Kevin Wallace, left, and David Mirvish, producers of The Lord Of The Rings' Toronto run, announce yesterday at the Princess of Wales Theatre that the huge production will close after just six months because it couldn't draw the crowds it needed to turn a profit. (Fred Thornhill, SUN)

TORONTO - Where the evil overlord Sauron and his orc minions failed, Toronto theatre critics and audiences have apparently succeeded: Frodo is dead, and The Lord Of The Rings is done.

The heavily hyped $28-million musical stage adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's fantasy trilogy will close Sept. 3, less than six months after its gala opening at the Princess of Wales Theatre.

The surprise announcement was made yesterday by The Lord Of The Rings producers Kevin Wallace and David Mirvish, facing a phalanx of reporters and cameras at a quickly called press conference in the Princess of Wales Theatre's basement.

To hear Wallace tell it, the blame for the show's early demise rests on the production's so-called British sensibility -- one they feel will work better in London's West End, where The Lord Of The Rings will open next May -- and on the Toronto theatre critics who failed to bellow the Hobbits' praises from the top of the CN Tower.

"I loved reading The Da Vinci Code, and frankly, I have been put off from seeing The Da Vinci Code (movie) because of the reviews," Wallace said.

"If critics think they don't have power, believe me, they do. That's why we advertise in their newspapers. That's why their consumers read them."

Of the four Toronto-based daily newspapers, only one -- the National Post -- gave The Lord Of The Rings an unconditional rave. The show was harshly critiqued by the Toronto Star and The Globe and Mail, and the Toronto Sun's own John Coulbourn gave it a respectable 31/2 stars out of five, while pointing out its shortcomings.

Wallace admitted that the show's preview performances, which began in February and were frequently plagued by technical glitches and long running times, also helped turn public opinion against the production early on.

Wallace and Mirvish said The Lord Of The Rings needed to run for at least a year to break even, and to play to mostly soldout houses. Mirvish couldn't say what average attendance figures were and refused to speculate how much the show will lose by closing early.

"It has very high running costs, so it has to be a very, very hot ticket," Wallace said. "In terms of this climate, we're doing respectable business here, but we're not sold out. And a show of this scale needs to be doing that level of business."

A controversial $3-million loan from the province to the production has not been paid back, though Mirvish took pains to highlight the taxes paid by the show as well as its economic spinoffs, claiming The Lord Of The Rings created $640 million in economic activity in the city, in turn generating $3.9 million in taxes.

"The province is well covered, even if they never see their loan back," said Mirvish, quickly adding, "but we hope that they will, and it is carried forward" to the London production, which will be produced by Wallace, the Mirvishes and Michael Cohl.

The bad news was also broken yesterday to the show's crew and 55-strong cast, many of whom moved to Toronto and bought homes here based on the security of a minimum one-year run.

Wallace said the show is being retooled and partially rewritten for the U.K., with significant changes to the second and third acts and a greater emphasis on the songs and music, which some critics dismissed as forgettable.

Ultimately, said Wallace, The Lord Of The Rings was perhaps just not the right show for Toronto.

"Its spiritual home ... is a London theatre."

WHAT THE CRITICS HAD TO SAY

"This show is, in short, everything they've promised it would be. And somehow, just a little bit less. Because, finally, it all falls victim to its own hype.

After promising the world a unique experience ... what they deliver instead is a rather well-behaved child of a union between J.R.R. Tolkien and The Lion King."

- John Coulbourn, Toronto Sun

"A murky, labyrinthine wood from which no one emerges with head unmuddled, eyes unblurred or eardrums unrattled. Everyone and everything winds up lost ... That includes plot, character and the patience of most ordinary theatergoers ...

- Ben Brantley, New York Times

"The Lord Of The Rings is the most inventively staged show in history -- as, indeed, it needed to be. The production's pyrotechnics make all those gasp-inducing moments from blockbuster shows past seem primitive."

- Alec Scott, CBC

"Despite massive cuts, the plot overwhelms (the writers). Their adaptation acquires the irritating drone of a speed-typing contest to see how many storylines can be crammed into three one-hour acts."

- Kamal Al-Solaylee, The Globe and Mail

"(The show) has its faults, most of them coming unshakably with the territory, but scenically, technically and imaginatively, it's a marvel ... At its worst, the show is far better than doubters ever thought it could be. At its best, it's wonderful."

- Robert Cushman, National Post

"The problems with this version of The Lord Of The Rings are so basic that you wonder how those involved with it could watch it coming together and still not see what was wrong."

- Richard Ouzounian, Toronto Star

"In the end, though, theatrical magic wins out over the weaknesses. With some fine tuning, this tale could hold its audience in total thrall."

- Sam Marlowe, London Times