Whew. I've had a crazy couple of days. But my weekend in Toronto was pretty good. Relations all well, and it was good to see them. Plus, the weather was amazing - sunny, blue skies and mild every day - got up to 20 degrees on Monday! V. depressing to return to greyness and chilly drizzle in Halifax.
Went to the Lord of the Rings show on Saturday afternoon with my two aunts, M. and K., and my cousin S. Overall, I liked it a lot. The acting was all quite good (Michael Therriault gave an outstanding turn as Gollum - couldn't quite believe it was the same man I watched play Tommy Douglas on television earlier this year). The set is amazing. I've been going to see musical theatre for over 20 years, and I thought LOTR was probably the most visually impressive show I've ever seen - really clever use of lighting, puppetry, and some fairly simple but nonetheless highly effective props. The much-vaunted multi-level stage lived up to expectations. Without giving anything away, I will say that the closing scene of the first act is spectacular, and quite the sensory experience!
I quite enjoyed the music as well. I can see now why the producers were keen that the show not be labelled a 'musical' - it's actually a play with music. There were no more than 3-4 songs per act, and for the most part, the music was used judiciously. There is, of course, notable use of music in the books (whether for good or for ill - I think it's charming, but a lot of people find Tolkien's tunes rather cringey). I must admit I was a little fearful of the musical aspect (the minute I saw a dancing hobbit giving me "jazz hands", I'd have been out of there), but it turned out pretty well.
I don't want to give the impression that the show is problem-free, though. The critics were definitely right about one thing - the storyline is weak. There is way too much material squeezed into what is already a 3.5 hour show. Of course, being extremely familiar with the story already, I was able to follow it pretty well because I could fill in the gaps. But for someone like my cousin S., who has neither seen the films nor read the books, it was confusing. She had to read the programme synopses during the intermissions, to figure out exactly what was going on. And if this show is to move to London and/or New York eventually and have a long run, that is a major problem. All the good acting, fun music, and dazzling visuals in the world won't continue to put bums on seats if the storyline is not sound. But I'm not sure how they are going to fix the problem, short of a major re-write or extending the length of the production - neither of which are viable possibilities, I'm sure.
In the end, I think this show is an amazing achievement. I found it very entertaining and enjoyed it very much, and thought the vitriol of some of the reviewers was undeserved (though not unexpected - critics hate these kind of shows anyway). And it's incredible that, with so much material, the show is as coherent as it is. But it's not quite all there. Afterwards, I found myself wondering if people will still be going to see this show in 10-20 years, as they continue to do with Les Miserables and the like. Unless there are big changes, I have my doubts.
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