Arts preview: One Man Lord of the Rings

ONE MAN LORD OF THE RINGS
Lunchbox Theatrical Productions and ABA Productions

You might be taken aback if someone claimed he could bulge his eyes and hiss and sputter in the manner of Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. But probably not if that person was Charles Ross, the Canadian comedian behind the hilarious One Man Star Wars Trilogy staged here in 2009.

"I really enjoy playing Gollum. I feel uninhibited and emotionally honest," says Ross of his new show One Man Lord of the Rings.

He returns to the city next month for eight 70-minute performances, during which he condenses Peter Jackson's film adaptations - The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King - of British novelist J.R.R. Tolkien's classic trilogy.

Other than Gollum, he will be "summoning" Middle-Earth wanderers from hobbits such as Frodo and Sam, to Gandalf the wizard and wicked Sauron. "It is by far the most physically demanding solo show I've done. I play more characters, plus there's more film - 12 hours' worth - reduced into an hour and 10 minutes," says Ross.

However, the advantage of doing a one-man show based on such a successful franchise, says Ross, is that there's a built-in fan base.

Much of the charm of his shows is down to his innate silliness. "I am a silly person, and I always will be," he says.

But rehearsing is no silly matter. The hardest part, Ross says, was "learning how to pace myself throughout the performance, so as not to kill myself" when switching between characters.

"That was a trial and error process that took months, if not years, to perfect. Even today, I am still fine-tuning my pacing."

Ross has read the books 10 times and seen the films as many as 20 times. But would those new to The Lord of the Rings be better off skipping the show?

The answer is no, although "it would be helpful if you've seen the films at least once", says Ross. "In some cases, people have come to the show, then gone away and watched the films and come back a second time."

But no matter who the audience is, Ross says: "You'll never be able to view the films the same way again. And hopefully, that's a good thing."

vanessa.yung@scmp.com

Drama Theatre, Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts, 1 Gloucester Road, Wan Chai, October 1-4, 7.45pm, October 5-6, 5pm, 8pm. HK$395-HK$695 HK Ticketing. Inquiries: 8203 0299