The Wizard of Oz • Midland Center Takes a Journey Down the Yellow Brick Road

As a pre-holiday present designed to lift and inspire our spirits in these tumultuous times, it is entirely fitting that Midland Center for the Arts is offering the Great Lakes Bay region an opportunity to travel over the rainbow with its ambitious musical stage production of L. Frank Baum’s beloved and classic tale The Wizard of Oz as it comes to life for a series of performances running Friday through  Sunday, November 15-16-17^th at 7:00 PM, with a special  2:00 PM Saturday matinee added for popular demand.

Centered around ambitious and seemingly opposing themes of aspiration and arrival, identity and longing, dreaming and realization, at its core this heart-warming, and equally frightening tale of Dorothy Gale and the whimsical characters she encounters on her magically inspiring journey through Oz functions as a powerful and inspired allegory about finding a sense of one’s self not defined by limitations,  but searching for possibilities when it comes to cultivating a sense of community within that special place we call home.

With musical direction by Jim Hohmeyer and choreographed by Kelli Jolly,  as a staple of American culture chances are you have seen the 1939 MGM movie at one point or another in your lifetime. Young or old, we all know many of the famous, unforgettable lines spoken from the lips of these magical characters by heart: Dorothy, Toto, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, as well as the munchkins.  

But chances are even greater you never realized that the original 1907 theatrical script from which the movie was based ran 60-minutes longer than the film; or that its iconic author, L. Frank Baum, wrote much of Oz while vacationing in Macatawa Park, a resort located along the shore of Lake Michigan.

For Midland Center’s production of The Wizard of Oz, the  'man behind the curtain', so to speak, is director Bill Anderson, Jr., who is charged with the daunting task of assembling a unique rendering of this timeless classic, which poses many distinct challenges - the biggest being audience expectation.

“As an artist I want to put my own stamp on this production, but when you have such a beloved story and such iconic characters not only from the lexicon of film but storytelling in general, you also want to give the audience what they are expecting, so I’m striving to merge what is familiar with what is different,” he reflects.

“A good example is with the Wicked Witch, who in the theatrical script is much funnier than in the movie. I really struggled with that because the witch is supposed to be really scary; but then I saw one recent London production that used a drag queen as the wicked witch, so the script does make her character a bit funnier and gives a license to do that, but I rallied against it because I don’t like to change scripts out of respect for the time the author put into it,” he continues. “While attempting to resolve this issue of why the witch is funnier in the theatrical script, I eventually realized the reason was she really couldn’t be that scary in person, because kids would run out of the theatre.  But with movies its different because the screen offers a layer of separation. The funnier lines give the character a sense of levity, so she isn’t as scary for the audience.”

“To add our own signature to this production, I also talked with my design team about merging the expected with the unexpected - like in the scarecrow scene when the trees start throwing apples - how can we design something the audience isn’t expecting because it’s not in the movie?  We’ve got some good surprises on that front.”

“We are performing the Royal Shakespeare Company’s version of Wizard, which also has a scene with a jitterbug that was filmed, but removed from the original movie. The jitterbugs are meant to slow down the foursome by wearing them out and making them tired, and we’ve included that scene back into this production as well.

Because the staging is so elaborate in the film, Anderson says Midland Center partnered with the Music Theatre of Wichita to use some scenic properties they designed, which took a load of weight off his back. “They designed sets and drops that are top notch, plus we’re bringing in a company to fly some of the performers, such as Dorothy and the flying monkeys. There are some really great flying moments in this production that I’m very excited about.”

More Than Meets the Eye

A large part of the reason The Wizard of Oz has endured and remained timeless for over 100 years now is because of the depth and wisdom this allegory is built upon to consistently unveil new meanings and nuances to young and old audiences alike, regardless of how many times they view or experience it.

L. Frank Baum wrote 14 Oz books in two series: the Oz Series and the Little Wizard Stories. The last two books, The Magic of Oz (1919) and Glinda of Oz (1920), were published after his death.  Another excellent award-winning documentary with a fascinating amount of information is The Secret of Oz by Bill Still about the many allegorical themes that Baum encoded within the Oz stories.

For instance, the cyclone at the beginning of the story refers to the Civil War: "the north & south winds met where the house stood". When Baum was finally allowed to publish 'The Wizard of Oz' in 1899 or 1900, it was only with the disclaimer that it was merely a children's book. The Emerald City is only green because it is mandatory for the citizens to wear glasses with green lenses, which are locked to their faces, which is as close as you'll get to the truth.  From Baum’s perspective, people want illusions, and society needs that. Society IS that — a collective illusion.  How will you tell people that their peace is war and their freedom is slavery?  Not by using those words.

