Fur 'n' Feathers Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Wow!! We went to see Lord of the Rings at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane yesterday as part of Feathers birthday present. It was an absolutely fanatastic show. The whole front of the theatre was taken up with a ceiling to floor structure of branches covering up to and over the first boxes. The ring-wraiths were on stilts with horse structures flowing down from their waistes. The orcs were amazing with extensions on their arms which they used to prance on all fours. The tree ents were on huge stilts. The use of illusion to make Frodo disappear couldn't be worked out. Gollum climbed down the branch structure from top to bottom upside down, whilst talking. The battle scenes with a combination of fight choreography and projection onto voil curtain strips in front conveyed the tension really well. They used trapeze-type skills, wires and ?bungies to give a sense of floating spirit to the elves. We had wondered how they could condense the books into 3 hours and keep the plot, but by concentrating on the key figures they kept the spirit of the story. It was brilliant to watch, both in story and in visuals and the music was also excellent. If you want to taste a bit go to: http://www.lotr.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Sounds amazing . I didn't even know there was such a show . Glad you had such a good time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Egluntyne Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 I haven't heard of it either. Am glad you enjoyed it. I love going to the theatre and often find the set design more intriguing than the play! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Couperwife Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 we went to see the Hobbit a few years ago, I dont remember the set being anything at all, but the actors all made up for it - it was really good the best show I ever saw for a fantastic set was Terry Pratchetts "Guards Guards". it was made of 2 walls about 3 foot wide and 10 ft high. length was about 12 foot. the cast moved the wall to show different parts of the city and buildings (if you read TP you know Ankh Morpork . these walls moved (must have been on casters or something) and went round with so many combinations it was unbelieveable . it was fab, would love to see it again cathy x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fur 'n' Feathers Posted February 24, 2008 Author Share Posted February 24, 2008 Sounds great! In LOTR the stage has a circular centre stage which can rotate and in itself is divided up into different parts. Each part can rise & fall, giving different height structures to the sets. It's amazing what can be achieved with minimal props - leaves much more to the imagination. Is the Hobbit still on anywhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
susanbb Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 So glad you had a great time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Posted February 24, 2008 Share Posted February 24, 2008 Lord of the Rings really is the business - best book there is. Well, after Gormenghast. Can you call a trilogy a book? Or should it be 'the best three books there are'. Or 'the best trilogy there is'. whatever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhapsody Posted February 25, 2008 Share Posted February 25, 2008 Well, after Gormenghast. :clap: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...