Monday, July 31, 2006
Oz Trading Cards
So many people have been talking about the Oz trading cards in the yahoo groups so much i decided to make a glossary of trading card terms I found on a non-sports trading card site that apply to Wizard of Oz trading cards.
Autograph Card – card hand-signed by an actor, crew member, or production member; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Archive Box – sealed box that contains all cards found in the trading card series (all base cards, chase cards, and autograph/costume/memorabilia/sketch cards)
Base Set – standard set of common cards; normally comes in sets of 72, 81, or 90, but there are the occasional sets that come with fewer or more cards
Binder Exclusive Card – card found only in the trading card binder for that particular series
Box Topper – card found one per box; there are normally 3-4 different box toppers per series that will make up a set
Case Topper – card found one per case; may be an autograph card, costume card, die-cut, or just a special card to be found one per case
Chase Set – set of uncommon to rare cards; normally comes in sets of 6 or 9 and are found in ratio packs (e.g., 1:9 = one chase card found in every 9th pack of cards); typical chase set can be a puzzle set, a foil set, or a sticker set, or may contain images on a theme
Common Card – card easily found; base sets are made of this type of card
Costume Card – card containing cloth material; may come directly from the costume worn by the actor or from the bolts of cloth from which the costumes were made; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Exclusive Promo Card – promo card created exclusively for an event (e.g., San Diego Comic Con) or for a company (e.g., Non-Sport Update)Hobby Box – sealed box containing autograph cards, costume/memorabilia cards, and/or sketch cards; available from distributors
Insert Set – see Chase Set
Master Set – complete set of cards from a series; includes the base set, all chase sets, all autograph/costume/memorabilia/sketch cards, promo cards and the binder
Memorabilia Card – card containing an authenticated piece of a prop (e.g., paper, foam, yarn, etc.) used in the series/movie; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Promo Card – card created by the manufacturer to generate interest in the trading card series; there are normally between 1 and 3 promo cards created per set, but there have been instances where there are more than 3
Prop Card – see Memorabilia Card
Puzzle Set – see Chase Set
Rare Card – card found mainly one per sealed hobby box; autographs, costumes, memorabilia, and sketch cards are made up of this type of card
Sketch Card – card hand-sketched by an artist depicting various characters or scenes from the series/movie; may be in pencil, pen, or may be in color; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Subset – see Chase Set
Ultra-Rare Card – card that is very hard to obtain and may be found only one per x cases (x could be 1, could be 6, depending on the rarity of the card) Most high-end autograph cards are considered ultra-rare, e.g., Judy Garland in an edition of only 8 cards total
Uncommon Card – card found 3-9 per sealed hobby box; chase sets are made up of this type of card
Wax Box – archaic term used today to indicate an unopened sealed box that is in the same condition as when it left the manufacturer; it is archaic because the cards are no longer packaged in wax paper
Autograph Card – card hand-signed by an actor, crew member, or production member; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Archive Box – sealed box that contains all cards found in the trading card series (all base cards, chase cards, and autograph/costume/memorabilia/sketch cards)
Base Set – standard set of common cards; normally comes in sets of 72, 81, or 90, but there are the occasional sets that come with fewer or more cards
Binder Exclusive Card – card found only in the trading card binder for that particular series
Box Topper – card found one per box; there are normally 3-4 different box toppers per series that will make up a set
Case Topper – card found one per case; may be an autograph card, costume card, die-cut, or just a special card to be found one per case
Chase Set – set of uncommon to rare cards; normally comes in sets of 6 or 9 and are found in ratio packs (e.g., 1:9 = one chase card found in every 9th pack of cards); typical chase set can be a puzzle set, a foil set, or a sticker set, or may contain images on a theme
Common Card – card easily found; base sets are made of this type of card
Costume Card – card containing cloth material; may come directly from the costume worn by the actor or from the bolts of cloth from which the costumes were made; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Exclusive Promo Card – promo card created exclusively for an event (e.g., San Diego Comic Con) or for a company (e.g., Non-Sport Update)Hobby Box – sealed box containing autograph cards, costume/memorabilia cards, and/or sketch cards; available from distributors
Insert Set – see Chase Set
Master Set – complete set of cards from a series; includes the base set, all chase sets, all autograph/costume/memorabilia/sketch cards, promo cards and the binder
Memorabilia Card – card containing an authenticated piece of a prop (e.g., paper, foam, yarn, etc.) used in the series/movie; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Promo Card – card created by the manufacturer to generate interest in the trading card series; there are normally between 1 and 3 promo cards created per set, but there have been instances where there are more than 3
Prop Card – see Memorabilia Card
Puzzle Set – see Chase Set
Rare Card – card found mainly one per sealed hobby box; autographs, costumes, memorabilia, and sketch cards are made up of this type of card
Sketch Card – card hand-sketched by an artist depicting various characters or scenes from the series/movie; may be in pencil, pen, or may be in color; autograph, costume, memorabilia, and sketch cards may vary from card to card
Subset – see Chase Set
Ultra-Rare Card – card that is very hard to obtain and may be found only one per x cases (x could be 1, could be 6, depending on the rarity of the card) Most high-end autograph cards are considered ultra-rare, e.g., Judy Garland in an edition of only 8 cards total
Uncommon Card – card found 3-9 per sealed hobby box; chase sets are made up of this type of card
Wax Box – archaic term used today to indicate an unopened sealed box that is in the same condition as when it left the manufacturer; it is archaic because the cards are no longer packaged in wax paper
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Follow the Yellow Brick Road to see the Wizard of Oz in Massachusetts
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/30/06
BY ADAM GORLICKTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AMHERST, Mass.: She started off looking like a clownish crazy woman — her long hair in a wild braid and one eye popped wide open. Her petticoat and baggy skirt were more outlandish than frightening.
