One Man Star Wars Trilogy
Report by Mark Newbold

Canadian actor Charles Ross makes a welcome return to the Lichfield Garrick after a sell out show last year. 
One Man Star Wars™ Trilogy is a hilarious show, with Ross single-handedly playing all the characters, singing the music, flying the ships and condensing the plots. Since its debut in Toronto, Canada in January 2001, the show has toured Canada and the USA, including an off Broadway run, to huge acclaim. 
Ross has appeared on a number of prestigious American TV shows and Star Wars creator Lucasfilm loved the show so much, they hired him to promote Star Wars™ Episode 3 - Revenge of the Sith and to appear at the official Star Wars™ Convention, Celebration III. 
Now returning to the UK by public demand, whether you're a committed Star Wars™ fan or simply want to enjoy a fast-paced, side-splitting evening that's out of this world, make sure you don't miss this sensational show!

That's how the website of the Lichfield Garrick teased the show, and sold out shows across the world stand testament to the popularity of Charles Ross' showmanship.  But this evening wasn't just about the performance of the show, it was also about raising money for Cancer Research UK and the Make-A-Wish Foundation...

 

  Saturday 19th July 2008
Mark Newbold, Webmaster and Editor
Mark - "I've been looking forward to seeing this show for a long time.  Charles was at the Garrick last summer, but me and Bex missed it figuring that we would catch it at Celebration Europe.
Little did we know just how busy we would be at Celebration Europe, and we didn't get to catch it, so when the chance came round to finally see the show we couldn't miss out."

The Battle of Garrick
Mark - "As we were setting up the gang from Knights of the Empire were strolling around the Garrick and ventured outside.  Dressed in his Jedi robes for the first time Louis - or should I say Tar Ranth - joined them outside to mixtures of jeering from some kids, screams from a girl who was totally surprised by Darth Vader and laughter from the crowd eating at Couch over the road."

Yes, Tar Ranth wears glasses from Specsavers...
Mark - "It's been a while since a Jedi and a Tusken Raider got along.  As you can see here, it'll be a while longer..."

Face/off
Mark - "Clearly the Mandalorians were in no mood for small talk as Vader waited for his shuttle to arrive."

Fett tries to find his favourite bar, the Dented Helmet...
Mark - "Ah yes, this would be the lovely Lucy and my adorable wife Bex, who I captured on film explaining the amount of limbs I would have left if I took a photograph of her on Louis camera..."

Like Queen Amidala, Bex is a model of diplomacy...
Mark - "We'd seen the show and laughed our socks off all the way through.  Louis even managed to get in a gag with his Lightsabre when Charles was chatting to the audience from the stage at the end of the gig, which was a really cool touch.  Charles then surprised us by coming to our table and asking if he could chat to folks from there, which of course we were more than happy for him to do.  He must have spoken for about half an hour to the crowd as folks checked out what we had on offer."

No, I don't know what Lucy is doing either...
Mark - "Nice bit of photoshopping there Mister Turfrey - myself, Charles and Louis pose by the Lightsabre stand.  He really was a very easy guy to chat with, and I'm sure if he'd not got a long drive to Kingston the next day he'd have happily chatted longer.
Among the many things he mentioned, including the fact that he's yet to meet George Lucas and that the guys at Lucasfilm are 'surprisingly cool'  was that while Lucasfilm had given him the go ahead to do a One Man Indiana Jones Trilogy, Steven Spielberg had nixed the idea.  What a shame, I hope that can be ironed out because the thought of seeing the desert chase as interpreted by Charles is just too good to miss."

Size matters not...easy to say when you're two foot tall...
Mark - "Hmmm, an example of my impeccable timing.  Trust me to be distracted by a shiny pen just as the flash went off."

Look ma, no hands...
Mark - "After the show was done and Charles had left we counted our takings and found we'd made exactly £100.  Not too shabby as the money will be divided between Cancer Research UK and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.  We chilled out upstairs with a coke and enjoyed the rest of the evening."

You will note in the dictionary that the look I have on my face is enigmatic...
Mark - "After we'd left the Garrick and walked back to the car - with Louis in full Jedi regalia - we couldn't resist taking a few shots with the sabres in the car park.  I'm about as good with a sabre as Chewbacca is at cross-stitching so I left the fencing to Louis and Lucy."

Clash of the Tight Ones...
Mark - "It was an absolutely top night.  Charles and the opening act were hilarious, and Charles was just such a great guy.  Really hope we get the chance to chat with him again in the future, and I know the whole audience at the Garrick will be back to see him when he brings One Man Lord of the Rings to town again. 
Many thanks to Knights of the Empire for setting the mood so fantastically, Valerie Potter for helping us organise our charity event, it's greatly appreciated, and cheers to the friendly staff at the Garrick, especially Chris Moore.  Let's hope we're all organising things again later in the year at another Charles Ross event."