Return to Middle-earth with a musical spin on The Lord Of The Rings

Straits Times

18 hours ago

The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale is told from the perspective of hobbits Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin as they set out on an adventure to destroy a powerful magical ring. PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
Return to Middle-earth with a musical spin on The Lord Of The Rings
MELBOURNE – More than 20 years have passed since director Peter Jackson took moviegoers to Middle-earth with his Oscar-winning The Lord Of The Rings trilogy (2001 to 2003).
The road goes on in August with the Asia debut of The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale at the Sands Theatre, Marina Bay Sands.
The theatrical production is based on English author J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved epic fantasy series (1954 to 1955), instead of Jackson's action-packed films.
Told from the perspective of hobbits Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin, the story follows the four friends' adventures as they seek to destroy a powerful magical ring.
The three-hour show features original music by Indian music and film icon A.R. Rahman, Finnish folk band Varttina and Tony Award winner Christopher Nightingale.
The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale made its debut at the Princess of Wales Theatre in Toronto, Canada, in 2006. It then travelled to Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in London in 2007, where it played until 2008, earning five nominations at that year's Laurence Olivier Awards.
The production was revived in 2023 at The Watermill Theatre in Britain, followed by a staging at Chicago's Shakespeare Theatre in 2024 before making its way to New Zealand and Australia.
The Straits Times met the principal cast members playing Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin, as well as characters Gandalf, Gollum and Galadriel, at the Comedy Theatre in Melbourne, who offer reasons their show is a must-watch.
1. Actors are also orchestra members
Unlike musicals, where actors sing to tunes performed by musicians in an orchestra pit, all 32 cast members in The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale play an instrument onstage. More than 20 instruments are used in the show.
Merry (Jeremi Campese) and Pippin (Hannah Buckley) play the cello and violin respectively.
Elves Elrond (Andrew Broadbent) and Legolas (Conor Neylon) are on the trombone and accordion, while dwarf Gimli (Connor Morel) plays the bouzouki, a long-necked string instrument.
Actress Stefanie Caccamo, who plays elf Arwen, learnt to play the harp for the production. Wern Mak, as Sam, will play percussion when he does not have an acting scene.
Cast members in The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale double as musicians, playing the songs live on stage.
PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
It is no easy feat: The actors need to memorise not only their lines, but also the music score – all within the five-week rehearsal period.
Says Buckley: 'I was very nervous in the beginning to play the violin and sing at the same time. I was badly out of tune during practice .'
The 30-year-old adds that being a violin teacher helped, as she learnt how to play and speak to her students at the same time.
Yet, the challenge remains, especially when some parts required her to play the melody on the violin while singing the harmony simultaneously.
'I tried to do that in the Sydney shows, but I was deeply out of tune,' she says, adding that she has since improved.
Campese, 27, says: 'When you sing, you can't really hear what you're playing.'
The actor-musician admits there is added pressure, as playing out of tune may affect the ensemble's singing.
'There are moments where I won't do the full dance choreography because it's more important to play in tune,' he says.
Buckley adds: 'Jeremi and I have a lot of scenes. The priority is always storytelling, whether through acting, playing an instrument or dancing.'
Terence Crawford, who plays the wizard Gandalf, says: 'There are some shows where they have people play the guitar or jump on a piano and sing a song. But this is such a sophisticated arrangement that requires real musicianship.
'We have people in the cast who are principally musicians. We have a drummer who has a doctorate in percussion.'
2. From books to stage
Condensing three books – The Fellowship Of The Ring, The Two Towers and The Return Of The King – into three hours is an ambitious undertaking.
Fans of Jackson's films may be disappointed that some major moments in The Two Towers, such as the battle at Helm's Deep, are not in the musical.
'We are telling a story from the hobbits' perspective, so a lot of the extraneous details and things that weren't witnessed by the hobbits are omitted,' says Mak, 26.