That was in 1900, when the Wicked Witch of the West made her debut in "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." But since W.W. Denslow first drew her for the pages of L. Frank Baum's classic children's book, Dorothy's nemesis has changed faces several times.
In 1981, Andy Warhol silkscreened her as Margaret Hamilton, freezing the actress in the green-faced role she played in Hollywood's 1939 production of the story. Four years later, artist Barry Moser turned her into Nancy Reagan, placing the pointy-hatted first lady against a dismal black backdrop.
The original drawings and reinterpretations of the Wicked Witch and other characters from Oz are on display at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in an exhibit that commemorates the 150th anniversary of the births of Baum and Denslow and pays tribute to the story's staying power.
The exhibit traces the story of Baum's book, from the cyclone that whisks Dorothy's Kansas farmhouse to the mystical land of Oz to the young girl's return home thanks to her magical slippers. As the show retells the adventure, it highlights different ways that artists have interpreted the story.
Dorothy — an almost stocky and seemingly stubborn little girl in the 1900 original — softens in the images inspired nearly 30 years later by Judy Garland's portrayal of the character in MGM's 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz."
"Baum's Dorothy was more aggressive and independent," said Michael Patrick Hearn, guest curator of the exhibit and author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz."
"All the power in the story is with women," Hearn said. "The Wizard is ineffectual, and Dorothy's three male friends have faults and weaknesses."
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006607300320
BY ADAM GORLICKTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS
AMHERST, Mass.: She started off looking like a clownish crazy woman — her long hair in a wild braid and one eye popped wide open. Her petticoat and baggy skirt were more outlandish than frightening.
That was in 1900, when the Wicked Witch of the West made her debut in "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." But since W.W. Denslow first drew her for the pages of L. Frank Baum's classic children's book, Dorothy's nemesis has changed faces several times.
In 1981, Andy Warhol silkscreened her as Margaret Hamilton, freezing the actress in the green-faced role she played in Hollywood's 1939 production of the story. Four years later, artist Barry Moser turned her into Nancy Reagan, placing the pointy-hatted first lady against a dismal black backdrop.
The original drawings and reinterpretations of the Wicked Witch and other characters from Oz are on display at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in an exhibit that commemorates the 150th anniversary of the births of Baum and Denslow and pays tribute to the story's staying power.
The exhibit traces the story of Baum's book, from the cyclone that whisks Dorothy's Kansas farmhouse to the mystical land of Oz to the young girl's return home thanks to her magical slippers. As the show retells the adventure, it highlights different ways that artists have interpreted the story.
Dorothy — an almost stocky and seemingly stubborn little girl in the 1900 original — softens in the images inspired nearly 30 years later by Judy Garland's portrayal of the character in MGM's 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz."
"Baum's Dorothy was more aggressive and independent," said Michael Patrick Hearn, guest curator of the exhibit and author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz."
"All the power in the story is with women," Hearn said. "The Wizard is ineffectual, and Dorothy's three male friends have faults and weaknesses."
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006607300320
`Oz' art varies, but not the story
Original and recast `Wizard' illustrations commemorate the 150th anniversary of the births of L. Frank Baum and W.W. Denslow.
By Adam Gorlick, The Associated PressJuly 24, 2006
AMHERST, Mass. — She started off looking like a clownish crazy woman — her long hair in a wild braid and one eye popped wide open. Her petticoat and baggy skirt were more outlandish than frightening.
That was in 1900, when the Wicked Witch of the West made her debut in "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." But since W.W. Denslow first drew her for the pages of L. Frank Baum's classic children's book, Dorothy's nemesis has changed faces several times. In 1981, Andy Warhol silk-screened her as Margaret Hamilton, freezing the actress in the green-faced role she played in Hollywood's 1939 production of the story. Four years later, artist Barry Moser turned her into Nancy Reagan, placing the pointy-hatted first lady against a dismal black backdrop. "I'm playing very close to obvious and corny imagery here," Moser wrote at the time. The original drawings and reinterpretations of the Wicked Witch and other characters from Oz are on display at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in an exhibit that commemorates the 150th anniversary of the births of Baum and Denslow and pays tribute to the story's staying power. The exhibit traces the story of Baum's book, from the cyclone that whisks Dorothy's Kansas farmhouse to the mystical land of Oz to the young girl's return home thanks to her magical slippers. Along the yellow brick road, she and her companions — the tin woodsman, lion and scarecrow — must confront the powerful wicked witch and find their way to the Emerald City, where the omniscient wizard is revealed as a short, bald man with no real power, who hides behind a curtain. As the show retells the adventure, it highlights the different ways artists have interpreted the story. The clean lines of Denslow's Art Nouveau-inspired drawings give way to more elaborate and detailed images in later reworkings of the book. There's Charles Santore's 1991 depiction of Munchkinland, where blond-haired Dorothy is greeted by a crowd of gnome-like characters that look like a band of leprechauns. And as Dorothy and her gang burst into the Emerald City in Santore's version, they're overcome by a world of green where the buildings are based on the works of Antonio Gaudí, a Catalan architect known for his highly stylized designs during the early 1900s. "[Santore] wanted to recognize the most visionary architect who was working at the time Baum was writing his books," said Nick Clark, the museum's founding director. "It shows how these really good artists have a deep sense of history that they're trying to infuse in their own work." And sometimes those artists just want to jazz things up. The tin woodsman, for example, morphs from Denslow's monochrome compilation of metal parts to the multicolored beer cans and garbage scraps that became the character's costume for "The Wiz," a 1975 musical. And Dorothy — an almost stocky and seemingly stubborn little girl in the 1900 original — softens in the images inspired years later by Judy Garland's portrayal of the character in MGM's 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz." Though the movie helped bring new attention to what was already regarded the most popular children's book of the time, some of the Wizard's purists have a few bones to pick with that version of events. For one thing, it slightly softened Baum's feminist message that girls can figure things out for themselves without falling apart when things get tough. "Baum's Dorothy was more aggressive and independent," said Michael Patrick Hearn, the guest curator of the exhibit and author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz" who is writing a biography on Baum. "She doesn't cry all the time like Judy Garland's Dorothy." The feminist influence was inspired by Baum's mother-in-law, Matilda Joslyn Gage, the women's rights activist who died just a few years before his book was published. "All the power in the story is with women," Hearn said. "The good witch and bad witch had the power, and both were women. The Wizard is ineffectual, and Dorothy's three male friends have faults and weaknesses." The Carle Museum show closes Oct. 22 and will not travel.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-oz24jul24,0,4441476.story
By Adam Gorlick, The Associated PressJuly 24, 2006
AMHERST, Mass. — She started off looking like a clownish crazy woman — her long hair in a wild braid and one eye popped wide open. Her petticoat and baggy skirt were more outlandish than frightening.
