Capital Repertory Theatre visits the land of Oz with ‘The Wizard of Oz’ in Albany

ALBANY – The latest production to open at Capital Repertory Theatre will have audience members clicking their heels three times and following a yellow brick road with some familiar — and not-so-familiar — characters.

With previews to start Friday, this version of “The Wizard of Oz” brings out some characters and scenes not featured in the classic film, including a “Jitterbug” number sung by the Witched Witch of the West (played by Katie Fay Francis), as well as the monkey Nikko, and a few other creatures that get hardly any screentime.

It features a large and fairly diverse cast, including Adia Bell as the young Dorothy Gale, Barbara Howard as Glinda and Auntie Em, Kevin McGuire as Professor Marvel, the Wizard of Oz and the Mayor of Munchkin Land, Taylor Hilt Mitchell as Hunk and Scarecrow and Kyle Garvin as Zeke and the Cowardly Lion.

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Bell, an Arizona native who has spent the last few years living in Chicago, makes her Capital Repertory debut in the production.

“She has a great depth of experience but she brings this youthful energy to Dorothy that is really wonderful,” said Producing Artistic Director Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill.

The 25-year-old’s version of the glittering-shoed character leans into the empowering message that Dorothy is searching for things she already possesses.

“I’m bringing a lot of myself to Dorothy. She has such an interesting arc because she starts the play so lost and feeling so alone, like no one really understands her and she’s not in the right place. She goes on this very long journey but in the end, she finds out that whatever she was looking for is inside her already.” Bell said, adding, “It’s a lot of fun to play this girl who finds out that she is what she needs. It’s so empowering, especially because ‘The Wizard of Oz’ seems so classic and maybe people could think that it’s outdated, but it’s not because these are themes that are very real and apply very much now.”

Her furry companion, Toto, is not just a prop but a tiny pup who, when not on stage, goes by the name Halo. Owned by Gabi Bazinet, the pup landed the role thanks to her penchant for jumping into baskets.

“This will be Halo’s premiere on our stage and we do not know how Halo will respond to having 300 people in the audience,” Mancinelli-Cahill said.

When it comes to the costumes, Mancinelli-Cahill said they’ve honored the style of those seen in the film while updating and bringing the styles into the 21st century.

“The costumes are very fun. Our ensemble goes from playing the cyclone, to playing munchkins to playing, the people of Oz, the jitterbugs. They just keep changing costumes backstage and the costumes are delightfully colorful and imaginative,” Mancinelli-Cahill said.

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At least that’s true of the costumes in Oz. Those in Kansas, where the production starts out, are quite the opposite.

“Those costumes in that world and those landscapes are very monochromatic and then [Dorothy] goes over the rainbow, in the movie, it became brilliant technicolor. So that has to happen in a theatre production. So the whole look of the place goes from vast vistas of this monochromatic landscape, which has its own majesty, frankly. But then it goes into Oz, which is imaginative and colorful, that has to be rendered in the costuming and of course, in the set. And our set is quite beautiful.”

The theater company planned to present the show in 2020 as a way to celebrate its new, larger space on North Pearl Street. That plan was derailed by the coronavirus, which remains a concern.

“To do a big show in the world as we know it right now is still a big risk but we decided that we would take it and it is a joyful story. That is really part of the reason that we’re doing it,” Mancinelli-Cahill said.

Second is the timely theme of human connection running through the show.

“It’s more intensified because of COVID,” Mancinelli-Cahill said. “All the cast members believe that this play has meaning after what we’ve been through in such isolation. Every one of them that I speak with [has said] this strikes them so much clearer after being isolated.”

The show is based on the book by L. Frank Baum, adapted by John Kane with music and lyrics by Harold Arlen and E.Y.Harburg.

Previews are set to run from Friday-Sunday, with opening night on Tuesday. Performances will continue through Saturday, Dec. 24. Show times are Nov. 18 -Dec. 18: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday; 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday with matinees 3 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday and 2 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30. Performances set for Dec. 20-24 have earlier curtain times: Tuesday-Friday 7 p.m.; with a matinee at noon on Dec. 24.

“The Wizard of Oz”

WHEN: Select days starting Friday and running through Christmas Eve
WHERE: Capital Repertory Theatre
TICKETS: $27-$62.
MORE INFO: capitalrep.org

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