According to Sill’s documentary, L. Frank Baum's purpose in writing these stories was to expose political and economic corruption, which exists best walking down a road built of yellow bricks (i.e. the gold standard) that leads to an emerald city couching a much larger delusion that to view not only the audacity of the lie, but the scale of it, is to notice the crack in your lens, and realize the whole thing is shattered.

The fact Baum was able to allude to these themes with such clarity, warmth, beauty, and simplicity given the complexity of the terrain these characters in Oz journey upon is a testament to  the brilliance of Baum’s writing.

“Knowing the history of Baum and why he wrote the book and how it was an allegory railing against the choices being made with farming, the military, and industrialists is fascinating, but obviously as an artist one has to be very clear and simple to move the story and engage the audience,” states Anderson.

“Especially with the way society is now engaged with social media, we’ve got to be thoughtful about how we use this knowledge of his original intention to tell the story to help inform some of these characters about the clever way he wrote this allegory.  Honestly, I love the second newer film that came out, Return to Oz, because it was so scary.  I was four years old when that came out and it was so dark I loved it!”

Casting & Collaboration

With Midland Center’s production of The Wizard of Oz engaging more than 120 actors to audition for the show, Bill says it was a difficult process  narrowing selections  down to the 30 actors performing in this production.

The principal roles are portrayed by Kelcie Corrion as Dorothy, Claire Patterson as Aunt Em/Glinda, Justin Gray as Uncle Henry, Sam Nowak as the Scarecrow/Hunk, Jack Doyle as the Tin Man/Hickory, Josh Abram as the Cowardly Lion/Zeke, Mackenzie Hopkins as the Wicked Witch, and Stephen Fort as Professor Marvel & The Wizard of Oz.

Bill says the entire ensemble cast is working with the principal actors like a well-oiled machine to tell this story, and each person in the cast possesses a special talent that adds to the magic. Moreover, musical director Jim Hohmeyer has assembled a full 30-piece orchestra to perform the timeless score, which is a rare sight to behold with contemporary regional theatre.

As for what each of the lead actors bring to their respective roles, Anderson is equally enthusiastic and complimentary. “A director couldn’t ask for a better person than Kelcie Corrion in the lead role of Dorothy to collaborate with,” he enthuses. “It’s my first time working with her and she went to Bay City Central and is still a teenager because you need someone young that can also handle the role, because this is a huge part with only one scene in the entire production that she doesn’t appear in. To get someone with the  vulnerability, kindness, and innocence that you want in Dorothy at that age is hard to find, and I’m excited with the joy she’s brought to the process.  Kelcie is willing to give it her all and try anything and finds a lot of joy with the people she encounters and longs for over the rainbow. It’s been easy to build with her.

On top of everything else involved with this role, she’s also handling a dog and learning to fly, so she’s been a real trooper.”

“Sam Nowak as the Scarecrow is trained professionally and so very talented, and Josh Abram brings his own characteristics to the Cowardly Lion, but also pay homage to Bert Lahr’s rendering; and Jack Doyle is also a solid performer tapping away and working hard to bring the character to life. The witches are also wonderful and making bold choices in order to make each character their own. One thing different from the movie in this show is that the good witch Glenda is also Aunt Em, which is something I never understood about the film version - all the characters from Oz are doubled with the characters back in Kansas except for Aunt Em.”

When asked where he feels The Wizard of Oz is situated within the lexicon of American theatrical classics, Anderson says that is a question he continues to ask himself. “What I find immensely curious and would love to know is how this musical became a symbol for the LGBQT community,” he notes. “For a long time now not only Judy Garland, but the movie and story have struck a chord and I’ve come to realize it isn’t just about the characters.”

“I do think there’s something about the juxtaposition about being in a place where one is comfortable and taken care of and has a safe space, but is longing for more and sees how there is more out in the world that’s not always pretty or great, but carries an inherent sense of possibility. I remember when the film version only came on once a year during the holiday season and multiple generations experienced that all at the same time to the point it became a national pastime in itself - sitting down with the family to watch the Wizard.”

“It became part of our national conversation and a shared experience we had together,” concludes Bill

“One thing I struggled with is what we learn from this journey. At the very end Dorothy learns she doesn’t need to look any further than her own backyard to find her heart’s desire, but I always thought you should look a little further. But when you think about it, one’s personal choices are one’s own backyard. You don’t need to look for something else to find that power within yourself, or to trust yourself and listen to your own voice.”

“It’s about becoming aware of qualities we always possess but don’t always realize, and its true message is very self-empowering.”

Midland Center for the Arts production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ will run from November 15-16-17^th at 7:00 PM, with a special  2:00 PM Saturday matinee added for popular demand. Tickets can be purchased by visiting midlandcenter.com.