Review: ‘One-Man Star Wars Trilogy’ is for fans by a fan (Includes first-hand account)

Fandom can take any number of forms. The more common expressions of admiration include cosplay, fiction writing and conventions; however, they are by no means limited to that list. For 15 years, Charles Ross has been performing his tribute to a beloved franchise via the One-Man Star Wars Trilogy show, which is playing in Toronto from April 27 – May 1, 2016.

Ross walks onto a dark, naked stage and launches into his best impression of the movie theme song. Lights flicker and he recounts the image of the words scrolling up to… anyone’s guess really. He varies his voice slightly and uses hand gestures to differentiate between characters as he re-enacts key scenes from the original trilogy: Star Wars: A New Hope, Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. But rather than a precise recreation of the narrative, he alters the dialogue to include witty commentary on the personalities and story or a quip about the performance itself. Ross energetically condenses six hours’ worth of cinema into 60 minutes with humour and great imagination.

It’s important to note that Ross not only relates the plots of all three movies alone, but he does it without props. Yet, the narratives are identifiable and easy to follow. Of course the one caveat to attending this show is audience members should have at least seen the sci-fi films in order to follow the performance, and appreciate the many jokes and ingenuity throughout. Hopefully with the recent release of Star Wars Episode VII and the numerous opportunities to revisit its predecessors, that won’t be a problem.

The show is filled with notable moments from Ross’ regular references to Luke’s whining to the hilarious reveal near the hour’s end about Darth Vader (which has nothing to do with him being Luke’s father). His impression of an Imperial AT-AT Walker is epic and immediately recognizable in spite of the stripped-down format, while his impersonation of Jabba the Hut is hysterical. In addition to the classic characters, Ross also brings to life lightsabers, TIE fighters and droids.

In spite of some opening night technical difficulties, I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this fun night out to fans of the trilogy. Ross exhibits incredible passion for the series, which radiates from the stage in this entertaining, family friendly production that’s also been officially endorsed by Lucasfilm.

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