The Wizard of Oz (2011 musical)
The Wizard of Oz is a 2011 musical based on the 1939 film of the same name in turn based on L. Frank Baum's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, with a book adapted by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jeremy Sams. The musical uses the Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg songs from the film and includes some new songs and additional music by Lloyd Webber and additional lyrics by Tim Rice. It is the third stage musical adaptation of the film following the 1942 version for the St. Louis Municipal Opera (The Muny) and the 1987 version for the Royal Shakespeare Company.
The Wizard of Oz
- Harold Arlen
- Andrew Lloyd Webber (additional)
- Herbert Stothart (incidental)
- E. Y. Harburg
- Tim Rice (additional)
- Andrew Lloyd Webber
- Jeremy Sams
1939 film The Wizard of Oz and 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
After previews in the West End from 7 February, the musical opened on 1 March 2011, directed by Jeremy Sams, and closed on 2 September 2012. The roles and original cast included Danielle Hope as Dorothy Gale, and Sophie Evans as alternative Dorothy, Michael Crawford as the Wizard, Paul Keating as the Scarecrow, Edward Baker-Duly as the Tin Man, David Ganly as the Cowardly Lion, Helen Walsh as Aunt Em, Stephen Scott as Uncle Henry, Emily Tierney was Glinda the Good Witch of the North, Hannah Waddingham as the Wicked Witch of the West, and four different West Highland Terriers alternated in the role of Toto. The role of Dorothy was cast through the 2010 reality television show Over the Rainbow, in which Hope won and Evans was the runner-up. After a similar Canadian reality TV search show, a Toronto production (starring Danielle Wade as Dorothy) began in December 2012 and closed in August 2013, and was followed by a North American tour. In April 2017 an Australian tour was announced including a season at the Lyric Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre, the Capitol Theatre in Sydney, and at the Adelaide Festival Theatre. The cast includes Anthony Warlow as the Wizard, with Lucy Durack as Glinda the Good Witch and Jemma Rix as Wicked Witch of the West.[1][2][3] In 2023, the musical was revived at the London Palladium for a limited season, following a run at Curve, Leicester.[4]
Production history[edit]
London (2011–12)[edit]
After previews beginning 7 February,[10] the musical opened in the West End, at the London Palladium, on 1 March 2011. The role of Dorothy was originated by Danielle Hope, who was selected through the reality television show Over the Rainbow,[11] and the title role of the Wizard was created by Michael Crawford.[12] Over the Rainbow runner-up Sophie Evans performed the role of Dorothy on Tuesday evenings and when Hope was ill or on holiday.[13] Hannah Waddingham originated the role of the Wicked Witch of the West[14] and was replaced in September 2011 by her understudy, Marianne Benedict.[15] Hope and Crawford left the production on 5 February 2012.[16] Evans replaced Hope in the role of Dorothy full-time in February 2012,[17] and Russell Grant took over soon afterwards as The Wizard, for 14 weeks.[18] Des O'Connor portrayed The Wizard from May 2012 until the production closed.[19]
The musical was produced by Lloyd Webber and Bill Kenwright,[20] with direction by Jeremy Sams, choreography by Arlene Phillips and sets and costumes by Robert Jones.[14] It took in pre-opening sales of £10 million.[21] The production celebrated its 500th performance on 9 May 2012[22] and closed on 2 September 2012.[19]
Toronto and North American tour (2012–14)[edit]
An autumn 2012 reality TV show, Over the Rainbow, hosted by Daryn Jones, searched for a Canadian girl to play the role of Dorothy in a Toronto staging by Mirvish Productions.[23][24] On 5 November 2012, viewers of the show chose Danielle Wade, a 20-year-old University of Windsor acting major, to play the role, with Stephanie La Rochelle as first runner up.[25][26] The production premiered on 20 December 2012 at the Ed Mirvish Theatre with an official opening on 13 January 2013. Besides Wade, the all-Canadian cast also included Cedric Smith as Professor Marvel/the Wizard, Lisa Horner as Miss Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West, Mike Jackson as the Tin Man, Lee MacDougall as the Cowardly Lion, Jamie McKnight as the Scarecrow and Robin Evan Willis as Glinda.[27] The production concluded its run on 18 August 2013, having been seen by over 500,000 people.[28]
The musical received a North American tour beginning on 10 September 2013 at the Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Las Vegas, Nevada, with the original Canadian cast, except that Jacquelyn Piro Donovan played Miss Gulch/The Wicked Witch of the West.[29] It concluded on 29 June 2014 at the Detroit Opera House.[30]
Australian tour (2017–18)[edit]
