"Lord Of The Rings" Musical Closing In Toronto

They've posted a closing date of September 3, 2006 for the "Lord of the Rings" musical in Toronto. At the same time, tickets are already on sale for a London production that begins in May, 2007. Several thoughts: the Toronto production has to be a disappointment for them -- ticket sales were strong, but reviews were very mixed. Yes, it swept the Canadian equivalent to the Tonys recently. But still. It's unclear whether the same actors will carry over -- the biggest criticism was the actor playing Galndalf. I doubt he'll be going to London. More importantly, with all this time off, the creative team will have a major opportunity to revamp this musical. Almost every critic felt the visuals were striking and memorable and there were some strong supporters of the score. With a lot of work and tightening up, they could very well turn this into a triumph, as long as they're willing to not stay wedded to the way it is now. Since the show barely played for seven months, I'm sure they won't be. Their website is very cool, by the way.