#26
Posted: 3/24/06 at 5:11am
Here are highlights of what AP's Michael Kuchwrara had to say....
A lavish yet disappointing version of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" had its world premiere Thursday. It's a case of imagination overwhelmed by complexity, in this case Tolkien's intricate, ornate and lengthy adventure saga.
Despite the simplification, what's left is a confusing and long evening..... A synopsis is conveniently provided in the theater program, but even that is of minimal help to those unfamiliar with the novels or the three celebrated films by Peter Jackson.
On stage, the battle scenes are, by necessity, brief and surprisingly tame. One exception is the first-act confrontation
between Gandalf the magician, the tale's mystical father figure, and the fierce-looking, red-eyed monster Balrog. Their dustup, complete with a wind machine that drives gusty currents into the audience, suggests where some of the more than $23 million in production dollars were spent. And it is only one of several big battles.
But "The Lord of the Rings" is as much about friendship as it is about fighting, and there are intimate moments in this epic journey as well. Most of those are expressed in song, which brings up a weird disconnect about the show. Its creators have insisted all along that the production is not a musical.
Yet characters do burst into song in a traditional musical-theater way, particularly in the show's few quiet, reflective sections.
The music is an odd amalgam of sounds by Bollywood master A.R. Rahman and Varttina, a Finnish folk group, combined by musical supervisor Christopher Nightingale. It's difficult to determine who did what, but the overall effect is one of anthem pop crossed with folksy New Age music, generic melodies that often swallow the elemental lyrics by McKenna and Warchus.
A circle, usually a large, yellowish moon, is never far from center stage in Rob Howell's elaborate design concept. Gnarled branches fill much of the proscenium and spill out into the theater's side boxes and the auditorium itself.
The main playing area contains a series of revolves and elevators that rise and fall with ease, helping create the various lands our travelers must visit before returning home.
Howell's costumes are occasionally eye-popping, particularly an exotic white number for Galadriel, the mystical Lady of Lothlorien, who aids Frodo in his quest.
As Frodo and his loyal companion Sam sing at the beginning of their arduous journey, "The road goes on, ever ever on." So does this never-ending production.
A lavish yet disappointing version of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" had its world premiere Thursday. It's a case of imagination overwhelmed by complexity, in this case Tolkien's intricate, ornate and lengthy adventure saga.
Despite the simplification, what's left is a confusing and long evening..... A synopsis is conveniently provided in the theater program, but even that is of minimal help to those unfamiliar with the novels or the three celebrated films by Peter Jackson.
On stage, the battle scenes are, by necessity, brief and surprisingly tame. One exception is the first-act confrontation
between Gandalf the magician, the tale's mystical father figure, and the fierce-looking, red-eyed monster Balrog. Their dustup, complete with a wind machine that drives gusty currents into the audience, suggests where some of the more than $23 million in production dollars were spent. And it is only one of several big battles.
But "The Lord of the Rings" is as much about friendship as it is about fighting, and there are intimate moments in this epic journey as well. Most of those are expressed in song, which brings up a weird disconnect about the show. Its creators have insisted all along that the production is not a musical.
Yet characters do burst into song in a traditional musical-theater way, particularly in the show's few quiet, reflective sections.
The music is an odd amalgam of sounds by Bollywood master A.R. Rahman and Varttina, a Finnish folk group, combined by musical supervisor Christopher Nightingale. It's difficult to determine who did what, but the overall effect is one of anthem pop crossed with folksy New Age music, generic melodies that often swallow the elemental lyrics by McKenna and Warchus.
A circle, usually a large, yellowish moon, is never far from center stage in Rob Howell's elaborate design concept. Gnarled branches fill much of the proscenium and spill out into the theater's side boxes and the auditorium itself.
The main playing area contains a series of revolves and elevators that rise and fall with ease, helping create the various lands our travelers must visit before returning home.
Howell's costumes are occasionally eye-popping, particularly an exotic white number for Galadriel, the mystical Lady of Lothlorien, who aids Frodo in his quest.
As Frodo and his loyal companion Sam sing at the beginning of their arduous journey, "The road goes on, ever ever on." So does this never-ending production.
Cast albums are NOT "soundtracks."
Live theatre does not use a "soundtrack." If it did, it wouldn't be live theatre!
I host a weekly one-hour radio program featuring cast album selections as well as songs by cabaret, jazz and theatre artists. The program, FRONT ROW CENTRE is heard Sundays 9 to 10 am and also Saturdays from 8 to 9 am (eastern times) on www.proudfm.com