The musical began touring Australia beginning 4 November 2017 at the Lyric Theatre, Queensland Performing Arts Centre in Brisbane, Queensland, followed by a season at the Capitol Theatre, Sydney in Sydney from 30 December 2017. The cast included Anthony Warlow as the Wizard, Lucy Durack as Glinda the Good Witch, Jemma Rix as the Wicked Witch of the West,[1][2] and Samantha Dodemaide as Dorothy. Durack and Rix previously portrayed Glinda and Elphaba respectively in the Australian production of Wicked.[3]
Leicester (2022–2023)[edit]
The musical was scheduled to make its UK regional premiere in a new production directed by Nikolai Foster at the Curve, Leicester over the Christmas 2020 season. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the production was postponed to the Christmas 2021 season before being postponed again to the Christmas 2022 season. The cast includes Georgina Onuorah as Dorothy[31][32] with Jonny Fines as the Scarecrow, Paul French as the Tin Man, Giovanni Spanó as The Lion, Ben Thompson controlling the puppet of Toto, Christina Bianco as Glinda the Good Witch, Mark Peachey as the Wizard, and Charlotte Jaconelli as the Wicked Witch of The West.[33]
West End revival (2023)[edit]
On 1 December 2022, it was announced that the Leicester production would transfer to London's West End at the London Palladium (where the original 2011 production also ran) for a limited season from 23 June to 3 September 2023, with an official opening night on 6 July.[34] It is produced by Michael Harrison, starring Jason Manford as the Cowardly Lion, Ashley Banjo as the Tin Man, and Gary Wilmot as the Wizard and Professor Marvel (having previously played the Wizard in Wicked, and the Scarecrow and the Cowardly Lion in the 1987 version).[35][36][37] Also featured in the cast are Louis Gaunt as the Scarecrow, Dianne Pilkington as the Wicked Witch, and Bianco and Onuorah reprising their roles of Glinda and Dorothy, respectively, from the Leicester production.[38]
UK and Ireland tour and West End revival (2023–24)[edit]
It was also announced that the Leicester/London production will tour the UK and Ireland beginning at the Liverpool Empire Theatre from 13 December 2023 until August 2024 with further dates to be announced, starring Aston Merrygold as the Tin Man and The Vivienne and Craig Revel Horwood as the Wicked Witch, with Wilmot returning as the Wizard.[39][40]
The production will also return to the West End from 15 August 2024 for a limited 4 week run at the Gillian Lynne Theatre with Merrygold and The Vivienne reprising their roles from the tour as the Tin Man and the Wicked Witch.[41]
Musical numbers[edit]
Music[edit]
Most of the musical's songs are taken from the 1939 film and were written by Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg. New numbers written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice include a song for Professor Marvel ("The Wonders of the World") and the Wicked Witch of the West ("Red Shoes Blues"), two songs for the Wizard ("Bring Me the Broomstick" and "Farewell to Oz") and another song for Dorothy ("Nobody Understands Me"). A song featured in the film but omitted in the musical is "If I Were King of the Forest."[48][49] Also not used in this musical was "The Jitterbug".
Reception[edit]
Original 2011 London production[edit]
Opening night reviews were mixed but generally praised the designs, the special effects and several cast members, especially Waddingham. The Telegraph reviewer, Charles Spencer, rated the production three out of five stars, writing: "Jeremy Sams's production pulls out all the stops, with ingenious designs by Robert Jones that skilfully conjure up both the sepia world of Kansas and the lurid colours of Oz. Dorothy's flight to the enchanted land is thrillingly caught with the help of film effects that wouldn't look out of place on Doctor Who and the story is told with clarity and pace", but added that Hope "offers a thoroughly competent rather than an inspired performance" that "lacks the heart-catching vulnerability of the young Judy Garland".[51] Paul Taylor of The Independent gave the show four out of five stars, commenting: "Jeremy Sams's production is a marvel of beguiling narrative fluency and, with Robert Jones's superb designs, of endlessly witty and spectacular visual invention – from the digitally-enhanced hurricane transition to Oz to the skeletally twisted Gothic palace of the Wicked Witch and her totalitarian, helmeted guards."[52] Henry Hitchings of the London Evening Standard also gave the show four out of five stars, praising Jones's "lavish costumes and lovingly conceived sets. ... The story is lucid and well-paced, though the technological wizardry occasionally obscures its inherent magic. ... Danielle Hope ... makes a winning impression. Her performance combines innocence with easy charm, and her voice soars."[53] Although Michael Billington, the reviewer at The Guardian, felt "blitzkrieged rather than charmed", he gave the production three stars out of five, writing:
The Oxford Times reviewed the production during Evans's first week (in May 2011) replacing the vacationing Hope, calling the show "hugely enjoyable" and commenting of Evans: "Such is her success in the role that it would be hard to imagine anyone could consider they were getting second-best."[55]