‘Wizard of Oz’ tale spellbinds audience

A green sheen of light spanned across the front of the IU Auditorium on Tuesday.

Enter the building, and see young children dressed in Dorothy Gale’s signature blue-and-white-checkered dress with red slippers that glittered like diamonds.

The spirited children were just one element of “The Wizard of Oz,” abundant with grandiose special effects throughout the program.

Ruby red slippers, Munchkins, the Yellow Brick Road and a little dog named Toto remained an integral part of “The Wizard of Oz” experience, best known originally as the 1939 MGM film starring Judy Garland.

The Royal Shakespeare’s take on the show added pyrotechnics, strobe-lights and a twister illusion that had the audience “oohing” and “ahhing.”

The performance opened with a drab and colorless scene of Kansas, where Dorothy lives on a farm with her Aunt Em and Uncle Henry.

Dorothy was breathless.

“My heart’s thumping so loud, I can’t hardly breathe,” she said.

Toto, her dog, scuddled on stage. The next scene showed her Uncle Henry and Aunt Em, both hard at work, and they barely even noticed Dorothy.

She then sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” and got into an argument with Miss Gulch, who claimed Toto bit her. Gulch was played by the same actress, Pat Sibley, who portrays the Wicked Witch of the West.

Audience member Jessica Allen came with a friend, who said Allen collected all sorts of paraphernalia from “The Wizard of Oz.” Allen said she started collecting items
during the past 10 years, and she likes all elements of the show.

“It’s my favorite movie of all time,” she said. “I like everything.”

Dorothy decided to run away with Toto because of all the drama, and found Professor Marvel in the process, a sort of magician who shows her a crystal ball that looks into the future. Dorothy continues on her journey, and a violent twister sweeps everything away.

The audience watched a projector which showed a spinning twister with flashes of the witch, an illusion to later parts of the show.

Dorothy then said one of the best-known lines in the show: “Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore. We must be over the rainbow.”  

The stage was clearly set in a place very far away.

Vibrant colors radiated from the set, and in came Glinda the Good Witch in a pink sparkly dress, along with the Munchkins, short, with colorful wigs, painted faces and squeaky voices.

In Munchkin Land, Glinda and the Munchkins tell Dorothy to follow the Yellow Brick Road so that “The Wizard of Oz” can transport her back to Kansas.

While traveling, Dorothy meets the Scarecrow, the Tinman and the Cowardly Lion, and each of them need one thing: a brain, a heart and courage, respectively.

The performance displayed the foursome encountering various obstacles along the way, including angry trees, a poppy field and spells from the Wicked Witch.

Audience member Peggy Lee said she thought the show was great, and though the show was based on the movie, simple additions enhanced the performance.

“They added jokes too,” Lee said.

She added that people can learn different lessons from the show.

“There’s the heart, and other things, like the importance of family and being together,”
Lee said.