Over The Rainbow – The Wizard Of Oz – London Musical
Posts tagged L. FRANK BAUM
Wizard of Oz Prequel – Oz The Great And Powerful
Jul 28th
James Franco will play the young wizard in Oz The Great and Powerful, a feature film from Walt Disney Pictures that began production on July 25th 2011, directed by Sam Raimi.
Oz The Great and Powerful is a prequel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) by L. Frank Baum, with a script co-written by David Lindsay-Abaire and Mitchell Kapner. The story is told from the point of view of the Wizard, telling how the Wizard arrived in Oz and how he became the ruler.
The all-star cast of the film includes Zach Braff as Franco’s assistant, Mila Kunis as the witch Theodora, Rachel Weisz as Kunis’ sister Evanora and Michelle Williams as Glinda the Good Witch. The film is due to be released through Disney Studios Motion Pictures on March 8th, 2013.
When Oscar Diggs, a small-time circus magician is blown off course from Kansas to the land of Oz, he thinks he has made the big time. Then he meets three witches who don’t think he is the great wizard everyone has been expecting. Finding out who is good and who is bad helps Oscar Diggs become the great and powerful Wizard of Oz
Michael Crawford is The Wizard of Oz
Sep 24th
It’s been announced that Michael Crawford will play the Wizard in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s production of The Wizard of Oz in London next year, 2011.
“I’ve been fortunate working with Andrew before so I thought there was no harm in trying again. We’re all very excited about the show”
Michael Crawford – Wizard of Oz
Michael Crawford has a long association with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s productions, having created the role of the Phantom in The Phantom Of The Opera, the most successful musical ever. He’s also well known to older readers as Frank Spencer from last century’s hit TV sit-com “Some Mothers Do ‘Ave Em”. Michael Crawford also originated the role of Count Fosco in ALW’s “The Woman in White”.
The Wizard is perhaps a minor male role in the film version of The Wizard of Oz alongside those of the Tin Man, the Lion and the Scarecrow when compared with the leading role of Dorothy which will of course be occupied by our own Danielle Hope and once a week by Sophie Evans. In the the London stage musical version of The Wizard of Oz however, it will have to be seen how much the role of the Wizard is adapted to make the most of Michael Crawford’s considerable talents.
I’ll play one of the hopefully supportive and important sidekicks, who is also important to the story. I think that there are six roles all on the side of being equal in terms of performance – the two Witches, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, the Tin Man and of course the Wizard. They’re all important characters to support the story
On the story:
It’s a slightly different interpretation of the story and we are sort of developing our own character of the Wizard. He’s quite a craft character. He was played by Frank Morgan very successfully in the film so I’ve got a lot to live up to. I start rehearsals in December when I’ll find out what I look like with the make-up and the costumes. It’s not like a film, where you’ve got time to change, so you’ve got to use a little more imagination so that characters can evolve from one to another very quickly and so deceive the audience.
Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber has returned to L Frank Baum’s novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, as source material and inspiration for his new interpretation, and the music features Harold Arlen’s original score from the film, including Over The Rainbow and Follow the Yellow Brick Road, plus several new songs composed together with Sir Tim Rice, the old winning partnership.
I’ve seen some lyrics that Tim has written for me and they are so complementary to Harold Arlen’s stuff and inkeeping with the piece that they don’t stand out as being from a different period
said Michael Crawford.
Here’s the classic Michael Crawford in his award winning role as the Phantom of The Opera with Sarah Brightman
The Wizard of Oz – in Cardiff
Jun 1st
The Wizard of Oz is such a classic musical for any theatre company to put on that is stands to reason there will be a production of some sort current at almost any time of year.
From June 1st Wales’ leading amateur theatre company, Orbit, celebrates its 41st year with the opening night of a week-long run of its own version of The Wizard of Oz at the New Theatre in Cardiff.
Dorothy is sung by Nicola Caldwell and the Wales Online reporter Dave Owens spoke to her about the role:
Nicola Caldwell:
I’m 22 years old, I come from Penarth and I’ve just qualified from university as a primary school teacher.
Probably the biggest role I’ve done is Les Miserables in London’s West End for the 20th anniversary, which was fantastic. They chose 3,000 kids under 18 to apply, I was 17 at the time, and had done a school edition of the show. Out of the 3,000 who auditioned and sent tapes off, 35 got in. And I was one of the lucky ones!It’s every little girl’s dream, to play Dorothy, isn’t it, to wear the red ruby slippers and sing Over The Rainbow? It’s such an honour. It’s the archetypal dream role.
On the runner-up, Welsh girl Sophie Evans, and the winner, Danielle Hope?
Nicola:
Actually I liked the girl who finished third, Lauren Samuels. She was my favourite. She was really bubbly and very magnanimous and gracious when she went out.
The Wizard of Oz is showing at the New Theatre in Cardiff from 1st 5th June
Wizard of Oz – Orbit Theatre Company
By L. FRANK BAUM
With Music and Lyrics of the MGM motion picture score
by HAROLD ARLEN and E.Y. HARBURG
Background Music by HERBERT STOTHART
Book Adaptation by JOHN KANE from the motion picture screenplay
Tuesday 1st to Saturday 5th June 2010
New Theatre
Park Place
Cardiff
Book Online via The New Theatre, Cardiff
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