By Colleen Surridge

Parsons Sun

The Parsons Municipal Auditorium came to life Thursday night, somewhere between Kansas and the land of Oz.

Munchkins bustled back and forth through the front rows of seats for costume adjustments. Trees made sure apples were clinging to their branches in preparation for throwing, and Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, sat by the aisle, tapping Scarecrow's stuffing with her wand as they chatted before dress rehearsal.

The Great and Powerful Oz disappeared into the rafters above the set of a small farm in Kansas, as a pig-tailed Dorothy adjusted her cordless microphone at stage left.

"If you're a director in Kansas, at some time, sooner or later, you have to give in and walk the yellow brick road," said Parsons High School drama teacher/director Ruth Kindall of bringing the classic "The Wizard of Oz" to the stage.

Through all her years of showcasing Parsons' young talent on stage, when it comes to the "The Wizard of Oz," she candidly admits: "I have avoided it like the plague."

Her No. 1 reason may not be what people think.

"When MGM Grand released 'The Wizard of Oz' in 1939, the special effects then amazed everyone. On stage, the questions arise of, 'How do you do a tornado? How do you get people to fly?'

"It's so scary because everyone knows Oz and has expectations and I didn't want to disappoint them," Kindall said.

Attempting to meet the public's expectations of the Oscar-winning musical has been difficult.

"It has been a challenge, but an exciting challenge," Kindall said.

"We found out it would cost us $6,000 to fly a real student, so we're not doing it. If people think we are going to spend $6,000 to fly a student, they have another think coming," she said. "And the tornado took us four weeks to make in drama class, building and rebuilding it. It took more than 50 yards of fabric. Unbelievable.

"And on make-up, we could have spent a fortune alone. The teachers at the schools have been great about pitching in. I think we have cleaned out every make-up drawer in town. If there was a spare lipstick or blush in town, we've got it."

While the challenges to recreate the classic have been plentiful, Kindall said, "It has been such a beautiful effort. This show exemplifies the cooperative effort it takes. We even had parents step up and fix lunch for 100 kids, so the support has been unbelievable."

The cast was selected and rehearsals began the second week of school. Students have given up every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday to practice.

"We have a cast and crew of 100 and a dog," Kindall said. "We have 30 munchkins, and 23 of those are middle school and elementary school students. The cast goes all the way from kindergarten to 18. Considering the size of the cast, crew pit orchestra and a dog, over 150 costumes, and an uncountable number of set pieces and props, more stuff flying in and out than we've had in any production, and our first time for using computer-generated special effects, things are going great."

As in the original production, a number of students are playing multiple parts.

"We have some students making six costume changes," she said. "First they're a tree, then a poppy, then an Osian, then a jitterbug, then back to a poppy ... . You get the idea. It has definitely been a challenge."

Kindall said she believes the public will be pleased with the product of all the work.

"We're so excited to have a pit orchestra again," she said. "We've not had a pit orchestra for some time, but thanks to the new high school orchestra teacher, Mrs. Becky Grotts, and the new band teacher, Mr. Seth Roach, they have helped us put together an excellent pit orchestra. It is exciting again to use all the fine arts in a performance and give them another place to showcase their talents."

The orchestra, directed by Jim Kindall, will play the exact same musical scores from the original movie, she said.

Dorothy Gale will be played by Allison Brewer, Aunt Em by Shelby Cruz, Uncle Henry by Tyler Keal, Zeke by Jon Lenati, Hickory by Justyn McWilliams and Hunk by Nick Palmer.

Morgan Taylor has been cast as Miss Alimira Gultch, the Wicked Witch of the North, and Haley Dhooghe as Glinda, the Good Witch of the North.

Professor Chester Marvel, the Wizard of Oz, is played by Adam Small. The Scarecrow is played by Austin Clift, the Tin Woodsman by Charles Gross and the Cowardly Lion by Michael Walker.

And Toto, is played by Lola, owned by Doug and Vicky Rike.

Performances are scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 9 and 10 at the Parsons Municipal Auditorium. Tickets are $3 for adults and $2 for students.

"It's the cheapest show in town," Kindall said.