6The Daily Tar HeelMonday, April 17,
Effects make live 'Wizard'
a horse of a different color
Plastic light sabres, cotton candy
and the Cowardly Lion created a
circus-like atmosphere for the "The
Wizard of Oz Live" this weekend.
However, the show's true stars were
backstage, expertly orchestrating the
unique special effects.
The Wicked Witch of the West flew
down with her army of monkeys,
while Glenda, the Good Witch of the
North, glided down from the sky on
a star. The snowflakes (trapeze
artists) gently fell from above, and
the yellow brick road seemed to move
in sync with its travelers.
Some of the most mesmerizing and
memorable special effects occurred
during the tornado scene. The sound
of the winds and the flashing lights
helped to fill in the details of an
imagined cyclone.
Little imagination was needed,
however, to grasp the upheaval of the
farmhouse, which was actually lifted
40 feet into the air. Because the house
was constructed of a translucent
material, the audience could see a
terrified Dorothy sitting straight up
in her bed as an hourglass-shaped
track moved the house around the
set, twirling it about in the air.
Director Michel Grilikhes and
scenic designer Stephen Ehlers
deserve much of the credit for
conceiving such scenes. Without the
accompanying special effects, the
show would have surely been a
failure.
Intended to mirror the 1939 film
classic in every possible way, "The
Wizard of Oz Live" depended on
these effects to create the sensation
of watching a fairy tale take place
before the audience's eyes.
Elaborate sets and costumes
greatly enhanced the show. Scenery
included munchkin huts, the Wicked
Witch's castle and the gigantic,
menacing, moving head of the
Wizard of Oz.
The imaginative costumes, created
by Bill Campbell, ranged from being
clown-like to exotic, and those of the
Oz dwellers were always wild and
colorful. The snowflakes looked like
Christmas tree ornaments as they
donned glitter and glowing lights.
Even just one flower costume from
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1989
U
ACKETY
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ACK
The Yearbook of the
University of North Carolina
1989
Jessica Yates
Theater
the bed of poppies had more ruffles
than the entire display of the Sears
curtain section. And Glenda made
Cinderella look undepressed.
The vividness of the costumes and
scenery was essential for holding the
audience's attention even most of
the children were already familiar
with the story line. Families didn't
come just to see another version of
"The Wizard of Oz." They came to
see something new, exciting and
entertaining.
Children were spellbound by the
"impossibilities" they witnessed.
Adults realized the role that cables
and computers played in the produc
tion but were fascinated nonetheless.
Yet we shouldn't ignore the actors'
individual performances. Their work
was of professional quality in general,
but, as is inevitable with any show
staged in an arena, was less than
memorable.
Grace Greig, who played Dorothy,
did a good job of using exaggerated
head and body movements to convey
her character's childish nature. The
23-year-old seemed very talented and
dedicated to her role, but of course,
she paled in comparison to Judy
Garland.
The Scarecrow, Tin Man and
Cowardly Lion were played by Joe
McDorough, Joe Giuffre and Guy
Allen, respectively. All three actors
were unimpressive in their roles and
probably have had more training and
experience in dancing than in acting.
Clearly, character development was
simply not a priority for them.
Every sound in the production,
including all lines and songs, came
from a pre-recorded tape. This
contributed to the distant relation
ship, both literally and figuratively,
between the audience and the char
acters. However, microphones would
have been impractical and unampli
fied speaking would have been
ineffective, so a taped audio perfor
mance was necessary.
The biggest problem with "The
Wizard of Oz Live" lay in its intention
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to imitate the movie. During the first
act, the corresponding detail between
the two was amazing. One could
imagine the director going through
the film, frame by frame, attempting
to create a nearly identical moment
on stage for each image.
The audience grew to expect this
conformity. Therefore, any deviation
from their anticipation brought
disappointment. It was annoying that
Grilikhes kept lines, such as "Well,
that's a horse of a different color,"
and then left the colored horses out
of the show, or when a reference was
made to the Wicked Witch's sign in
the sky, "Surrender Dorothy," when
there was, in fact, no sign.
Another problem was that the
movie is more than three hours long,
but the stage production was cut to
about two hours, causing some scenes
to be modified or deleted. The scene
in which Dorothy is captured and
imprisoned in the Wicked Witch's
castle was drastically simplified.
This particular scene in the film is
incredibly suspenseful with the
audience waiting anxiously on the
edge of their seats to see if their dear
Dorothy would be rescued by her
fearless friends. The audience of "The
Wizard of Oz Live" saw only a rather
uninteresting chase scene and a
hurried execution of the witch.
A jazzed-up version of "Ding Dong
the Witch is Dead" immediately
followed, but without the dramatic
qualities. Concentration on the
singing and dancing while undermin
ing the individual characters pre
vailed here and throughout the show.
