The Wizard of Oz overview – enjoyable Munchkin model with a walk-on-water Dorothy | Stage

Who wants Esperanto when you would be talking Munchkin? In Daniel Bye’s adaptation of the L Frank Baum story, the colorful creatures converse a Latinate amalgam of languages that’s nearly – however not fairly – understandable. It is as humorous for us as it’s irritating for Hope Yolanda’s intrepid Dorothy who, as an orphaned Lancaster teenager, is already feeling misunderstood.

Shame we don’t see extra of them as we make our technique to phases round Williamson Park, the Ashton Memorial serving as a suitably grandiose dwelling for Matthew Ganley’s Wizard, however they do go away us with a Munchkin translation of “follow the yellow brick road” to sing en route. The rating by Bay Bryan and Claire O’Connor sparkles with vocal harmonies and fairly tunes, momentarily making us overlook the evergreen songs from the film.

With the wit of Bye’s script and the power of Elvi Piper’s staging, the manufacturing is a step up from latest promenades across the park. Pitfalls stay – singing to backing tracks, an excessive amount of ready round and an pointless interval – however Yolonda, together with her Scarecrow (Tori Burgess), Tin Man (Gareth Cassidy) and Cowardly Lion (Helen Longworth), retains us rooting for her as she counters the sleepy spells of the Wicked Witch (Lisa Howard) and exchanges her pink sneakers for a pair of silvery wellies that, magically, allow her to stroll on water.

Ostensibly, Dorothy is on a quest to search out her canine – and, sure, Toto makes a grand entrance – however her deeper purpose, armoured with braveness, brains and coronary heart, is to be taught the facility of affection. It is that energy that turns the witch into nothing however a sharp pink hat effervescent up from the lake and provides Dorothy the capability to get up from her reverie, at peace together with her adoptive household and prepared, like us, for dwelling.