How do you produce a fresh take on “The Wizard of Oz?”
For over 80 years, the story has been inextricably bound to Judy Garland, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” and (to a slightly lesser extent) the revisionist musical “Wicked” and the book upon which it was based.
With these mental associations so automatic to audiences, any new adaptation would surely pale by comparison…right?
Wrong.
The Watermill Theatre’s production (adapted by Marietta Kirkbride) starts as it means to go on by transplanting Dot (Annabel Marlow, this story’s version of Dorothy) into modern-day England. Both the setting and struggles of Dot and her Aunt Em (Angela Caesar) feel very contemporary, instantly giving the story and characters a relatability that is arguably lacking from previous iterations – for who amongst us doesn’t occasionally yearn for an escape from the horrors of the 21st Century?
Dot gets her wish on the storm-lash urban streets when she’s blown into Oz. More deviations from the 1939 film quickly follow when she’s greeted by the Munchkins – rendered here as fantastical puppets that are very evocative of Jim Henson’s legendary creations – and Glenda (Signe Larson, delivering an iconic take on the role).
The story progresses largely in tune with its source material and subsequent screen adaptation, but a series of skilful choices allow it to maintain its own grounded identify. In particular Dot’s small band of companions (Sally Cheng as Scarrow, Chris Coxon as Tinman and James Gulliford as Lionel) are no longer anthropomorphic creatures – instead they’re humans, struggling (as we all do) to find their courage, to feel smart, and to feel love after feeling so many cruel hurts.
These changes do a wonderful job of making the story accessible and engaging to new audiences, while simultaneously offering a new and surprising take for those with fond memories of the previous iterations.
Bringing a convincing fantasy world to life on the screen was a tall order in 1939, and is an even taller order on a stage – there’s no recourse to CGI, budgets are much smaller, and you have a very small space to work with.
Yet the technical crew behind this production have done wonderful things here, creating a setting that is very redolent of Jim Henson’s “Fraggle Rock” (so cruelly overlooked in favour of the far inferior Muppet Show…but that’s another story) – filled a level of magic, whimsy, attention to detail and love that was arguably missing from the comparatively cold studio set of MGM’s film.
Oh, and if you’re wondering whether “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” figures in this production? It doesn’t – and the songs which replace it are, if possible, even better.
A perfect winter’s evening out for these dark and troubled times, bringing a heart-warming and eternally relevant story vividly to life – “The Wizard of Oz” runs at The Watermill Theatre from the 17th November – 31st December. Tickets are available from https://www.watermill.org.uk.