That was in 1900, when the Wicked Witch of the West made her debut in "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz." But since W.W. Denslow first drew her for the pages of L. Frank Baum's classic children's book, Dorothy's nemesis has changed faces several times. In 1981, Andy Warhol silk-screened her as Margaret Hamilton, freezing the actress in the green-faced role she played in Hollywood's 1939 production of the story. Four years later, artist Barry Moser turned her into Nancy Reagan, placing the pointy-hatted first lady against a dismal black backdrop. "I'm playing very close to obvious and corny imagery here," Moser wrote at the time. The original drawings and reinterpretations of the Wicked Witch and other characters from Oz are on display at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in an exhibit that commemorates the 150th anniversary of the births of Baum and Denslow and pays tribute to the story's staying power. The exhibit traces the story of Baum's book, from the cyclone that whisks Dorothy's Kansas farmhouse to the mystical land of Oz to the young girl's return home thanks to her magical slippers. Along the yellow brick road, she and her companions — the tin woodsman, lion and scarecrow — must confront the powerful wicked witch and find their way to the Emerald City, where the omniscient wizard is revealed as a short, bald man with no real power, who hides behind a curtain. As the show retells the adventure, it highlights the different ways artists have interpreted the story. The clean lines of Denslow's Art Nouveau-inspired drawings give way to more elaborate and detailed images in later reworkings of the book. There's Charles Santore's 1991 depiction of Munchkinland, where blond-haired Dorothy is greeted by a crowd of gnome-like characters that look like a band of leprechauns. And as Dorothy and her gang burst into the Emerald City in Santore's version, they're overcome by a world of green where the buildings are based on the works of Antonio Gaudí, a Catalan architect known for his highly stylized designs during the early 1900s. "[Santore] wanted to recognize the most visionary architect who was working at the time Baum was writing his books," said Nick Clark, the museum's founding director. "It shows how these really good artists have a deep sense of history that they're trying to infuse in their own work." And sometimes those artists just want to jazz things up. The tin woodsman, for example, morphs from Denslow's monochrome compilation of metal parts to the multicolored beer cans and garbage scraps that became the character's costume for "The Wiz," a 1975 musical. And Dorothy — an almost stocky and seemingly stubborn little girl in the 1900 original — softens in the images inspired years later by Judy Garland's portrayal of the character in MGM's 1939 classic "The Wizard of Oz." Though the movie helped bring new attention to what was already regarded the most popular children's book of the time, some of the Wizard's purists have a few bones to pick with that version of events. For one thing, it slightly softened Baum's feminist message that girls can figure things out for themselves without falling apart when things get tough. "Baum's Dorothy was more aggressive and independent," said Michael Patrick Hearn, the guest curator of the exhibit and author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz" who is writing a biography on Baum. "She doesn't cry all the time like Judy Garland's Dorothy." The feminist influence was inspired by Baum's mother-in-law, Matilda Joslyn Gage, the women's rights activist who died just a few years before his book was published. "All the power in the story is with women," Hearn said. "The good witch and bad witch had the power, and both were women. The Wizard is ineffectual, and Dorothy's three male friends have faults and weaknesses." The Carle Museum show closes Oct. 22 and will not travel.
http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-oz24jul24,0,4441476.story
Friday, July 28, 2006
Art of Oz at Eric Carle Museum
By: J.L. Bell
Yesterday I visited the "Wonderful Art of Oz" exhibit at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was quite enjoyable, and I think Saturday's event with Robert Sabuda demonstrating how he designed his Pop-Up Wizard of Oz should be a treat. Curator and author Michael Patrick Hearn will be there as well. Unfortunately, I'm now four hours further on up the road, so I'll miss it. The exhibit includes many of W. W. Denslow's original pen-and-ink drawings for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The two parts of the picture of the field mice pulling the Cowardly Lion from the poppy field, now in different collections, have been reunited and hung together. I'm sorry the picture of the China Country isn't among them since that shows Denslow reworking how Toto is posed, giving a special peek at his process.There are also lots of pictures by John R. Neill, especially some of his iconic portraits of Dorothy, Ozma, and Glinda, and some oddities he produced for fans rather than for publication. Especially impressive are some of Neill's illustrations for The Road to Oz. They're among his most beautiful and elaborate, and the originals--significantly larger than the reproductions in books--let you see more details.Among the latter-day Oz artists on display, I was most impressed with Charles Santore's work. Some of his double-page spreads seem overstuffed with objects, but if you shield your eyes from the jellybean colors you can pick out lots of nice touches. The picture of Dorothy throwing water over the Wicked Witch has a nice spare quality, in contrast. Not until I looked in a printed book did I recall that the tall, empty brown wall behind the figures, on the canvas so emblematic of the witch's dry lifestyle, was actually there to leave space for text. I think I actually like the image more than the page layout.A couple of remarks in gallery labels that might questions, or eyebrows.
