I. AMERICAN STORYTELLER

L. (Lyman) Frank Baum was born in Chittenango, New York in 1856. His family was privileged, his father having found fortune in the oil business. And though Baum's home life was happy and stable, he suffered health problems from a young age that left him isolated from the games, activities and friendships of other children his age. However, this solitude may have nurtured his creativity and laid storytelling foundations that would later evolve into his own wondrous tales.

As a boy, Frank Baum read "voraciously," mostly fairytales and stories by British authors such as Dickens (McGovern 3). These interests would ultimately foster his own talents that would lead to his creation of a modern American fairytale of the fantasy land of Oz.

Baum's literary career began when he was fourteen. He and his brother began publishing a small newspaper, The Rose Lawn Home Journal.

His interest in the theatre also began when he was young (his father owned several theatres) and Baum eventually studied acting. He performed with several companies and also wrote plays. Eventually he formed his own troupe and toured the eastern states, performing his own work.

In the 1880's the Baum family fortune began to diminish. A family man by this time, Frank Baum gave up the theatre to settle with his wife and sons in Aberdeen, in the Dakota Territory. The American West offered both challenges and rewards for this eastern family. Baum would falter in business, but his literary interests were re-kindled when he began editing the Aberdeen Saturday Pioneer. And the landscape and history would provide inspiration for fascinating and entertaining stories with which he'd amuse his own family, as well as many of the children of Aberdeen.

In 1891 the Baums moved to Chicago. Frank Baum's job as a salesman would keep him on the road, but while travelling he would write. And when at home he would entertain with stories. His "natural gift" for storytelling (McGovern 7) became obvious to others and Baum was encouraged to record his work and seek a publisher. His first children's book, Mother Goose in Prose, was published in 1897.

By the Candelabra's Glare: Some Verse (1897) marked his first collaboration with William Wallace Denslow who was one of the countries finest illustrators. In 1900, Baum published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The book met with enormous success, partly because of Denslow's colourful and imaginative illustrations. As well, the market for children's literature in America at the turn of the century was great (Rahn 6). And Baum had an original tale that was a hit. Mark Evan Swartz, in his stage history of Baum's work Oz Before the Rainbow, writes, "What Baum did was to create the first truly American fairyland, using language and imagery that would be familiar to the ordinary American child" (10).

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was a best seller among children's literature at the turn of the century and received several printings. Baum experienced additional success with the first stage adaptation in 1902.

He responded to readers' demands for more stories about the magical land of Oz and in his lifetime, twelve more Oz books were published, with two more printed after his death in 1919. Baum wrote and published other books in addition to his Oz stories, and continued to enjoy success in the theatre with the characters and tales of Oz that he had created. As well, he established the Oz Film Manufacturing Company and produced three children's films about Oz.

After his death, rights were granted to children's writer Ruth Plumly Thompson, to continue the Oz chronicle. In all, more than forty Oz books have appeared. The most enduring, though, is that first story, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which laid the groundwork for successful stage and screen adaptations to follow.
 

II. STAGE HISTORY

Baum's 1902 stage production of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz began as a collaboration with composer Paul Tietjens. Baum and Tietjens turned to comic opera (made popular in the nineteenth century by such artists as Gilbert & Sullivan) as the style on which to base their musical version of the story. As the work neared its Chicago premiere, director Julian Mitchell became involved, along with a number of librettists and lyricists. The musical opened at Chicago's Grand Opera House in June, 1902. It's title was shortened to The Wizard of Oz and the finished product "was only peripherally related to Baum's 1900 fairytale" (Swartz 38) and somewhat removed from the musical version that he and Tietjens had intended.

The production was a huge success and played for more than one hundred performances, achieving enormous popularity with children and families and was noted for its "opulence and visual splendour" (67). The cast was huge.

A tour of the production through the American midwest and parts of Canada began that September, ending with a two week return engagement in Chicago. The play opened in New York in January 1903, where it played until October, becoming the "longest running musical of the season" (104). A cross country tour would begin after the New York run, with a second company added. Swartz writes, "Over the next several years, as vast numbers of people across the country had an opportunity to attend the play, it would become further ingrained in the public consciousness" (132). This musical version had undergone notable changes from Baum's original to suit the demands of the stage and to appeal to audiences of the period. Nevertheless, it was a sound work, assures Swartz:

"As an institution, [the musical] would stand on its own terms and would be appreciated and loved in its own right, side by side with its source, Baum's original novel. From this point, in fact, both Wizard of Oz narratives would serve as inspiration for future stage and screen adaptations."

Baum's The Wizard of Oz musical would continue to tour the U.S. and parts of Canada throughout the early 1900's.

As film began to be explored in the early part of the century, Baum's story attracted the interest of pioneering filmmakers. The first, based on the story of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, was made by Baum himself. All, however, would basically "fade into comparative obscurity with the 1939 release of MGM's technicolour motion picture" (Fricke 63). This film classic would hereon define the public's understanding and interpretation of Baum's fantastic tale.

The motion picture would influence stage adaptations to follow and in 1942, MGM obliged the use of the songs by Harold Arlen and E. Y. Harburg for a musical featuring plot elements, but not dialogue, borrowed from the film.

