On Wednesday night Baltimore’s Centerstage Theater premiered to the public the iconic show The Wiz. Those who have never heard of The Wiz are not alone.
It’s one of today’s lesser-known shows of the Broadway world, despite the handful of Tony Awards it claims. Oftentimes it’s eclipsed by Wicked, a better-known spin-off of the beloved classic American musical, The Wizard of Oz.
However, The Wiz is a far cry from the emotional story of a misunderstood Wicked Witch of the West.
The Wiz is an energetic re-interpretation of The Wizard of Oz in terms of Black America. The slow, mellow harmonies of The Wizard of Oz are replaced by funky jazz beats and soulful rhythm and blues numbers, which represented the musical tastes of African Americans in the 1970s.
The show has been tweaked and reproduced many times, though the show that CenterStage puts on adheres as much to the original score as possible.
Admittedly, upon reading in the director’s note in the information booklet, one might worry, for although I had never seen the production before, I was well-aware of the reputation associated with the original score.
Although re-makes of The Wiz have been successful, the original show bears a lot of criticism. Critics have called the script “out-dated,” “irrelevant” and “insulting,” but Centerstage’s production brought none of those words to mind.
To prepare for the show, however, Wizard of Oz fanatics must understand that this show is nothing like what they will imagine it to be. It is nearly impossible to predict the events that will occur and the way in which they will be presented.
All of the iconic scenes of The Wizard of Oz have been redone to relate more to this day and age, and to a broader audience. The musical has a more lively, comedic direction than The Wizard of Oz and a lot more glitz.
All of the characters have received makeovers that will make the audience immediately intrigued and entertained.
Imagine a show where Dorothy runs out onto the stage in overalls, where the scarecrow has the dance moves of Michael Jackson and an entourage of scarecrow background singers, the tin man is found in a dumpster and the cowardly lion gets arrested.
All the singers sing and move with the soul and conviction that the original The Wizard of Oz did not even provide a glimpse of.
One thing to be warned of before entering the theater: Favorite scenes from the original show are different. At first, the thought of losing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” can seem depressing, but the loss is well worth it.
Instead, the viewer can expect to be entertained by dozens of changes that he will quickly come to love. Lights and dancing engulf the stage with joy and a magnitude of emotion.
Once you move beyond the storyline, the incredible talent on the stage becomes apparent. One of the most exciting facets of the show is the opportunity to see the legendary Gwen Stewart onstage.
If the name does not ring any bells, perhaps the mention of “Seasons of Love” will. She is the incredible soloist who belts out that iconic high note at the end, and her performance in The Wiz is no less incredible.
Stewart plays two roles—one of which is the Wicked Witch of the West. If Stewart’s costumes and reputation were not enough to make her the star of the show, her performance was. The audience finds themselves begging for Stewart to return to the stage, even when Dorothy is easing on down that Yellow Brick Road.
Although Dorothy, played by Kristen Dowtin, is supposed to be the star of the show, her sweet and kind demeanor are easily eclipsed by her three outlandish counterparts: the Lion, the Tinman, and the Scarecrow.
While Dowtin’s sweet voice has the ability to bring an audience to tears, the riots of laughter that the other characters induce are much more enticing.
The Cowardly Lion, played by Wayne Pretlow, is the thug-like King of the Jungle (with the sparkly medallion to prove it) and an unfortunate tendency to pass out at the slightest provocation.
The Scarecrow (Eric Anthony) performs pretty much everything, from the splits to pole-dancing. For the viewer who’s been missing Michael Jackson, the scarecrow should give stir up some fond nostalgia.
The Tinman (Mel Johnson, Jr.), while less lovable than one would expect, happens to be incredibly entertaining.
His macho protective streak ties in strangely to his tendency to bully the Cowardly Lion, effectively creating a character with perhaps more dimension than anyone else in the show.
The Wiz is a show that will make one want to jump out of his seat and move. The show will be running through Nov. 7, so grab some friends and let the journey begin. The Wiz awaits.
