Lord of the Rings fans that have ticked off the usual must-sees in Aotearoa, like Hobbiton and various filming locations, have a new event to help renew their love for J.R.R. Tolkien’s famous tale.
‘The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale’ is coming to the stage in Auckland this November. Tickets for the new production, to be held at the Civic Theatre, are expected to be sought after. A waitlist for the five-week run, opening November 5, is already open.
As ‘The Fellowship of the Ring’, the first book in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, marks its 70th anniversary, the new musical breaths new life into the LOTR universe.
The musical stage production follows The Lord of the Rings adventure from the Hobbits’ perspective.
In the famous story, as the Hobbits celebrate Bilbo Baggins’ eleventy-first birthday in the Shire, he gifts his nephew Frodo his most precious belonging – a gold ring. This fateful moment launches Frodo on a legendary and perilous quest across Middle-earth to the darkest realms of Mordor, to vanquish evil with his loyal Fellowship.
‘The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale’ includes an original folk-inspired score performed live on stage, weaving together new music with storytelling from a top cast of multi-skilled actor-musicians.
The New Zealand premiere follows an initial run at The Watermill Theatre in the United Kingdom, receiving rave reviews with The Guardian calling it the ‘Greatest Show on Middle Earth’. The show opens this month in Chicago at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre before opening in Auckland.
The show’s book and lyrics are by Shaun McKenna (Maddie, La Cava) and Matthew Warchus (Groundhog Day), with original music created by Academy Award winner A.R. Rahman (Bombay Dreams, Slumdog Millionaire), Finnish folk band Värttinä, and Tony Award winner Christopher Nightingale (Matilda the Musical).
‘The greatest show on Middle-earth comes home to Middle-earth!” shared Fredrica Drotos, Middle-earth Enterprises’ Steward Brand & Licensing.
“We are very much looking forward to sharing the Hobbits’ epic re-telling with all our friends there; when The Lord of the Rings – A Musical Tale, premieres in Auckland, New Zealand this November.’
