The Wizard of Oz @ Rancocas Valley Regional High School

Flying monkeys, and cows, and witches, oh my! Rancocas Valley's production explores this abstraction in The Wizard of Oz.

The Wizard of Oz is a classic 1939 film, with many adaptations during its time on Broadway. The author of the original book, L. Frank Baum, sculpted his book into a musical extravaganza. With Music and Lyrics by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg, this performance was based upon the Classic Motion Picture owned by Turner Entertainment. This musical surrounds a young girl from Kansas, Dorothy Gale, who lives with her Aunt Em, Uncle Henry and her dog Toto, when a tornado turns her world upside down. Once her house mistakenly lands on "the Wicked Witch of the West," she is then celebrated by the munchkins as well as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South. While she appreciates the gratitude from her friends from a different world that she meets along the way, she embarks on a journey to find her way back home.

Red Devil Dramatics express their version of a lively musical with individual costumes telling a story within each character, such as the Munchkin ensemble with their striking color scheme. This production exploits trajectile props, creating prominence between their performance among others. The cast and crew of Rancocas Valley incorporated many hidden gems of the storyline, including the foreshadowing of each character's development.

The principal roles such as Dorothy Gale, played by Keira Kreig, mastered the cartoon-like inflection produced in the original movie. She had portrayed her famous sense of compassion through her beautiful acting as well as her vocal resonance in the number Over the Rainbow. The Scarecrow, depicted by Chloe Swanson, had incredible commitment to the body language with accurate limpness after being made of straw and paralyzed his entire life. Chloe impressed with her ability to express vocal range in her first number of the production If I Only Had a Brain.

The Cowardly Lion, played by Nicolas Brown, was a comedic relief for the tragedy among the storyline, with his humorous Ad-libs included in his iconic one-liners. During the musical song If I Were King of the Forest, Nicolas had a breathtaking low baritone vocal ability and timid character nuances while performing If I Only Had the Nerve. A special shoutout goes to a featured dancer, Alexis Stewart, who captivated the audience with her sharp and intentional choreography. She had expressive acting choices with impressive features to move the story along. Alexis had especially authentic choices during the Jitterbug dance ensemble group.

The technical elements of this production were executed smoothly, with swift transitions and rustic homestead set pieces. The hints of costumes were deliberately placed in the set of Kansas before the introduction of Oz to pay homage to the unique attributes and personalities of the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion. The projection of the Wizard, portrayed as the great and powerful being of Oz, was an original aspect of this production. The predominantly innovative aspect of the props was the live presentation of Toto the dog, played by Kona Angradi.

Ding Dong! Rancocas Valley's production of The Wizard of Oz was a magical journey down the yellow brick road that validated that there truly is no place like home.