Denslow expected The Wonderful Wizard of Oz to be issued in 1899, so he prepared a copyright page illustration with that date. It was even printed in the book when it appeared--in 1900. The illustration is mounted at the gallery, the 1899 date as visible as ever, with a 1900 label to the side but no explanation of the discrepancy. See Hearn's Annotated Wizard of Oz for more details.
The 1928 Oz book wasn't named Anything of Oz as a label states. Neill created a mock cover with that title, and that nonchalance does reflect how steadily the series was selling. But, as the cover illustration mounted below shows, that book eventually got the title The Giant Horse of Oz.
Thanks to Oz and Ends blog for this news!
Yesterday I visited the "Wonderful Art of Oz" exhibit at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts. It was quite enjoyable, and I think Saturday's event with Robert Sabuda demonstrating how he designed his Pop-Up Wizard of Oz should be a treat. Curator and author Michael Patrick Hearn will be there as well. Unfortunately, I'm now four hours further on up the road, so I'll miss it. The exhibit includes many of W. W. Denslow's original pen-and-ink drawings for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The two parts of the picture of the field mice pulling the Cowardly Lion from the poppy field, now in different collections, have been reunited and hung together. I'm sorry the picture of the China Country isn't among them since that shows Denslow reworking how Toto is posed, giving a special peek at his process.There are also lots of pictures by John R. Neill, especially some of his iconic portraits of Dorothy, Ozma, and Glinda, and some oddities he produced for fans rather than for publication. Especially impressive are some of Neill's illustrations for The Road to Oz. They're among his most beautiful and elaborate, and the originals--significantly larger than the reproductions in books--let you see more details.Among the latter-day Oz artists on display, I was most impressed with Charles Santore's work. Some of his double-page spreads seem overstuffed with objects, but if you shield your eyes from the jellybean colors you can pick out lots of nice touches. The picture of Dorothy throwing water over the Wicked Witch has a nice spare quality, in contrast. Not until I looked in a printed book did I recall that the tall, empty brown wall behind the figures, on the canvas so emblematic of the witch's dry lifestyle, was actually there to leave space for text. I think I actually like the image more than the page layout.A couple of remarks in gallery labels that might questions, or eyebrows.
Denslow expected The Wonderful Wizard of Oz to be issued in 1899, so he prepared a copyright page illustration with that date. It was even printed in the book when it appeared--in 1900. The illustration is mounted at the gallery, the 1899 date as visible as ever, with a 1900 label to the side but no explanation of the discrepancy. See Hearn's Annotated Wizard of Oz for more details.
The 1928 Oz book wasn't named Anything of Oz as a label states. Neill created a mock cover with that title, and that nonchalance does reflect how steadily the series was selling. But, as the cover illustration mounted below shows, that book eventually got the title The Giant Horse of Oz.
Thanks to Oz and Ends blog for this news!
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Can you help catch brainless thieves who stole our Wizard of Oz scarecrow?
SOMEWHERE over the "Rainow"... lies a missing scarecrow.
A spate of strawmen abductions has rocked the little village – and the theft of the most famous scarecrow of all, from a Wizard of Oz tableau, was simply the final straw.
The McKernan family – ten in all – toiled for three days with their entry from the children’s classic in the Rainow Festival, complete with tin man, Dorothy, Toto and yellow brick road.
Mum-of-three Sue McKernan, who helped build the elaborate display at her parents’ home at Blaze Hill in Rainow, fumed: "We spent days on it, painting the road, making the characters and when the deadline got close, the whole family helped out like mad to get it finished in time.
"And then some thoughtless thieves just come along and pinch it – it was there when we went to bed and gone when we woke up."
The mystery marauders – suspected Wicked Witch of the West wannabes – are also thought to be responsible for a stolen flying pig, a torched figure, the beheading of Robin Hood and a pilfered big cat from the "Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" scene.
"I don’t know who would do such a thing – the children are very disappointed," added Sue, who lives on Ovenhouse Lane in Bollington and who is a marketing assistant for Cater Force on Charter Way.
The creation, inspired by the annual festival’s "Silver Screen" theme, is just not the same without its brainless character – and the family think the snide scarecrow stealers are as heartless as the tin man – and certainly as brainless as the character they nicked.
Sue, her husband, Ged, 40, who works for Kay Metzler on Wellington Road and their kids, Matthew, nine, and Hannah, five, both at St Gregory’s School, Bollington, all slaved away over a hot bed of straw to fashion the unique display.
And then when the deadline loomed grandparents Pat, 66, and Derick, 69, – who live on Blaze Hill in Rainow – Sue’s brother, landscape gardener Jon, 39 and his kids, Rosie, 11, and Alex, eight, all stepped in to help.
Sue, a marketing assistant for Cater Force on Charter Way, said: "It’s strange that a lion has gone missing too – I wonder if we’re going to see the Wizard of Oz characters collected from different scenes and put together somewhere, like on the top of White Nancy."
Wherever they may be, the McKernans won’t let the theft get them down.
She added: "It might be too late to replace it this time round but we’ll be back next year with an even better entry."
And with the same imagination which inspired the colourful scene, she added: "Perhaps it’s just come to life and walked off."
http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/s/215/215601_can_you_help_catch_brainless_thieves_who_stole_our_wizard_of_oz_scarecrow.html
A spate of strawmen abductions has rocked the little village – and the theft of the most famous scarecrow of all, from a Wizard of Oz tableau, was simply the final straw.
The McKernan family – ten in all – toiled for three days with their entry from the children’s classic in the Rainow Festival, complete with tin man, Dorothy, Toto and yellow brick road.
Mum-of-three Sue McKernan, who helped build the elaborate display at her parents’ home at Blaze Hill in Rainow, fumed: "We spent days on it, painting the road, making the characters and when the deadline got close, the whole family helped out like mad to get it finished in time.
