I would guess there is probably not a more recognizable movie in the history of Hollywood than The Wizard of Oz. It truly is iconic and with the release of the second Wicked film last year everyone wanted to get in on the Oz action and put on the stage version of The Wizard of Oz. The latest version has just opened up at The Ruth and while this is far from a perfect adaptation of this movie the team has elevated it to something special and more memorable.

My favorite part of this musical is the casting. Madeline Clifford is perfect as Dorothy and her trio of companions are also all really sweet with Logan Neville, Collin Larsen and Geoff Reynolds playing Scarecrow, Tin Man and Cowardly Lion respectively. It is also really fun to see Stephen Kerr playing Prof. Marvel/Wizard. I’m so used to him playing Scrooge that it was interesting seeing him play this character and I couldn’t help but think about how Scrooge and the Wizard are kind of similar? One is a more jolly brand of cynicism but there’s something there to ponder…

Anyway, the cast is great. The problem with this adaptation is it is unnecessarily slavish to the source material making for a bit of a slog in the adaptation. This leaves it up to the company to elevate the sequences with visual effects and choreography and fortunately at The Ruth they do an outstanding job with these elements. Director Ashley Carlson does everything she can to engage the audience with visual spectacle from the use of puppetry throughout (I particularly liked the puppets for the tornado. Very creative) to the lighting bringing in the themes of rainbows obviously established in “Over the Rainbow” throughout the piece. She also does a good job making the experience as immersive as possible. The actors come into the aisles frequently and there is flying monkeys, loud sound effects and even cool moments like when actual sparks fly out of the witches broomstick to Dorothy and Scarecrow. I’m still not sure how they pulled that effect off.

It does make me wish the Ruth had been designed a little bit more technologically forward. I understand the desire to hold on to the charm of Hale Center Theatre Orem but watching a show like this one can’t help but wish the stage could spin around for the tornado and the Emerald City could be more dynamic set. Oh well. They do all they can with what they have.

Most of the musical highlights of the night are our classic songs from the film like “Over the Rainbow” but “Jitterbug” is another standout moment since it was written for the film but removed. They involve a lot of dancers here and that’s a lot of fun. The costumes by Lexi Goldsberry are also very impressive with an admirable attention to detail. For example, in the Emerald City sequence all of the actors have headpieces and unique hairstyles. It helps give what can be a dull experience visual interest and delight. I particularly admired Dorothy’s looks and especially an extremely cool quick dress change at the Emerald City.

If you are looking for a great show to introduce your children to theatre than The Wizard of Oz at The Ruth is a wonderful choice. It is playing through May 23rd and tickets can be purchased here.

The Wizard of Oz is based on the 1939 film of the same name that took Frank Baum’s novel and added songs from Harold Arlen and EY Harburg. New material and a new book was done by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jeremy Sams with additional lyrics from Tim Rice. It premiered on the West End in 2011

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