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One Man Lord of the Rings

Published Wednesday 10 February 2010 at 15:00 by Hugh Homan

I’m one of those people who’ll never get the hour and a half back which I spent watching Charles Ross, dressed in a grey boiler suit, gyrating about the stage of the Theatre Royal last week. But I don’t care.

Let me explain - I’ve never read John Ronald Reuel Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings and I only vaguely remember seeing the first film in the series, so I’m one of those who Mr Ross wondered why they had come to see him.

Well, you, dear reader, know why I was there. And the phenomenon is not to be missed even if, like me, you cannot understand why Mr Ross should spend time depicting all the oddly named creatures who tramp around taking a ring to Mordor while fighting Orcs, passing by Rohan (which I thought was a clothes shop).

A martian who’d mastered English by correspondence course would be amazed at the spectacle of Ross creating Tolkien’s teeming world alone on stage. He probably wouldn’t understand a word.

Full of amplified, mouthed crashes and blips, and (I assume) themes from the films, slinging arrows and having arrows slung at him, fighting, being a dwarf and a giant simultaneously, pausing only three times to take water from the side of the stage, it’s a unique performance.

I particularly liked Ross’ few brief comments about what he was doing on stage - a nice touch. Mike Wozniak (“comedy performer” according to his website) spends the first 25 minutes of the evening warming us all up, involving various members of the audience in a very amusing and likeable manner. A good night out.

Production information

By:
Charles Ross, who also performs
Director:
TJ Dawe
Lighting:
Mike Schaldmose
Website:
www.onemanlotr.com

Production information can change over the run of the show.

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Run sheet

Orchard Dartford
February 3 2010
Derby Theatre Derby
February 4 2010
Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds
February 5 2010
Theatre Royal Margate
February 6 2010
Gordon Craig Stevenage
February 7 2010
Guildhall Arts Centre Grantham
February 9 2010
Hawth Crawley
February 10 2010
Palace Southend-on-Sea
February 11 2010
Pavilion Worthing
February 12 2010
Wyvern Swindon
February 13 2010
Curve Leicester
February 14 2010
Concert Hall Reading
February 18 2010
Playhouse Norwich
February 19-20 2010
Playhouse Epsom
February 23 2010
Queen's Barnstaple
February 24 2010
Garrick Lichfield
February 25 2010
Opera House Buxton
February 26 2010
Theatre Royal Newcastle-upon-Tyne
February 27 2010
Pacific Road Arts and Exhibition Centre Birkenhead
February 28 2010
Guildhall Preston
March 3 2010
Arts Complex Solihull
March 4 2010
Haymarket Basingstoke
March 5 2010
Quay Sudbury
March 6 2010
Theatre Royal Winchester
March 7 2010
New Hull
March 9 2010
Victoria Hall Stoke-on-Trent
March 10 2010
South Holland Centre Spalding
March 11 2010
Uppingham Theatre Oakham
March 12 2010
Hazlitt Arts Centre Maidstone
March 13 2010
Harrogate Theatre Harrogate
March 15 2010
Victoria Halifax
March 16 2010
Grove Dunstable
March 17 2010
Opera House Jersey
March 19-20 2010
Pomegranate Chesterfield
March 22 2010
Venue Cymru Llandudno
March 23 2010
Theatre Royal Brighton
March 24 2010
Lighthouse Poole
March 25 2010
Civic Oswaldtwistle
March 26 2010
Albert Halls Bolton
March 27 2010
Music Hall Aberdeen
March 29 2010
Gala Durham
March 30 2010
Customs House South Shields
March 31 2010
Belgrade Coventry
April 1 2010
Richmond Theatre Richmond-upon-Thames
April 3 2010
Lyceum Sheffield
September 1 2010
Middlesbrough Theatre Middlesbrough
September 2 2010
St George's Concert Hall Bradford
September 3 2010
Forum Malvern
September 4 2010
Sands Centre Carlisle
September 5 2010
Town Hall Loughborough
September 6 2010
Grand Swansea
September 8 2010
Barnfield Exeter
September 9 2010
Palace Paignton
September 10 2010
Riverfront Newport
September 11 2010
Grand Blackpool
September 12 2010
Fairfield Halls, Ashcroft Croydon
September 14 2010
Mercury Colchester
September 15 2010
Arts Centre Haverhill
September 16 2010
Queen's Hall Arts Centre Hexham
September 17 2010
Spa Bridlington
September 18 2010
Lakeside Arts Centre Nottingham
September 19 2010
Castle Wellingborough
September 21 2010
Town Hall Cheltenham
September 22 2010
Theatr Brycheiniog Brecon
September 23 2010
Theatr Hafren Newtown
September 24 2010
Arts Centre Aberystwyth
September 25 2010
Yvonne Arnaud Guildford
September 26 2010
Theatre Royal Lincoln
September 27 2010
Millennium Forum Derry
September 30 2010
Waterfront Belfast
October 1- 2 2010
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