The Wizard of Oz

[DramaDork925]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:44pm

Is the Wizard of Oz different on stage than in the movie? Are there more songs or different plot elements or is it exactly the same?

[boxers7]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:46pm

Depends. I know there are two versions out there. One is the movie version and then there's another closer to the book. I'm sure there's someone more knowledgeble (sp?) then me though :)

[JakeBraith]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:46pm

I think it depends on the version. I have seen a version fairly close to the movie and another very different. The most noticable differences are the addition of one number, "The Jitterbug" (which was cut from the movie) and more witches.

[DramaDork925]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:50pm

I think it's the movie version.


Who sings The Jitterbug?

Updated On: 12/21/05 at 07:50 PM

[jv92]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:52pm

Sorry to bring us slightly off topic...
I've always wished a less elaborate, more intate version of "Wizard of Oz" to open. Maybe Off-Broadway. My idea is to have 4 men and 3 women performing a version of the story that is very metiphorical, simple and conceptual. Weird, huh? Yeah I guess so. I guess spectacle makes Oz really stand out.
Updated On: 12/21/05 at 07:52 PM

[JakeBraith]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:55pm

dorothy and the trio i think sing jitterbug but I could be wrong

[JakeBraith]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:55pm

dorothy and the trio i think sing jitterbug but I could be wrong

[JakeBraith]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:55pm

dorothy and the trio i think sing jitterbug but I could be wrong

[JakeBraith]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 7:55pm

dorothy and the trio i think sing jitterbug but I could be wrong

[Piazzaslight]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 8:37pm

Wow... quarter post... That's new.

I eas in this last summer. In the show, you find out more on the history of Oz itself, and of course you get "The Jitterbug."

Updated On: 12/21/05 at 08:37 PM

[Stater2002]

Posted: 12/21/05 at 11:51pm

I was in a production way back, and from what I remember Dorothy sings "The Jitterbug, " but the trio is in it as well. In my production it was a company number, and everyone danced in it.

[Shay Jericho]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 12:45am

A production I was in a long time ago had a specific lead dancer play the Jitterbug. It was, as the name implies, a big dance number. It doesn't add a whole lot; it's supposed to be sort of scary, though, and it comes just prior to the monkeys coming and taking Dorothy away.

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 3:42am

I was in a version of The Wizard of Oz a few years ago that was very, very like the movie, except for the inclusion of The Jitterbug (sung by Dorothy and the trio, and eventually a big chorus/dance number), and the reprise of Over the Rainbow. There's also an intro to Over the Ranbow that starts out, "When all the clouds darken up the skyway / There's a rainbow highway to be found..." Dorothy doesn't fall into a pigstye, I can't remember what exactly happens instead. Glinda (my part in that production) has a solo during the Optimistic Voices song during the poppy scene ("You're out of the woods, you're out of the dark, you're out of the night...") before the chorus kicks in. I think that there was more to the Tinman's song than made it into the movie.

But other than those minor changes, that version really is straight out of the movie. There are other ones though, so I guess it depends on which one you're doing.

[rockfenris2005]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 3:51am

This sounds like a production I saw some years ago. The Scarecrow, Tinman and Lion have intro's to their songs (and the crows, in the Scarecrow scene, participate). Yes, Glinda sang Optimistic Voices as they were headed to the gates. Merry Old Land of Oz had an extended intro at the start where the gateman guided them in and talked about stuff (LOL: my memory's shocking)

This is the production from the Royal Shakespeare Company, which was done in the 80s (and is very faithful to the original movie). There's another version, which I call "the bastard" which is very weird, and has a new song named Evening Star

It's not very pleasant at all

P.S.

I would love to see a production of Oz in which Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon were the songs performed in the story. That would be hysterical: Dorothy singing Time, the Munchkins on Money, the Witch or the Wizard on Brain Damage.

Or I'd like to see a gothic, horror version of Oz or Alice in Wonderland

[MusicAndPassion]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 6:43am

I did the verison closer to the book, by the Royal Shakspeare Company, I believe.

Dorothy and the Trio do sing The Jitterbug (I was Scarecrow) and there are Jitterbugs who sing back up and attack them. They prepare the four by dancing them to a death or to a very tired stage, so the flying monkeys can easily take 'em away.


I also did the movie verison, as Tin Man, which is word for word the movie.

I liked the RSC version a lot better.

[rockfenris2005]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 12:26am

I didn't think your latter one (word-for-word) was legal.
How would you have done that?

Legally, there is only the RSC and the "bastard version" on offer. I wasn't aware of any others

Updated On: 12/24/05 at 12:26 AM

[Footlooser]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 12:40am

The "Bastard" version is refered to as the Muny version. PLEASE stay away from this one at all costs. In the end the wizard is gonna take Dorothy back to Kansas in an atomic Rocket Ship. No Joke, I was haveing a really bad week when I read the script looking for a show to do and I just burst into tears at that. I had a nervouse break down that was triggered by "The Wizard of Oz", how many people can say that.

[inlovewithjerryherman]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 12:44am

The RSC version, which I was in, is the movie practically word-for-word with the addition of a few cameo parts here and there (crows during "If I Only Had a Brain", trees during "If I Only Had a Heart), a couple new solos (Glinda sings "Optimistic Voices" and there are new vocal parts in that song for the men), and "The Jitterbug" is added in the same place it was cut from the movie (right before Dorothy is snatched by the monkeys). In our version, Dorothy sang the Jitterbug, along with her trio of friends and the ensemble. I've seen versions where the Wicked Witch sings it, though.

In the MUNY version, it doesn't follow the move step-by-step. Liberties are taken to make it more adaptable to the stage (let's face it, The Wizard of Oz is a very technically demanding show) "The Jitterbug" is added, but in a different place (I don't know who sings it), and Dorothy sings a second song called "Evening Star". It's kinda weird for those familiar with the movie.

The RSC version is strongly preferred, though it's quite the show to put on. Big EVERYTHING in The Wizard of Oz.

Hope this helps.

[rockfenris2005]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 3:26am

That was (basically) repeating everything I just said. I've heard of problems on this board where posts don't show up (I was talking about it with another member on MSN one night)

Must be the case here

[Kristen_0509]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 11:27am

There arn't any new songs in the stage version and I can't really think of any big differences.

[kyle.]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 4:21pm

Does anyone know if the MUNY is available to read online?

If anyone has it I would be more than willing to pay you to copy, shipping, and labor costs to send it to me. I've been an OZ freak since the age of 5 and I have been dying to read this version for a long time.

If you could help me out please PM me! I would make it worth your while, somehow. :)

Posted: 12/24/05 at 4:30pm

Gosh...I LOVED the Wizard of Oz when I was a little kid. My parents thought it was strange that I liked it so much, but I guess it's fitting that the first thing I fell in love with was a musical. Anyways, I think you can see clips "The Jitterbug" sequence that was cut from the movie version in the Collector's Edition DVD set.

~Rosalynn

Posted: 12/24/05 at 10:47pm

It is the same well to me I haven't seen it in a long time 2-3 years ago! I don't know if they changed stuff or not