Consequently, the production wasn't
comparable to the film classic.
But it did succeed in recalling some
pleasant memories. While the show
was definitely geared toward the kids
(the "Get Your Picture Taken with
the Cowardly Lion" photo opportun-
'Charlie Brown' cast
If peanut butter sticks to the roof
of your mouth when you're eating a
peanut butter sandwich, it means
you're really lonely.
At least that's what Charlie Brown
says. And who knows the meaning
of lonely better than he does?
"You're a Good Man, Charlie
Brown," which opened Sunday at the
Lab Theatre, is an hour of sheer fun
there's no better way to describe
it. The play has no plot. It's just a
bunch of kids having a good time,
and it really is a pleasure to Watch:1'
The fact that there isn't a running
storyline is precisely what makes the
play so charming. It's like taking a
trip back to childhood and experienc
ing life as seen through the eyes of
the Peanuts gang.
Director Amy Rosenberg and set
designer Fabiana Politi have created
a bright, lively production from
beginning to end.
Music sets a cheerful mood before
the play begins. Schoolhouse Rock
songs such as "I'm Just a Bill" and
"Conjunction Junction What's
Your Function?" bring back memo
ries of Saturday morning cartoons.
The set consists of blocks and a
bench, all in red, yellow and blue.
The stage floor is covered with graffiti
tic-tac-toe games, handprints,
footprints and the names of the
Peanuts characters.
The production came to life in the
first musical number a rousing
rendition of the song "You're a Good
Man, Charlie Brown." Complete with
baton twirling and tambourine play
ing, the song was full of the spirit
and spontaneity that continued
throughout the show.
The production was well-paced,
and before the audience had a chance
to wonder "What next?" the next
scene was in progress. In the tradition
of a comic strip, brief interaction
between a few characters was gener
ally followed by a cute and clever
punchline.
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JUL A
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Dorothy and the Tin Man
ity proved that), not just the kids
could enjoy it. Even as the children
Jacki Greenberg
Theater
But even in comic strips the
punchlines are not always funny, and
the same held true for some of the
scenes in the play. Overall, though,
the actors were very expressive and
the scenes very funny.
' ' Senior Ian Williams, a newcomer '
to the Lab, was excellent, as Charlie
Brown. His, "feel, sorry for me".,
attitude was effective, and the
audience couldn't help but sympa
thize with him. Though Charlie
Brown is the least charismatic and
enthusiastic of the Peanuts charac
ters, Williams made him the most
sincere and believable.
Sophomore Alison Michel was
also outstanding. Her naturally
brassy voice was perfect for the bossy,
crabby character of Lucy, and she was
particularly good when flirting with
Schroeder (Billy Crudup) or teasing
Linus (Paul Goodson).
As the mini-Beethoven, Crudup
was a bit of a ham and sometimes
related to the audience as if he were
a stand-up comedian instead of
Schroeder. He was charming none
theless especially in the song in
which he compared the story of
."Peter Rabbit" to "Robin Hood."
Goodson captured the true spirit
of Linus, as he clung to a blue security
blanket and sucked his thumb
throughout the show.
As the simple-minded Sally,
sophomore Gretchen Case was a little
too simple. Her wide-eyed expres
sions were appropriate for the inno
cent, jump-roping girl, but Case had
little character development and was
often difficult to hear.
As Snoopy, senior Andrew Lawler
actually had two roles to play: The
Snoopy who acts like a dog and the
Snoopy who talks to the audience like
call 800-KAP-TEST.
in The Wizard of Oz Live' Thursday
sang along with the' familiar tunes,
many adults who fondly remembered
offers energetic fun
4
met
:::'-:-::-::::::x::-
i DTHRegina Holder
Ian Williams plays Charlie Brown and Alison Michel plays Lucy
a person. Lawler was funniest when
he was chasing rabbits, howling or
barking, but he acted like himself
when he wasn't doing doglike things.
"Suppertime," Snoopy's big
number, could have been the show
stopper, but it wasn't.
Although none of the actors had
exceptional singing voices, the group
musical numbers highlighted the
show. Their enthusiasm and unity
compensated for the missed notes.
Where Friends Are Your Neighbors.
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DTHEvan Eile
night at the Smith Center
seeing the movie in their childhood
were humming along too.
;'
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And if children are truly the
toughest critics, the Lab has a winner
on its hands. As soon as the show
ended, the 7-year-old in the first row
said, "Mommy, I want to watch it
again!" J
;
You're a Good Man, Charlie
Brown will be presented today at '4
p.m. and 8 p.m., and Tuesday at 5
p.m. in Graham Memorial. Admis
sion is free. ;,
I
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