Words by Kelsey Roberts
Dorothy dropped her house in Cardiff to bring The Wizard of OZ to the Welsh capital but not everyone was happy to see her.
The merchandise store at the Wales Millennium Centre, where the show was held was disappointing. They had sold out of show programmes and brochures for the week which led many attendees disheartened. Many were saying how this is the one thing you want when attending a theatre show. Aside from the lack of programmes there were other merchandise on offer. There were magnets, socks, sweatshirts, t-shirts, pin badges, and keyrings all decorated with elements from the show.
The show begins with the theme music of the film which was a nice nod towards the original 1939 version of the story. The use of the stage curtains was impressive where they projected an introduction scene showing the Great Depression in 1939 Kansas where the story is set.
The main elements of the story went a miss in this production. From the use of mobile phones to counteract spells, a rocket ship for the Wizard to fly away in, and the tin man being a robot.
Alongside this, a huge fundamental piece of the story was carried out inadequately. The yellow brick road, Oz’s pathway into the emerald city wasn’t as yellow as expected. It came out as three lit up arrows across the stage but the stage, which had been projected with colour to represent the environment throughout, had been projected blue with white swirling arrows. Throughout the show the use colour was used so why wasn’t it implemented for the yellow brick road?
The lack of set was disappointing for a show that would’ve benefited heavily from it. Dorothy’s house was just placed at the side of the stage which looked like there was no thought behind it.
The Scarecrow’s field was a nice touch but was small in comparison to the stage and could’ve used some other props or set pieces to identify exactly what location the characters were in. Due to the lack of set, the locations were projected at the back of the stage, so those sitting in the upper area of the theatre found it difficult to enjoy the entirety of the stage set up.
Flaws set aside, the acting from the cast was very well done. The accents from Kansas were impressive and on point to a non-American. The renditions of the songs added a breath of fresh air while keeping the originals in mind and not taking away the elements people love so much.
Overall, the show was brought into the 21st century but was executed poorly. It lacked the magic that the much-loved 1900 book and 1939 film brought and still brings to families around the world. It had potential and fell flat to its own story.
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