November 21, 2007 at 2:38 p.m.
Wizard of Oz takes Chisago Lakes by storm
Wizard of Oz takes Chisago Lakes by storm
Brittany Gadbois was a dead ringer for Judy Garland. Right off the bat, we were treated to "Over the Rainbow" and if there were any opening night jitters they definitely were not showing.
The opening scene was in Kansas, at the Gale farm where we were introduced to Aunt Em, played by Johanna Hawkinson, Uncle Henry, played by Steve Boeh, Zeke, played by Brett Schimke, Hickory, played by Kurt Hattenberger and Hunk played by Kevin Jennissen. Soon the crumudgeonly Miss Gultch played perfectly by Alison Mondville, joined the cast riding her bicycle through the audience.
As the twister approached near, the combination of special effects and props were a feast for the eyes. From a flying house, to a fisherman flying by in a boat, the cast and crew did a wonderful job with effects.
Soon Dorothy lands in Munchinkinland and we were introduced to Glinda the Good Witch. Glinda (played by Kristine Weise) sang "Come Out, Come Out" which really got the audience going. Her voice and the way she carried herself on stage was first class.
The set of Munchkinland was much like the movie, bright beautiful colors with matching patterns. The Munchkin towns people played by Steve Boeh, Stacy Peterson, Kelly Langer, Kori Sells, Tracy Schneider, Andrea Danielzuk, Rachel Lundberg, Dana Schimke, along with the Lullaby League of Lauren Seaburg, Becky Vogel, Brittany Bettcher and the Lollipop Guild of Max Molina, Riley Cavanaugh, and James Taylor were all spectacular.
And there were about 50 or 60 elementary school age children playing extra munchkins. Each one of these children wore a bright, distinctive costume and all of them sang and danced in perfect unison. They sang until the Wicked Witch of the West (played by Jenny Mondville) broke up their little party. Mondville's costume was flawless, and her portrayal of the witch was right on.
Dorothy began her journey down the yellow brick road where we first met Scarecrow. Kevin Jennissen played the scarecrow perfectly. He bounced around as if he had no bones and much to the pleasure of some girls in the audience, did his rendition of "If I only had a brain".
Scarecrow and Dorothy make their way down the yellow brick road to the Tim Man's cottage. Kurt Hattenberger who plays the Tin Man, looked the part with a magnificent costume and great make-up. Hattenberger then belted out "If I only had a heart" . The song was accompanied by some fancy dancing that included the Tin Man moonwalking across the stage.
As the three proceed with their journey, they come upon the Cowardly Lion. Brett Schimke who plays the lion, used every part of the stage in his version of "If I only had the nerve". Watching my children as he sang and acted, you could tell that Schimke really had a stage presence that I'm sure every actor would love to possess. He had the Cowardly Lion down to a tee, and even threw in a line from the Lion King.
After a short break, the cast belted out "You're out of the woods" and "Merry old land of Oz". This was all done in the Emerald City which was decorated appropriately with many shades of green.
Soon, the cast reached the Wizard's chambers guarded by Emerald City guard Ryan Holmquist. Holmquist mixed just the right amount of humor and excitement and definitely held his own in the spotlight. The Wizard's chamber was designed brilliantly and had a moving animated video of the Wizard's face.
The Wicked Witch of the West who was played in this portion by Stacy Peterson, re-joined the cast. She takes Dorothy prisoner along with Toto who was played by Lucy (That's right folks, it was played by a real dog). In the witches' castle, we once again got to hear the beautiful voice of Brittany Gadbois, as she sang a slow melodical version of "Over the rainbow".
As the story goes, Dorothy ends up throwing water on the witch causing her to melt and her Winkies to break into "Ding dong the witch is dead".
With broomstick in hand Dorothy and her counterparts re-visit the Wizard, expecting to be rewarded. The Wizard (played by Aaron Holt) is then exposed and reveals that he has no such powers. He does make them realize that they all had what they were looking for deep down inside themselves.
As the wizard is floating off in his balloon to Kansas without Dorothy, Glinda re-appears to come to Dorothy's rescue. And with three clicks of her heels, we find Dorothy back at the farm surrounded by characters she swears she saw in the land of Oz.
The musical was absolutely amazing. I no longer am a skeptic, and I plan to see whatever the high school presents next. Dave Seaburg did a magnificent job with all of his actors, stage hands, production staff and technical staff. I am afraid to tell you that if you missed this one, you might have missed one of the best musicals ever put on by a high school.
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