A Lord Of The Rings acrobat demonstrates his high-flying skills. (Craig Robertson, SUN)

TORONTO - Things were hopping in Middle-Earth yesterday -- hopping, flying, jumping and stilt-walking, too.

As the first full week drew to a close of what will be many weeks of rehearsals for the upcoming stage production of Lord Of The Rings (opening in the Princess of Wales Theatre next March, after extensive previews), producers yesterday brought two of the show's key components together for a show-and-tell with Toronto media.

With the extensive acting cast seated at the back of the Eastern Ave. studios where the specifics of the gravity of Middle-Earth are being created, the show's acrobats took centre stage to strut their stuff -- stuff which, according to the show's Circus Skills Consultant Alex Frith, has been developed over three weeks of intensive physical exploration.

"It's been a great thing," Frith said, pointing out that more than 1,000 acrobat/performers were auditioned to create a field of 50, "so we've got the exceptional talent."

So exceptional, in fact, that the one-time dancer/circus performer claims the most difficult thing about the process so far has been "probably picking up and moving to Toronto (from London). Everything else is going well ."

At 54, actor Richard McMillan -- who plays evil wizard Saruman -- is one of the senior members of the acting company. Yesterday's high-flying demonstration left him more than a trifle breathless, despite the fact that he's a veteran of the theatrical production of The Lion King, in which he played Scar.

"I was terrified, at first," McMillan said after the demo, adding he's comforted by the fact that his character doesn't sing and dance.

"Gymnastics, no way," he added with a laugh.

That doesn't mean there won't be risk-taking ahead in what is certain to prove to be a challenging undertaking for the acting company, as they distill three books into a three hour-plus stage show.

"Mostly, the challenge is going to be to enhance the contraction of the characters," McMillan said.

In that, he thinks the entire company has a fine guide in director Matthew Warchus.

"You're lucky if you meet five directors in your life who have a profound influence on you," McMillan said. "Matthew is one of them."

Clearly, Toronto actor and funnyman Cliff Saunders, cast as part of the ensemble, concurs.

"I like this director," Saunders says. "I like where he's coming from in terms of human emotion and what makes people behave in certain ways."

As for the show itself, it's early days -- and Saunders is finding it a far cry from his work on Beauty And The Beast, which was already set when it came to Toronto.

"I like that I come in not knowing anything," he said. "I don't know how it will be. We'll find out. In Canadian theatre, we're used to working like that."

It's a style of work to which producer Kevin Wallace could obviously become happily accustomed.

"It's exhilarating," Wallace said enthusiastically of the process he's worked so hard to launch. "I think we've all become aware of the diversity of the talent in this room.

"Everybody is feeding off each other."

It appears the Fellowship of the Ring has indeed begun.