[NEohioPAL] Review of "The Wizard of Oz" on tour

[Bob Abelman via NEohioPAL]

Touring ‘Wizard of Oz’ proves that there’s no place like homage



Bob Abelman

Cleveland Jewish News, The News Herald, The Morning Journal

Member, International Association of Theatre Critics





The yellow brick road has become sacred ground since first appearing on the silver screen in 1939.  This is due to MGM’s brilliant adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s novel, Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg’s Oscar-winning score, and the annual Thanksgiving Day broadcasts on network TV since the 1950s.



So it is a risky enterprise indeed to stage a new adaptation of “The Wizard of Oz” and take it on the road.  With a work so very familiar and so very much revered, new productions must walk that fine line between paying homage and providing innovation.  



The new national tour, which is getting its launch at Playhouse Square, walks that line to perfection.  This is a delightful show that infuses all the film’s classic components with very entertaining theatricality.  



Only it is not new.



For more of this review, go to www.clevelandjewishnews.com/columnists/.  
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