"And then some thoughtless thieves just come along and pinch it – it was there when we went to bed and gone when we woke up."
The mystery marauders – suspected Wicked Witch of the West wannabes – are also thought to be responsible for a stolen flying pig, a torched figure, the beheading of Robin Hood and a pilfered big cat from the "Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" scene.
"I don’t know who would do such a thing – the children are very disappointed," added Sue, who lives on Ovenhouse Lane in Bollington and who is a marketing assistant for Cater Force on Charter Way.
The creation, inspired by the annual festival’s "Silver Screen" theme, is just not the same without its brainless character – and the family think the snide scarecrow stealers are as heartless as the tin man – and certainly as brainless as the character they nicked.
Sue, her husband, Ged, 40, who works for Kay Metzler on Wellington Road and their kids, Matthew, nine, and Hannah, five, both at St Gregory’s School, Bollington, all slaved away over a hot bed of straw to fashion the unique display.
And then when the deadline loomed grandparents Pat, 66, and Derick, 69, – who live on Blaze Hill in Rainow – Sue’s brother, landscape gardener Jon, 39 and his kids, Rosie, 11, and Alex, eight, all stepped in to help.
Sue, a marketing assistant for Cater Force on Charter Way, said: "It’s strange that a lion has gone missing too – I wonder if we’re going to see the Wizard of Oz characters collected from different scenes and put together somewhere, like on the top of White Nancy."
Wherever they may be, the McKernans won’t let the theft get them down.
She added: "It might be too late to replace it this time round but we’ll be back next year with an even better entry."
And with the same imagination which inspired the colourful scene, she added: "Perhaps it’s just come to life and walked off."
http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/s/215/215601_can_you_help_catch_brainless_thieves_who_stole_our_wizard_of_oz_scarecrow.html
Fairy tales do come true!
Storybook Land to celebrate 30 years Saturday at Wylie
By Angela Mettler
American News Writer
For Jennie Podoll of Aberdeen, work doesn't seem like work.
Podoll is an employee of the Aberdeen Parks, Recreation and Forestry department. She visited Storybook Land frequently as a child and now enjoys working in its playful atmosphere.
"If you come here, you know it's going to be a fun time," she said.
Storybook Land is celebrating its 30th anniversary on Saturday in conjunction with Aberdeen's 125th anniversary celebration. Events planned include a kids' parade, storytellers, entertainment, arts and crafts, games and a birthday party for Storybook Land, which is in Wylie Park.
Every year, thousands of visitors from around the world come to delight in Storybook Land's fairy tale ambiance. Some return to share childhood memories of Storybook Land with their own children.
Kevin and Clarice Moser of Mound City visit the park a few times every summer with their children, Amy and Austin.
"They really like the new stuff that's been added here - the rides, the rock climbing wall," said Clarice. "They like it all."
The fact that Aberdeen is pretty close to Mound City is an added bonus for the Mosers.
"It's nice not to have to travel too far to do something," Clarice said.
For some visitors, distance doesn't play a factor. Patty Bauer of Boise, Idaho, brings her two children to Storybook Land every few years.
"It's a good place to bring kids," she said.
She grew up in Webster and attended Northern State University - she even worked in the Haunted Forest during college. She has lived outside of South Dakota for the past 18 years.
She and her sister, Cindy Rineck of Wisconsin, and Rineck's two children took in Storybook Land on Tuesday with a few Aberdeen cousins.
Bauer also enjoys Wylie Park, Thunder Road and the mini golf course.
"I like all the things you can do," Bauer said, "and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg."
The variety of activities also appealed to second-time visitors Shirley Sandel, her daughter Heather Korber and granddaughter Ashley Korber, 4.
"It's fun for the kids because there's a lot to do," Heather said.
A storied history: Storybook Land has come a long way from its humble beginnings.
It began in 1971 with the development of Wylie Park's master plan, which included ideas for Storybook Land and the Land of Oz. A more detailed, separate plan for those two parts of Wylie Park was developed in 1972.
The Aberdeen Sertoma Club adopted Storybook Land as its club project. In 1973, the city received a $69,000 Land and Water Conservation Grant through a federal grant program administered by the state. Work began in 1976; the first things built were the mill, waterwheel, sidewalk, fences and moat.
Only two fairy tale displays were completed between 1973 and 1980, but 25 were completed in the next three years.
One of the biggest projects in Storybook Land's history was the castle. It opened June 27, 1987. More than $250,000 was raised in about two years.
"People then got the feeling of comfort that (Storybook Land) was going to happen," said Bob Gruman, chairman of the Aberdeen Sertoma Club's Storybook Land Committee.
The castle has since become a symbol of the Hub City.
"The castle is kind of the signature that everybody's used to identify Aberdeen," said Doug Johnson, director of Aberdeen Parks, Recreation and Forestry department.
Another big project was replacing the model train, adding a depot and extending the railroad track to almost a mile long. Fundraising began in 1997 and the new train opened for business in May 2000. More than $500,000 was raised.
Shirley Jahraus, Aberdeen Sertoma Club public relations and social/visitation committee chairwoman, said she takes first-time Storybook Land visitors on the train before they tour the park.
"It really gives them a feel for the park," she said.
The current train is a replica of an 1863 C.P. Huntington model train. The depot was built in 1881 for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad and sat in Rudolph until 1925, when it was moved to Columbia. The depot now serves as a museum.
The Land of Oz has developed considerably in the past 15 years. The most recent addition, the Wizard's Balloon Ride, was added in 2005.
Future growth: Even after 30 years, Storybook Land is still growing. The latest proposed additions include a new visitor's center, arch and the Emerald City.
The proposed visitor's center would replace Noah's Ark, the current concession stand and restrooms. It would include a 700-square-foot gift shop, a 42-person capacity indoor room that could be rented for parties, a new concession area and new restrooms.
