Charlie Fink
Charlie Fink (born 16 May 1986) is an English songwriter, producer and filmmaker best known for fronting Noah and the Whale and for his work as a composer for theatre. He has been described as "one of Britain’s most daring and inventive song ...
.
The play made its world premiere on 4 December 2015 at
The Old Vic
The Old Vic is a 1,000-seat, not-for-profit producing theatre in Waterloo, London, England. Established in 1818 as the Royal Coburg Theatre, and renamed in 1833 the Royal Victoria Theatre. In 1871 it was rebuilt and reopened as the Royal ...
in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
.
Productions
The Old Vic, London (2015 & 17)
A stage adaptation of Dr. Seuss' ''The Lorax'' was scheduled for Christmas in 2015 as part of
Matthew Warchus
Matthew Warchus (born 24 October 1966) is a British theatre director, filmmaker, lyricist, and playwright. He has been the Artistic Director of London's The Old Vic since September 2015.
Personal life
Warchus is married to American actress La ...
' first season as artistic director at The Old Vic. It was adapted by David Greig and directed by Max Webster.
The production began on 4 December and finished on 16 January 2016. The production's creative team also consisted of ''
Noah and the Whale
Noah and the Whale were a British indie rock and folk band from Twickenham, formed in 2006. The band's last line-up consisted of Charlie Fink (vocals, guitar), Tom Hobden (violin/ keyboards), Matt "Urby Whale" Owens (bass guitar), Fred Abbott ...
'' frontman
Charlie Fink
Charlie Fink (born 16 May 1986) is an English songwriter, producer and filmmaker best known for fronting Noah and the Whale and for his work as a composer for theatre. He has been described as "one of Britain’s most daring and inventive song ...
writing music and lyrics, Drew McOnie as choreographer,
Rob Howell
Robert Stuart Howell is a British costume and set designer. He is primarily known for his work on the London stage. Howell won the Olivier Award for his set design for the musical ''Matilda the Musical'' in 2012. He has also designed both scenery ...
as designer, John Clark as lighting designer, Tom Gibbons as sound designer, Phil Bateman as musical director/arranger and Nick Barnes and Finn Caldwell as puppetry designers. The cast included
Simon Lipkin
Simon Lipkin (born 9 January 1986) is a British actor, best known for his work in musical theatre. He has originated roles in several major West End musicals such as ''Avenue Q'' and ''Rock of Ages''. His television work includes ''The Amazing ...
as the title role of 'The Lorax' (assisted by Laura Cubitt and Ben Thompson as puppeteers) and
Simon Paisley Day
Simon Paisley Day (born 13 April 1967), also credited as Simon Day, is an English stage and screen actor. His most recent work includes ''Timon of Athens'' (2008), ''Entertaining Mr Sloane'' (2009), ''Private Lives'' (2010), ''Twelfth Night'' ...
as 'The Once-ler'.
The production returned to The Old Vic for three weeks only from 15 October to 7 November 2017.
North America (2017–18)
The production was transferred to the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, Canada for a Christmas run from December 9 to January 21, 2018.
Following the Toronto run, the show was produced in partnership with The Old Vic and
Children's Theatre Company
The Children's Theatre Company is a regional theater established in 1965 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, specializing in plays for families, young audiences and the very young. The theater is the largest theater for multigenerational audiences in th ...
in
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
where it was performed from April 17 to June 10, 2018, before transferring to the
Old Globe Theatre
The Old Globe is a professional theatre company located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. It produces about 15 plays and musicals annually in summer and winter seasons. Plays are performed in three separate theatres in the complex, which i ...
in
San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...
from July 3 to August 12.
Old Vic, virtual (2021)
From 14 to 17 April 2021 an "inventively transformed ... semi-staged pint-size version" was streamed live from the Old Vic stage, during the UK's COVID-19 lockdown.
Synopsis
Act I
On a gray street at the end of town, there is a house where the Once-ler lives. Nearby there’s a broken statue
of the Lorax with the word 'unless' engraved into it ("Life is Tough"). A kid wants to find out more about the Lorax. After being paid, the Once-ler who is now very old tells her a story, starting with his own childhood…
His family used to run a mill, but the Once-ler used to daydream about things he could invent instead. His family
are poor and have to rent out the Once-ler's room to a lodger, so he decides to go and find his fortune elsewhere. While travelling, the Once-ler dreams that he'll become rich as long as he has just one good idea ("I Could Be a Great Man").
