[Mithalwen]

It is hard to know where to start in describing an evening of sensory overload and I am finding it true that the first step is the hardest to make. I haven't been to a musical for many years (and that was the relatively straight forward "Me and my girl" so I am probably a bit out of touch with the developments technologically - though I am aware of "Miss Saigon"'s helicopter and The flying of "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang", but I was awestruck by the set and the special effects. The proscenium arch seemed to be covered in tree roots (like the musical logo) and with changing lighting this served to represent the rural idyll of the Shire, the other worldiness of Lothlorien and the more menacing environments.

Most of the stage was taken up with an incredibly versatile turntable stage that had steps that rose and fell as relentlessly as an Escher drawing and combined with some clever choreography and music helped to create a sense of journey much more effectively than in the film (FOTR particularly).

I don't get to the theatre as much as I'd like and this was a brilliant reminder of how much more engaging it is to be at a live show than sitting, gawping in a multiplex surrounded by people who can't last a couple of hours without food (what is worse the constant chomp of popcorn or the shorter strain on the ear but lingering assault on the olefactory system of the burger? A dinky bottle of champagne at the interval was sustaining and far more civilised (and compared to what they charge for soft drinks at my local cinema, not actually that extravagant!). But I digress.

Although we took our seats promptly there were already hobbits wandering around the auditorium gossiping and bickering. They were rather more like Tolkien's own descriptions and pictures of Bilbo than the film creations - fatter of tummy, curlier of hair, rosier of cheek. I am not a huge hobbit fan but I found them enchanting. One thing they weren't were "halflings" - and were not referred to as such. They were noticeably short but not half sized compared to the elves and humans. Gimli may have been shorter and had a rather squeaky voice. I think the extreme physicality of the production meant that maximising the height difference would have been impossible. The fight sequences were extremely balletic/ acrobatic and I can't imagine the extremely lanky managing them elegantly. Nevertheless the hobbits were distinct as small people.

They were also distinctly rustic - more West Country than Warwickshire - and this included Frodo, Merry and Pippin who were not noticeably higher class than Sam (thought Sam remained the Gardener). I think that was fair enough - to have class distinctions as well as the many racial one would have muddied the waters unnecessarily. However it was a bit of a shock to hear Frodo sounding like he came from Zummmerzet.

Similarly it was a surprise that the wandering elves appeared like an angelic host - however again if you have humans playing non humans you have to ring the changes somehow and I think it was fine in context .

TBC