Penned Up Energy: In the Merry Old Land of Oz....

Happy [Belated] 71st Anniversary to The Wizard of Oz. I meant to have done this yesterday when it actually was the anniversary, but I got writer's block, if I'll be honest.

The Wizard of Oz is one of those rare movies, and stories in general, that has made its way through quite a few generations and remains one of the strongest and most loved stories. It's funny that, even though it was made around 1939, therefore having minimal special effects, it remains one of the coolest effect movies ever created. It has to be legendary, because, not only was it the first color film to hit theatres, the stuff they did with the color was just...I mean, it just is so wonderfully colorful that it's difficult to believe it was the first experiment in color films.

Well, like many generations before me, even, I grew up watching this movie. I loved it, and I loved that my grandma has the vinyl record of it, so when we didn't feel like watching it, we could get the old record player going and listen to it and dance around. I remember loving Dorothy and Toto (Who doesn't) and the Scarecrow was always my favorite character, though the TinMan's song was always my favorite song.

I was terrified of the Wicked Witch of the West, as most other little kids, and her monkeys were equally as terrifying.

That being said, the next part of my Wizard of Oz story can be very amusing. Most people that know me know how obsessed and immersed I am in theatre. At Quincy University, we put on a musical every year. Last year, well the summer of 2008, technically, Connie Phillips (Theatre Director extradordaire) decided that it was going to be the year she finally tried to fly people on stage. Story behind her troubles, in a nutshell: MacHugh theatre was originally a gynmasium type place that was converted to a theatre, it has a low ceiling and is very small, so many people told her she cannot fly people on stage because it just would not work. Connie doesn't like hearing she can't, so she was even more motivated to try.

So...Those of us who were Juniors and Seniors and very involved in theatre heard that she was going to try, and were very excited to hear that they were going to try producing Peter Pan. Well, Peter Pan requires 4 fly lines at least, and Connie was not even sure, at this point, if we could even fit more than one.

So plans had to change and they decided, instead, to do The Wizard of Oz. Some of us were disappointed, but quickly realized that a "test fly" show was necessary if we did want to do Peter Pan eventually.

I was one of those disappointed ones...at first. I then began to remember all the songs and characters I loved from my childhood, and as I continued my education and learned my range as an actor, I began to get excited for auditions. While I was terrified of the Wicked Witch of the West as a child, I was grown up now and I realized just how much of an acting challenge it would be to portray that character. I respected her instead of feared her now. I wanted to be the Witch.

I did not believe this was possible, however, because she is a lead character in a musical...I cannot sing very well, so I let myself get down just a little. Then, one miraculous day in my acting class with Connie, she got on the topic of Wizard of Oz and the differences in characters and what would be needed from an actor portraying them. She got the Wicked Witch, and I listened with bated breath to her analysis of the character. She said the best possible thing I could have ever imagined--The Wicked Witch of the West was not a singing role, she was purely acting. Well, let me tell you, the heavens opened up and a choir of angels began singing the "Hallelujah" chorus. I had a chance at getting this part.

So I practiced...a lot. On my voice, my movements, everything for auditions. I wanted to go above and beyond was what expected of me so I could almost guaruntee myself getting the role.

As it turned out, I was the only one that specifically went out for the role of the Witch (Mostly everyone else wanted to be Dorothy). I got the role, along with one of my best friends, Michelle. We were performing two weekends in a row, and with the witch-playing, flying, and ridiculous costume changes, we would need back-up, so I was thankful for the double-casting.

Being a part of Wizard of Oz was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and probably the one I'll remember best: I got to fly, get painted green in less than 7 minutes, scare children, scream a lot, perfect my evil cackle, and reconnect/connect with the coolest people ever.