Rarmian Newton, who plays Frodo, says that while the films 'had lots of cool, incredible action sequences', their show does not set out to replicate the movies, but to emphasise the universal themes of hope and community.
Frodo (Rarmian Newton) has to destroy the powerful One Ring.
PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
It is also not necessary to have read the books or watched the films to enjoy the musical, says Jemma Rix, who plays elf noble Galadriel.
'We have had so many people who have come not knowing anything, telling us they understood the story and could relate to it,' says Rix, who is in her 30s.
Crawford, who is in his 60s, adds: ' The problem of adapting a famous book is you will have different camps of people who will either like the adaptation or hate it. Don't worry if you know the story or not. We'll tell you a crazy story that is poignant, spectacular, beautiful and full of fantastic music.'
3. Born to be Gollum
To be cast as Gollum was a dream come true for Laurence Boxhall, who professed to be a 'Tolkien nerd'.
The actor, who is in his late 20s, used to pretend to be Gollum – a monster with a distinctive style of speech – while growing up, having read the books and watched the films.
His preparation for the role involved studying Tolkien's books even more closely and taking notes on how Gollum speaks in them.
He says: 'I also listened to how Tolkien himself performed Gollum's voice – which I think Andy Serkis, who played Gollum in the films, had also done.'
Laurence Boxhall as Gollum in The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale.
PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
Boxhall adds that he is aware audiences may expect a performance similar to the English actor's.
Describing his approach as 'a third of Serkis, a third of Tolkien and a third of my own thing', Boxhall says he needs to find a 'comfortable and sustainable vocal placement that wouldn't tire my voice'.
Physically, he prepares by getting his body used to moving as a quadruped, as performing eight shows a week on all fours is 'taxing on the muscles'.
He stretches and exercises with resistance bands while getting his body painted. Transforming into Gollum takes about 45 minutes, with some parts completed before the show and the rest finished during the interva l.
4. Be early for Bilbo's 111th birthday party
Audiences are encouraged to take their seats as early as possible.
There is an interactive pre-show segment where they are transported to the Shire, home of the hobbits, as partygoers at hobbit Bilbo Baggins' 111th birthday celebration.
Bilbo is Frodo's uncle and the hobbit who found the One Ring. His story is told in Tolkien's other book The Hobbit (1937), a prequel to The Lord Of The Rings.
The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale starts with the celebration of Bilbo Baggins' birthday.
PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
The cast members , as hobbits, will mingle with the audience , playing games such as ring toss with them and posing for photos.
Says Mak: 'The birthday party scene brings everyone together as a family. It also acts as a gathering point for the characters and the audience, emphasising the sense of community and shared storytelling that runs throughout the show.'
5. A tale of hope and resilience
Tolkien's relatable characters are the reasons his stories have remained popular for over 70 years.
'There's this sense of hope where the story tells of overcoming animosity, like Legolas and Gimli, two characters who initially hated each other, yet became best friends,' says Newton.
The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale starring (from left) Rarmian Newton as Frodo, Wern Mak as Sam and Terence Crawford as Gandalf.
PHOTO: DANIEL BOUD
Crawford agrees, saying the show emphasises the power of people coming together, respect, kindness and a sense of community – both onstage and with the audience.
'What I love is that Frodo is an unlikely person to conquer such a big thing,' says Rix, adding that the story inspires audiences to believe that even small people can do amazing things by facing their fears and challenges.
Says Boxhall: 'Frodo is changed at the end of his hero's journey, but it doesn't mean he's failed.
'In the crazy world we live in today, it's okay to not be okay, as long as there is hope.'
Book It/ The Lord Of The Rings – A Musical Tale
Where: Sands Theatre, Marina Bay Sands, 10 Bayfront Avenue
When: Aug 12 to 31, 8pm (Tuesdays to Saturdays), 2pm (Saturdays), 1 and 6.30pm (Sundays)
Admission: $68 to $238 via Marina Bay Sands (str.sg/tz7b), Sistic (call 6348-5555 or go to str.sg/gC5q), and Klook (str.sg/a3Jj)
Joanne Soh is a lifestyle correspondent at The Straits Times, with a special interest in entertainment and pop culture.
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