The new arch, at Storybook Land's entrance, would be larger and more colorful than the existing arch. It would probably cost about $30,000, while the visitor's center is expected to cost $600,000.
The Emerald City, in the Land of Oz, would include the Great Emerald Hall. The hall could be rented for special events, conventions and gatherings such as family and class reunions. It would include an Oz Museum, concessions and restrooms.
"It would be much like the castle, kind of like the focal point for the Land of Oz," Gruman said.
All three projects will require extensive fundraising efforts by the Aberdeen Sertoma Club. The club has asked for money from the city but will not know how much it will receive for another few weeks, Gruman said.
Eventually, the park might need more land for expansion and to relieve weekend parking congestion.
Storybook Land's continued growth and community support have been more than the original planners could have hoped for.
"I'd say it's exceeded everybody's expectations," Gruman said.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/news/nation/15124236.htm
By Angela Mettler
American News Writer
For Jennie Podoll of Aberdeen, work doesn't seem like work.
Podoll is an employee of the Aberdeen Parks, Recreation and Forestry department. She visited Storybook Land frequently as a child and now enjoys working in its playful atmosphere.
"If you come here, you know it's going to be a fun time," she said.
Storybook Land is celebrating its 30th anniversary on Saturday in conjunction with Aberdeen's 125th anniversary celebration. Events planned include a kids' parade, storytellers, entertainment, arts and crafts, games and a birthday party for Storybook Land, which is in Wylie Park.
Every year, thousands of visitors from around the world come to delight in Storybook Land's fairy tale ambiance. Some return to share childhood memories of Storybook Land with their own children.
Kevin and Clarice Moser of Mound City visit the park a few times every summer with their children, Amy and Austin.
"They really like the new stuff that's been added here - the rides, the rock climbing wall," said Clarice. "They like it all."
The fact that Aberdeen is pretty close to Mound City is an added bonus for the Mosers.
"It's nice not to have to travel too far to do something," Clarice said.
For some visitors, distance doesn't play a factor. Patty Bauer of Boise, Idaho, brings her two children to Storybook Land every few years.
"It's a good place to bring kids," she said.
She grew up in Webster and attended Northern State University - she even worked in the Haunted Forest during college. She has lived outside of South Dakota for the past 18 years.
She and her sister, Cindy Rineck of Wisconsin, and Rineck's two children took in Storybook Land on Tuesday with a few Aberdeen cousins.
Bauer also enjoys Wylie Park, Thunder Road and the mini golf course.
"I like all the things you can do," Bauer said, "and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg."
The variety of activities also appealed to second-time visitors Shirley Sandel, her daughter Heather Korber and granddaughter Ashley Korber, 4.
"It's fun for the kids because there's a lot to do," Heather said.
A storied history: Storybook Land has come a long way from its humble beginnings.
It began in 1971 with the development of Wylie Park's master plan, which included ideas for Storybook Land and the Land of Oz. A more detailed, separate plan for those two parts of Wylie Park was developed in 1972.
The Aberdeen Sertoma Club adopted Storybook Land as its club project. In 1973, the city received a $69,000 Land and Water Conservation Grant through a federal grant program administered by the state. Work began in 1976; the first things built were the mill, waterwheel, sidewalk, fences and moat.
Only two fairy tale displays were completed between 1973 and 1980, but 25 were completed in the next three years.
One of the biggest projects in Storybook Land's history was the castle. It opened June 27, 1987. More than $250,000 was raised in about two years.
"People then got the feeling of comfort that (Storybook Land) was going to happen," said Bob Gruman, chairman of the Aberdeen Sertoma Club's Storybook Land Committee.
The castle has since become a symbol of the Hub City.
"The castle is kind of the signature that everybody's used to identify Aberdeen," said Doug Johnson, director of Aberdeen Parks, Recreation and Forestry department.
Another big project was replacing the model train, adding a depot and extending the railroad track to almost a mile long. Fundraising began in 1997 and the new train opened for business in May 2000. More than $500,000 was raised.
Shirley Jahraus, Aberdeen Sertoma Club public relations and social/visitation committee chairwoman, said she takes first-time Storybook Land visitors on the train before they tour the park.
"It really gives them a feel for the park," she said.
The current train is a replica of an 1863 C.P. Huntington model train. The depot was built in 1881 for the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad and sat in Rudolph until 1925, when it was moved to Columbia. The depot now serves as a museum.
The Land of Oz has developed considerably in the past 15 years. The most recent addition, the Wizard's Balloon Ride, was added in 2005.
Future growth: Even after 30 years, Storybook Land is still growing. The latest proposed additions include a new visitor's center, arch and the Emerald City.
The proposed visitor's center would replace Noah's Ark, the current concession stand and restrooms. It would include a 700-square-foot gift shop, a 42-person capacity indoor room that could be rented for parties, a new concession area and new restrooms.
The new arch, at Storybook Land's entrance, would be larger and more colorful than the existing arch. It would probably cost about $30,000, while the visitor's center is expected to cost $600,000.
The Emerald City, in the Land of Oz, would include the Great Emerald Hall. The hall could be rented for special events, conventions and gatherings such as family and class reunions. It would include an Oz Museum, concessions and restrooms.
"It would be much like the castle, kind of like the focal point for the Land of Oz," Gruman said.
All three projects will require extensive fundraising efforts by the Aberdeen Sertoma Club. The club has asked for money from the city but will not know how much it will receive for another few weeks, Gruman said.
Eventually, the park might need more land for expansion and to relieve weekend parking congestion.
Storybook Land's continued growth and community support have been more than the original planners could have hoped for.