As the fiftieth anniversary of the picture approached, John Kane's script adaptation of the motion picture screenplay, featuring the songs of Arlen and Harburg with background music by Herbert Stothart, was produced by London's Royal Shakespeare Company in 1987. The magic created by the characters, story and music on screen would have a phenomenal effect played live on stage. Successful productions followed in U.S. and Canadian centres, and toured these countries as well.

Globe Theatre is pleased to present the Royal Shakespeare Company's adaptation of the film classic, adding our own unique Globe touches that will ultimately "speak to" and entertain local audiences.
 

III. THE PRODUCTION

The script of Globe's production of The Wizard of Oz follows closely to the movie screenplay. Audiences will be familiar with the dialogue, with scenes and characters, and, of course, the delightful and much loved tunes of Harold Arlen & E. Y. Harburg, made famous by the motion picture.

At the same time, Globe Theatre's presentation is wonderfully unique. The Wizard of Oz has a directorial team: Artistic Director Ruth Smillie who, in her three years at Globe, has engineered a number of large scale, spectacular productions on Globe's 20' x 20' stage and in-the-round theatre space; and Michael Kennard, director of Globe's productions A Christmas Carol and The Hobbit™, who has brought the "art of clown" to Globe audiences. Clowning will be a feature of The Wizard of Oz, as well.

The play features a cast of 8 professional actors and two student apprentices from the University of Regina. In the role of Dorothy is Saskatchewan Métis artist Andrea Menard. Live music will be provided by musical director Ya-Wen Wang, who is a master of the synthesizer, creating full orchestral sound with a single electronic instrument.

Students of all ages will enjoy the fabulous elements of this production: the familiar and lovable characters, the outstanding performances, as well as the wondrous spectacle and effects created by the team of directors, designers and technicians.

School matinees have sold out (call the box office, 525-6400, to add your school's name to the waiting list); however, there are tickets available for regular performances. The schedule is as follows:

Preview performances, November 22-24 (evening) and November 25^th (matinee) are available at rates of $22.00 (Regular), $18.00 (Senior) and $11.99 (Student).

November 28^th to December 23^rd - regular performances, Tuesday thru Sunday. Tickets are $25.00 (Regular), $21.00 (Senior) and $11.99 (Student).

The Wizard of Oz is approximately two hours in length. There will be one intermission.

We encourage you to share your responses to the production. Please e-mail us your feedback: onlive@globetheatrelive.com.
 

IV. IDEAS AND DISCUSSION
 

• Students who are familiar with the motion picture may enjoy comparing and discussing the differences and similarities between the film and Globe's production.

 

Students familiar with Baum's original story The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and perhaps the collection of Oz books will notice even greater differences between the original and this stage version.
 

What are some of the most noticeable differences? What events or situations are altered or eliminated in the play? What challenges might a writer face when attempting to adapt a book or an epic story for the stage?
 

• Both the book and the film contain a multitude of characters and scenes, and some extremely complex scenery. Globe's limited space and its in-the-round stage require creative solutions to large cast and scenery requirements.

 

• Everyone has an Oz story . . .

 

What expectations do these images create before seeing the production? What affect did the production have on your original interpretation of the story?
 

• The opening moments of the 1939 motion picture were filmed in black and white, to "emphasize the grey nature of the [Kansas] landscape and Dorothy's daily life" (Rahn 112). A striking contrast would occur when Dorothy arrives in the brilliant Technicolor land of Oz with it's colourful characters and brilliant surroundings. How does Globe's production accommodate the shifting worlds and the multiple and complex scenes of Dorothy's journey?

• Students in elementary grades might be encouraged to sketch their favorite scenes and characters. We encourage them to send their sketches of Dorothy and Toto, the Wizard, the Wicked Witch of the West, and the other wonderful characters to the cast, crew and staff of Globe Theatre (1801 Scarth St, Regina, SK S4P 2G9). We'll try to display as many as we can.

• The Wizard of Oz is classed as a modern American fairy tale. What are some of the characteristics of the story that resemble traditional familiar fairy tales? What are some of the major differences?

 

The Wizard of Oz is traditional in its quest-like structure in which a hero and company journey in search of "something virtually unobtainable, yet desirable . . . and after a long and hazardous journey, find what they are seeking." However, the story is untraditional in featuring a central female figure - a bold, wise and independent young girl, who leads the band of adventurers. Today, such a story may not be unusual, but would this have been the case in 1900 when the story first appeared? Can you list other quest stories with a female protagonist?
 

• Teachers can find more Oz activities online:

www.teachwithmovies.org/guides/wizard-of-oz.html
 
 

V. SOURCES AND INFORMATION
 

Fricke, John. 100 Years of Oz. New York: Steward, Tabori and Chang, 1999.
 

McGovern, Linda. "The Man Behind the Curtain: L. Frank Baum and The Wizard of Oz."

www.literarytraveler.com/spring/west/baum.htm.
 

Rahn, Suzanne. The Wizard of Oz: Shaping an Imaginary World. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1998.
 

Swartz, Mark Evan. Oz Before The Rainbow: L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz on Stage and Screen to 1939. Baltimore & London: John Hopkins UP, 2000.
 

• •Talkback Tuesdays: an opportunity for students to attend a production and enjoy a post-show opportunity to meet the actors and artists, and discuss the show. Talkback Tuesdays are sponsored by Enbridge.

 

karenj@globetheatrelive.com