He arrives in Paradise Valley and is delighted by all the new things he sees there. He sets to work, but when he cuts down a truffula tree the Lorax appears. The Lorax speaks for the trees and is angry one has been cut down. The Once-ler explains it was to make a "thneed", which the Lorax thinks is useless ("It's a Thneed"). He shows the Once-ler the beauty of the valley, and how he doesn't need to create anything new, everything he needs to live is in abundance in the valley ("Everything You Need’s Right Here").
The Lorax leaves on his summer break after planting a new truffula tree seed. The Once-ler begins to see how silly
his thneed idea is, until a businessman buys one. He throws himself into creating a new thneed business, and invites
his family to join him and set up a thneed knitting factory. They are all very excited about becoming rich ("When We Get Rich").
The Lorax returns to find half the forest has been chopped down and confronts the Once-ler, arguing that the wildlife needs the trees to live as well. They agree that only trees in the area called "Once-ler Nook" will be cut down. Soon after, the factory runs out of trees. At first, the Once-ler says they must stop making thneeds, but his family
and the people of the town pressure him into starting work again and cut down other trees in the valley ("Great Man").
They say he also made a promise to them that they'd be rich, and persuade the Once-ler that if he continues he'll become a
powerful man. As a compromise, the Once-ler creates a nature reserve. The Lorax hates the idea and is upset about the pollution which is killing the animals, he just wants the forest to return to how it was before. Instead of stopping,
the Once-ler creates a super axe hacker which cuts down trees even faster ("Super Axe Hacker").
Act II
Two factory workers are opening the factory, meanwhile the Lorax sneaks inside with the animals of the forest. They start a protest to save the trees, and a TV news crew turns up to report it. The Once-ler tries to impress Samelore the reporter with his machinery, but the Lorax exposes all the pollution the factory is creating and how it's affecting the wildlife ("We Are One").
The Once-ler starts to apologize to the viewers at home. Just as he agrees to shut the factory, he announces the new version of the thneed which makes it even more popular ("Thneed 2.0"). The Lorax sits alone on a stump and watches all the animals leave the area. The Once-ler treks up to visit him, to ask if they can still be friends. The Lorax says he's leaving because the forest has gone. He leaves the Once-ler with one word that he doesn't understand – "unless". At that moment, the last truffula tree is cut down.
The Once-ler's family pack up their things and leave along with the rest of the town ("When We Get Rich" (reprise)). The Once-ler is left on his own, the story ends. The kid who has been listening to the story says that it can't be the end – she wants to know what "unless" means. The old Once-ler has been thinking about it for years, but doesn't understand and can't think of a way to bring the Lorax back when there's no forest. The kid has an idea, they need to plant a new truffula tree. The Once-ler says it won't work without a Lorax, but the kid persuades him to let her try. She plants the seed, waters it and waits, and finally it begins to grow ("Take It Wherever You Go"). The Once-ler is thrilled, and the kid asks if the Lorax will come back now. They finally realise that a Lorax is just someone, anyone, who looks after trees. His last word meant that nothing will get better unless someone like the kid cares enough to protect them and keep planting ("Take It Wherever You Go" (reprise)).
Musical numbers
;Act I
* "Life is Tough" – Ensemble
* "I Could Be a Great Man" – The Once-ler and Ensemble
* "It's a Thneed" – The Once-ler
* "Everything You Need's Right Here" – The Lorax, The Once-ler and Ensemble
* "When We Get Rich" – The Once-ler and Once-ler Family
* "Great Man" – Von Goo, McGee, and McGann
* "Super Axe Hacker" – The Once-ler and Ensemble
;Act II
* "We Are One" – The Lorax and Ensemble
* "Thneed 2.0" – The Once-ler and Ensemble
* "When We Get Rich" (reprise) – Once-ler Family
* "Take It Wherever You Go" – The Lorax
* "Take It Wherever You Go" (reprise) – Ensemble
2016 Laurence Olivier Awards
The 2016 Laurence Olivier Awards were held on Sunday 3 April 2016 at the Royal Opera House, London. The 40th anniversary ceremony was hosted by Michael Ball. A highlights show was broadcast on ITV shortly after the live event ended.
Eligibili ...