"I'd say it's exceeded everybody's expectations," Gruman said.
http://www.centredaily.com/mld/centredaily/news/nation/15124236.htm
Lost Panel Talks Oz
CCI XTRA: MORE LOST THAN FOUND - "LOST" SEASON 3 PANEL by John Reha, Guest Writer Posted: July 25, 2006
The "Lost: Season 3" panel Saturday morning at Comic-Con International in San Diego was absolutely packed. Moderator Karen Idleson opened by asking, "Are you hungry?" Before launching into the first of the panel's "video biscuits."
"Lost Diaries" was the first clip, a preview of the mobile episodes ("mobisodes") coming this fall from Verizon. In the clip, Hurley finds a video camera that still works, and shows it to Kate and Sawyer, just in case they're killed, "or eaten or something."
Next up were a few more surprises form the "Lost" Season 2 DVD bonus materials. There was a new Dharma Initiative training video, detailing the three phases of island work: Observation, Addition and Conclusion
The third clip was a montage of the cast and crew goofing off during the Hurley/Sawyer fight scene.
The last clip was "The Whole Truth," cast members and crew talking about the Jin & Sun arc/relationship.
Idleson then introduced Executive Producer Bryan Burk, Executive Producer Carlton Cues, Executive Producer Damon Lindelof, and actors Daniel Dae Kim (Jin) and Jorge Garcia (Hurley).
Idleson started out by asking, "What's the strangest theory any of you have heard?" Kim responded, "[That] it's all taking place in the dog Vincent's mind." While the strangest Jorge heard was, "Hurley is Claire's baby, grown up."
Idleson then invited fans to come up and ask questions. The first was on the topic of the mythology of the show, and how much is being made up on the fly, how much is a secret plan, and how much the actors know. Garcia first answered for the actors. "We get a script 2-3 days before we start shooting it, and that's when we find out."
Cues explained that there's a mythology, and they've planned out the arc of season 3, but there is flexibility depending on how the characters develop. Lindelof added, that they can "..never ask specifically a mythology question without knowing the answer to it." With the characters, they have the freedom to see where it takes them, but when it comes to mythology like The Others and Dharma Initiative, Cues said, "You need to know what you're doing."
Cues revealed he listens to film scores as he writes, especially those by John Powell. However, Lindelof said, "I get really distracted when I'm hearing music and writing, so I'd love to come up with something wildly cool, but I'm relatively square when it comes to actual process."
Is there any influence on the show from viewer speculation and feedback? According to Cues, it's a thin line to walk. "You can't be influenced too much," said Cues. But fan feedback definitely has an effect on the writing of the show. At the end of Season 1, fans thought there were too many questions, so, they answered a bunch more in the Season 2 finale. Lindelof added they got responses about that finale being, "too mythologically dense," but they've taken that into consideration, because "fans are the barometer."
Fan feedback about last season's almost random schedule actually influenced the network as well, leading to the two "pods" of programming. The first six episodes that air in the fall will almost be a miniseries.
A disappointed fan asked if they were surprised that they didn't get an Emmy nod for Best Drama. Lindelof said, "We were disappointed and a little bit surprised. We're very proud of season 2. Was it a different show than season 1? Absolutely, and season 3 will be different than both." Lindelof also asked why "Battlestar Galactica" was also overlooked by the Emmy's to much applause. "I think that tells you something about what the tastes are," said Lindelof. "We don't write the show to get Emmys, we write it because it's cool and we want you guys to like it."
Asked how many days the series will cover (since the first season was 48 and the second cover 23), Cues explained, "It never came up, but by the end, we're going to cover a lot of history." The weird statue (from the second season finale), is "at least 50 years old, maybe older," and he hinted that the history of the Island may be a lot more extensive than we've dealt with. Lindelof threw out a meaty tease with the line, "You're making a basic assumption that they've been there as long as they think they've been." But he was hushed before he said more. Lindelof promised that by the end of Season 3, "you and they may have a different idea."
A question about the "underwater hatch" brought more cryptic hinting, with Lindelof not denying there was one, and Cues not confirming there is.
A theory that Bernard and Rose (from the Others) work for the Dharma Initiative was met with a resounding "no" from both Lindelof and Cues.
The next question was from a woman identifying herself as Rachel Blake. "Have you no shame?" she asked the assembled producers, "Tell us what you know about the Hanso Foundation!" She claims the training films are real, and that the Hanso Foundation is "a very real, very dangerous organization."
She also mentioned Joop, the 105-year-old Orangutan, Hugh MacIntyre and the Global Welfare Consortium, and asked what "Werner Middelwerk" was doing in Sri Lanka. She finished by asking where Alvar Hanso was. The whole time, Damon was pleading that "Lost" is only a TV show.
Before she was dragged off by security, she shouted a website name: Hansoexposed.com. A video of Rachel's rant at the panel can be found here.
Things were quickly back to normal, with a fan postulating that the Island was, in fact, the Land of Oz from L. Frank Baum's famous novels. Lindelof joked that, "If you play Pink Floyd's 'The Wall' from the beginning of the pilot, just as the O is approaching the screen, it'll completely sync up." But the fan brought up the interesting item that Oz is "an invisible island in the middle of the pacific." Lindelof confirmed that there are Oz references in the show, and that it was an "interesting theory."
The actors were asked if they had their own theories. Kim explained that originally, "We both [he and Jorge] thought it was some alien ant farm, another race or higher being watching us run around and...experiment with each other." These days, Garcia lets fans come up with the theories. The oddest one uses cloning as an explanation for the dead people that have seemingly appeared on the island, like Jack's dad. Lindelof assures us, however, "you will never, ever hear the word clone on 'Lost.'"
A special feature on the Season 2 DVD is a video that has edited together every single insult Sawyer has uttered on "Lost."
The upcoming third season is going to focus more heavily on the scientific than the prior seasons. "Lost" was always conceived as dancing between the supernatural and scientific, and we'll start to see more focus on Jack's background as a spinal surgeon. We may also start to see how Locke's paralysis was cured.
