Actor Michael Therriault, who delivered an award-winning performance in Toronto's The Lord of the Rings musical, will join three others from the original production in reprising their roles for the upcoming British edition.

Actor Michael Therriault will reprise his role as Gollum in British production of The Lord of the Rings musical. Actor Michael Therriault will reprise his role as Gollum in British production of The Lord of the Rings musical.
(Frank Gunn/Canadian Press)

Canadian Therriault will once again portray the ring-obsessed creature Gollum for the blockbuster West End show, which is set to open at London's Theatre Royal, Drury Lane this spring.

The Lord of the Rings musical will begin previews in London in May and open June 19.

Therriault will be joined on the London stage by James Loye, Peter Howe and Owen Sharpe, who play hobbits Frodo, Sam and Pippin, respectively.

The cast, announced by producers on Monday, also includes Shakespearean veteran Malcom Storry as the wizard Gandalf and actress Rosalie Craig as the elf princess Arwen.

Another standout among the new additions is Olivier Award-winning actress Laura Michelle Kelly, who is slated to star as elf queen Galadriel.

Kelly, a West End favourite who has starred in productions of Beauty and the Beast and My Fair Lady, picked up an Olivier for her recent starring role in the musical Mary Poppins. She is also set to join the cast of Tim Burton's upcoming film adaptation of Stephen Sondheim's musical Sweeney Todd.

The creative team behind the lavish, ambitious Lord of the Rings musical — which is based on the epic trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien — remains the same with the Toronto production: direction by Matthew Warchus, books and lyrics by Warchus and Shaun McKenna, designs by Rob Howell, and music by hit Bollywood composer A.R. Rahman, the Finnish group Varttina and Christopher Nightingale.

The highly anticipated musical began previews in Toronto last February and had its world premiere last March 23. The show is estimated to have cost more than $27 million, with a $3-million loan from the Ontario government.

However, box office and ticket sales suffered, possibly because of mixed reviews from North American theatre critics. The musical was also panned by some critics for its long running time and confusing, truncated storyline.

Though it had been expected to have a long run, the final curtain fell in Toronto in September. The early closing allowed producers to take some aspects of the production, including physical properties such as sets, to London for revision before a U.K. premiere.