Toronto’s “Lord of the Rings” musical closes early

TORONTO (Reuters) – The curtain will fall on the
blockbuster Canadian production of the “Lord of the Rings”
musical in September, just five months after it opened to mixed
reviews, the show’s producers said on Wednesday.

“If the critics don’t believe they have power, believe me
they do,” lead producer Kevin Wallace told a news conference at
Toronto’s Princess of Wales Theater held to announce the
closing.

The C$28 million ($25 million) show won some of Canada’s
top theater awards earlier this week despite its scathing
reviews. It will close on September 3. It opened on March 23
after weeks of previews.

A reworked and shorter version will reopen in London on May
9, 2007.

“Lord of the Rings” received a rough ride from North
American reviewers, and that hit ticket sales, Wallace said.

“We are doing respectable business here, but we’re not sold
out,” he said. “A show of this scale needs to be doing that
level of business.”

The musical, based on J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic trilogy, will
take over at London’s historic Theater Royal Drury Lane from
the award-winning Mel Brooks’ musical “The Producers.”

($1=$1.12 Canadian)