most dismissive and close-minded comments I've read....today. I don't see why you wouldn't "support" an ambitious production that would employ hundreds of artists and promote a city's theatre scene, just because you don't particularly have a taste for the fantasy genre.

I'd hate to see other theatregoers not "supporting" RENT because they thought all stories about junkies and struggling artists were "bad," or choosing never to see MACBETH because Shakespeare is "bad." Or, for that matter, refusing to go to shows because musicals are "bad."

Updated On: 3/31/05 at 02:16 AM

[apdarcey]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 2:27am

yeah. i know i made a ridiculous comment. sorry.
i just can't find it in me to support it.

[phantom_tenor]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 5:32am

they're having wizards on stilts? that'll be interesting....

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 10:49am

I'm very interested to see more set designs. Rob Howell has never designed for a Broadway musical, only plays. So I'd love to see how his first attempt works out.

Posted: 3/31/05 at 11:00am

This thing looks like it's going to be a "Theme Park" type of musical... big effects, hobbits walking around the theatre interacting with the audience, etc, and competing with the movies that have won so much critical acclaim. I also agree with BlueWizard's take on the lack of Tolkien fanatics involved.

I had easily dismissed this as Theme Park garbage and could say that I have no desire to see it, but I very much enjoyed watching Lion King solely for its Visual Spectacularness, so I already see how I might very well be wrong.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 11:11am

See, to me, this seems much more like a theatrical event than a musical. It's one of those you-had-to-be-there-to-experience-it kind of shows. I don't even know if you can compare it to The Lion King, it just seems totally different than anything that's ever been done. And that's why I'm interested to see how it comes out. I think to say it's a theme park musical is inaccurate and not exactly fair.

~Steven

[paradox_error]

Posted: 3/31/05 at 12:28pm

It looks intriguing, if only for the design. Based on that clip I would like to see the show...