We're Off To See The Wizard, The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz

It is my Junior year in High School, 1991, and our School is doing the production of the Wizard of Oz- I am elated! Watching it EVERY year while growing up, I came to love Dorothy and would dream that the land of Oz truly exsisted if I wished hard enough. Auditions began, and sang my heart out in front of all the upper class men- nervous as I was, I was determined to try my hardest. The next day, the sheet was up on the Drama Department Door, and I remember walking down that long hallway- and praying. Several people passed me smiling and pointing- did I get the part of a Munchkin? Why were they smiling? A crowd was gathered by the door, and I walked up as they all parted so I could see. There, the top name, was Dorothy, and I actually started to cry. The Wizard of Oz is not only an incredible play, but an even better movie- so get your ruby slippers on, we have a yellow brick road to get to!

The Wizard of Oz is a true classic that put Judy Garland in the history pages of the most famous Hollywood books. Dorothy, played by Judy Garland, is a young girl from Kansas who hangs out on her Auntie Em's and Uncle Henry's Farm with her dog Toto. Along with the three male farm hands, Dorothy spends her days day dreaming about a far off place she wishes to escape to.

The first musical number is the famous "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" as she walks around the Farm, singing to Toto with her beautiful silky voice. Alarmed, she sees Ms. Gulch ride up on her bicycle, looking very upset. She approached Em and Henry and demands that Toto be taken away and destroyed for getting into her Garden again. Dorothy refuses, but can do nothing when Ms. Gulch provides a warrant, and takes Toto away in her picnic basket on her bike.

Dorothy upset and afraid of what will happen to him, she hears Toto jump through the window- estatic he has escaped. Scared that Ms. Gulch will come back for Toto, she decides to run away from home.

As she gets farther from home, she comes across an old wagon where she meets Professor Marvel. He takes her in, and cons her into thinking that he sees Auntie Em in his glass ball. Scared that Auntie Em may be upset and sick, she runs home.

Getting home, she is caught in a wild tornado and when she can't find her family, she looks in the house for them. Getting to her bedroom, she is hit in the head by her window frame flying off, and she drifts off into a deep sleep of imagination.

She wakes up, realizing she is in her bedroom, flying around in the tornado, and watching neighbors wave as they fly by her window. The house finally touches down, and she opens the door to a colorful world that IS over the Rainbow.
Up until now, the movie was in black and white, but changes to color as soon as she get's to Oz, showing how different this new world is from home.

She is confronted by the Good Witch of the North and the Munchkins of Munchkin City, while learning of the fate of another witch. Her house has dropped right on top of the Wicked Witch of the East, and all that is left is her ruby slippers. With a puff of green smoke, the Wicked Witch of the West appears to find her sister dead underneath the house. She attempts to get the ruby slippers, but is out smarted when the Good Witch of the North places them instead on Dorothy's feet. The Wicked Witch of the West announces "I will get you my pretty, and your little dog too." During this sequence of events, you will hear up beat songs like "The Merry Old Land of Oz" and "Follow the Yellow Brick Road."

Dorothy and Toto first encounter is with a live Scarecrow who sings his theme song "If I Only Had A Brain." Dorothy seems to connect with him well, and they are off again on the yellow brick road.

Dorothy and the Tinman go on to meet the Tinman, a man who was out chopping wood and got caught in the rain, rusting all his gears shut. The only way to communicate with him is with the oil can, and they oil him up, and they learn that he needs a heart. With the same tune, the Tinman sings "If I Only Had A Heart." They narrowly escape an encounter with the witch, and then decide to move ahead to see the Wizard in Emerald City. (This is the end scene in which was rumored that a stage hand had hung himself in the background- all I saw was a large Crane fly off)

One of my favorite scenes is next, in which the three have to go into the Haunted Forest. As they creep through, they start to chant "Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, oh My!" They are almost free, when they are approached by a large lion. His signature phrase of "Put em' up, put em' up" he acts all big and tough, and decides to go after Dorothy's dog, Toto. Dorothy chases him and winds up slapping the Lion on the nose, turning him into a huge teddy bear and timid as ever. He tells the trio that he needs to gain courage, so they invite the Cowardly Lion along with them on their magical journey. Before leaving, the Cowardly Lion sings "If I Didn't Have the Nerve."

Just at they are approaching the Emerald City, the Wicked Witch of the West places sleeping potion on the field of poppy flowers, and as they run, one by one they fall into a deep sleep. Scarecrow terrified cries for help, and the Good Witch of the North sprinkles them with snowflakes to awaken the others. It works, and they are off to see the Wizard!

Before entering they wait for the Bell Ringer to make sure they can see the Wizard, the Cowardly Lion sings "If I Were King of the Forest."After a brief dispute with the Bell Ringer, he lets them in and takes them on a tour of Emerald City, towed by a horse of a different color! Before they meet the Wizard, they are cleaned up in a musical number "The Merry Old Land of Oz." Leaving the cleaners, they see the Wicked Witch of the West writing in the sky about Dorothy. The foursome get into see the Wizard, who terrifies them to pieces. He tells each person that he will grant their wishes, but only if they can bring the broomstick from the Wicked Witch of the West. Agreed, the Cowardly Lion makes quite an exit to see for yourself!

As they start on their quest, the Wicked Witch of the West sends out her Flying Monkeys to stop them, and they kidnap Dorothy and Toto where they trap them in the Witch's Castle. The Scarecrow, Tinman, and Cowardly Lion were also attacked, but get themselves back together and vow to save Dorothy. Seeing the Witch's guards, in a great musical number that I don't even know how to name, they manage to attack some guards and take their suits in disguise to gain entrance to the Castle. The trio find Dorothy in time, and rescue her, only to get trapped by the witch in one of her many caverns. The Wicked Witch of the West lights Scarecrow on fire, and Dorothy being his friend, grabs a bucket of water to put him out. Not realizing that the Wicked Witch of the West is scared of water, it melts her in one shot, as the guards hail Dorothy as she takes her broom stick to the Wizard.

Once again faced with the Wizard, they present the broom, but the Wizard feels this isn't good enough. As they argue with him, Toto exposes the Wizard as just a hum bug of a man who operates lights and sounds to make him look more powerful. He explains that he flew into Oz in his hot air balloon, and because he fell from the sky, the people of Oz held him up as a powerful being. He decides to go back to Kansas, taking Dorothy with him in his balloon.

An emotional scene, the Wizard grants the Lion with a medal of courage, a heart clock that ticks for the Tinman, and a diploma for the Scarecrow. They say their teearful good-byes to Dorothy, but when Toto gets loose, Dorothy misses the hot air balloon, and is left behind in tears. The Good Witch of the North appears, and lets Dorothy know that she had the power to go home all along. She clicks her heels together and says "There's no place like home" over and over again.

She awakes in her bed, surrounded by her friends and family, telling them of all her adventures and who she all met there. She is last to say, "No matter how far I stray, there's no place like home!"

The Wizard of Oz is a classic film that will be shown centuries from now. I was honored to be Dorothy and have my 15 minutes of fame- I got to go over the rainbow, and this is why I will ALWAYS love the Wizard of Oz!