It has been ten years since the inauguration of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, a translation to the screen of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books.
It has been ten years since the inauguration of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, a translation to the screen of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books.
It has been ten years since the inauguration of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, a translation to the screen of J.R.R. Tolkien’s books. The Fellowship of the Ring was released in 2001 and received multiple awards including a Grammy Award and an Oscar for composer Howard Shore. His masterful score brought life and definition to Middle Earth and the hobbit Frodo’s quest to destroy a deadly ring. In celebration of the anniversary, the movie is touring the country, screened in conjunction with a live performance of the film score as performed by the 200-piece Munich Symphony Orchestra and the Pacific Chorale with the Phoenix Boys Choir. The current performances are the first leg of a three-part tour; The Two Towers is set to tour in 2012 and The Return of the King in 2013.
Columbia Artists Management Inc., producers of The Lord of the Rings in Concert: The Fellowship of the Ring, chose Lightswitch to provide the lighting and production design for the tour, which features the film projected digitally on an immense 60-foot screen. Applying artistic discretion, the designers created an atmosphere of elegant lighting utilizing fixed instruments to subtly enhance and illuminate the film and orchestra. Working directly with Howard Shore a design was conceived for draperies framing the stage and screen that was simple and evocative of Middle Earth. Having responsibility for the entire visual package allowed for unified and consistent imagery, highlighting the splendor of the performance.
In choosing to adopt a form of live music presentation that harked back to the days of silent film the producers knew there would be design challenges to the staging. With their deep experience in all forms of event and theatrical lighting, Lightswitch was the perfect choice to meet their requirements.
