Wizard of Oz a True Team Effort

By Azamaya A and Anabella V

After months of hard work and lengthy rehearsals, the Wizard of Oz has hit the stage. The Wizard of Oz is a worldwide known story–the 1939 movie being a significant part of cinema history.

The musical was announced as MRHS’s winter performance during early October. Since then, anticipation grew steadily, especially within the cast members of the show. River S, a sophomore, performing as the Scarecrow, shared her experience of growing and understanding her character for these past few months, as well as overcoming performance anxieties: “I have a lot of anxiety around singing. I’m definitely more confident in singing onstage now than I was a few months ago but I’m still building up my confidence!” A common anxiety stage performers face is the anxiety revolving around messing up or making a mistake in front of a huge crowd. River explains, “I usually overcome my anxieties about theater by thinking of the worst performance I’ve ever seen, and then I realize I can't remember any bad performances because I don’t care that much about other peoples mistakes so there’s no way anyone is paying attention to my mistakes!”

The Scarecrow is represented as a “brainless”, side-kick, supportive-type character. When asked if she resonates or feels connected to her character in any way, River replies, “The Scarecrow is very kind and caring and a little goofy and I really hope I'm kind and goofy! But I really hope I'm not an idiot like The Scarecrow.”

Juxtaposing The Scarecrow, a very innocent and honest person (or artifact) of a character to the Wicked Witch is a clear distinction. Blyss H, a sophomore, played the Wicked Witch, who isn’t nearly as wicked as the Witch is represented. The Wicked Witch is a complex character, no matter the film she’s represented in. Whether it be The Wizard of Oz, Wicked, Oz The Great and Powerful, Return to Oz, or The Wiz. Blyss stresses how she found it difficult to connect to her character and bring the Witch to life. Although a struggle to connect to her, Blyss explains that she was able to find ways to relate with her: “I resonate with the Wicked Witch a lot after seeing Wicked. I got to really see the character's motivation and why she was so determined to do what she sets out to do. Her anger and overall demeanor were all explained and I got to channel her emotions and connect with her character a lot more after seeing what she went through.” Her favorite part of rehearsal is expanding her range of acting as well as being able to bond with the whole crew.

Alongside the main cast members are important, there are ensemble characters  who are still a part of the cast but they play many roles. Although they might not be a part of the main characters they are still faced with some of the same struggles including adapting fast to quick changes, learning more than one part, and remembering all the lines. The ensemble provides a huge amount of support to the musical production by being the background vocalist, dancers, and supporting the lead actors by helping for a full group of performers. 

Sophomore student Ava A. was a part of the cast as an ensemble player; she played  a Munchkin as a Barrister, Crow, Snow Angel, Emerald City Dancer and Jitterbug. While being a part of the ensemble group there can be personal struggles that come with the role: “My biggest challenge during this show is most likely remembering each dance number I am in, I usually overcome this by doing extra practice or running it through in my head or another castmate in the number.” 

When people get told they are a part of the cast but as an ensemble character it can be scary because of the stereotypes around them not being good enough but that's completely wrong. Ava A explains how the stereotypes are scary but she quickly realised that they were wrong: “Stereotypes towards ensemble members that aren't true are typically things such as "They aren't good singers or actors or dancers". When the majority of the time that isn't true. People get roles because the directors think that those roles will fit them best and can be handled best by those chosen, and getting ensemble isn't an insult either. There are so many things that go into being an ensemble. “ 

Ensemble is just as important to the musical as the main characters because without them the musical wouldn't be as interesting without them. They make the play seem more lively almost as if the play was real life. The ensemble cast members deserve just as much credit for the production as the main characters. Everyone who plays a part in the play, whether that's the cast, crew and even the people who just provide snacks deserve all the credit they can get for playing their part.

For now, the cast, crew, and directors have a brief moment of rest before the Spring play rolls around in a few weeks.