Hurley's time in the mental institution, who he met there, and his interaction with Lily, is definitely going to be woven into the fabric of season 3, according to the producers.
The "Lost Diaries" mobisodes, will be available to download a week after they hit the Verizon phone network. They're hoping to do 13 episodes total and many will probably come out between the two programming pods.
According to Lindelof, Vincent is still on the island. "You'd never get to see his flashbacks if he left," said Lindelof.
Questioned about the use of the word "Namaste," a traditional greeting of blessings, by the Dharma Initiative, Cues explained, "They were good guys," their projects were for "the betterment of humanity." (It's interesting to note that he continually refers to Dharma in the past tense.)
According to Lindelof, "There are at least four, probably five seasons planned out" but there is a defiite end point that all the producers and writers have in mind. "After that, we'd have to start tap dancing." Lindelof and the other producers would prefer the show to end on their own terms, but if it came to the network wanting to keep the show on the air, they would probably all walk, rather than drag it through the dirt. Or zombies.
The literal translation of the five hieroglyphics that appeared when the timer in the Hatch was allowed to count down are the symbol for the Underworld. It's subject to interpretation, but that's the closest translation, according to the producers
Desmond will be back on the show along with some new regulars next season, and Burk confirmed that the final sequence form the second season finale was off-island.
Is the monster a cloud of nanobots? "No, it is not a cloud of nanobots."
The plot of the "Lost" videogame is under wraps, but will follow the spirit of the show.
Asked "When is Sun going to have Michael's baby?" Lindelof said, "Well, going back to the question about how each season takes a couple of days, I'll say Season 13?"
Kate will be get with somebody "soon. Very soon."
Libby's past will be filled in more with flashbacks of other characters.
Series co-creator J.J. Abrams will co-write the premiere of Season 3 and hopefully direct the 7th episode.
Another disappointed fan asked if we'd see more action in Season 3, to which Lindelof replied, "We tell the stories we want to tell at the speed that we want to tell them. 'Lost' was designed as a cult show, and somehow it became a mainstream show. You can't please all of the people all of the time."
Do Jack and Locke's rich fathers, and Libby's rich husband, have anything to do with Dharma? Lindelof could only say, "You're asking the right question, but we're certainly not going to confirm or deny it here."
Asked if there was anything we can look forward to, generally, in season three, the panel threw out a number of events:
The series will have a vastly different feeling than the last two seasons, a lot more adventure elements.
Kate, Jack, and Sawyer have been captured by these Other people.
Something's going to happen halfway through the year that's hopefully going to fry everybody's brains, said one of the producers.
Desmond, Locke and Eko, what happened to them, and how did they survive, if they survived?
There will be new characters, exploring how they get there.
And finally, Penny and Desmond's relationship will be explored
The show will also be "exploring the Others community." The title of the first episode is going to be, "A Tale of Two Cities."
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=7968
The "Lost: Season 3" panel Saturday morning at Comic-Con International in San Diego was absolutely packed. Moderator Karen Idleson opened by asking, "Are you hungry?" Before launching into the first of the panel's "video biscuits."
"Lost Diaries" was the first clip, a preview of the mobile episodes ("mobisodes") coming this fall from Verizon. In the clip, Hurley finds a video camera that still works, and shows it to Kate and Sawyer, just in case they're killed, "or eaten or something."
Next up were a few more surprises form the "Lost" Season 2 DVD bonus materials. There was a new Dharma Initiative training video, detailing the three phases of island work: Observation, Addition and Conclusion
The third clip was a montage of the cast and crew goofing off during the Hurley/Sawyer fight scene.
The last clip was "The Whole Truth," cast members and crew talking about the Jin & Sun arc/relationship.
Idleson then introduced Executive Producer Bryan Burk, Executive Producer Carlton Cues, Executive Producer Damon Lindelof, and actors Daniel Dae Kim (Jin) and Jorge Garcia (Hurley).
Idleson started out by asking, "What's the strangest theory any of you have heard?" Kim responded, "[That] it's all taking place in the dog Vincent's mind." While the strangest Jorge heard was, "Hurley is Claire's baby, grown up."
Idleson then invited fans to come up and ask questions. The first was on the topic of the mythology of the show, and how much is being made up on the fly, how much is a secret plan, and how much the actors know. Garcia first answered for the actors. "We get a script 2-3 days before we start shooting it, and that's when we find out."
Cues explained that there's a mythology, and they've planned out the arc of season 3, but there is flexibility depending on how the characters develop. Lindelof added, that they can "..never ask specifically a mythology question without knowing the answer to it." With the characters, they have the freedom to see where it takes them, but when it comes to mythology like The Others and Dharma Initiative, Cues said, "You need to know what you're doing."
Cues revealed he listens to film scores as he writes, especially those by John Powell. However, Lindelof said, "I get really distracted when I'm hearing music and writing, so I'd love to come up with something wildly cool, but I'm relatively square when it comes to actual process."
Is there any influence on the show from viewer speculation and feedback? According to Cues, it's a thin line to walk. "You can't be influenced too much," said Cues. But fan feedback definitely has an effect on the writing of the show. At the end of Season 1, fans thought there were too many questions, so, they answered a bunch more in the Season 2 finale. Lindelof added they got responses about that finale being, "too mythologically dense," but they've taken that into consideration, because "fans are the barometer."
Fan feedback about last season's almost random schedule actually influenced the network as well, leading to the two "pods" of programming. The first six episodes that air in the fall will almost be a miniseries.
A disappointed fan asked if they were surprised that they didn't get an Emmy nod for Best Drama. Lindelof said, "We were disappointed and a little bit surprised. We're very proud of season 2. Was it a different show than season 1? Absolutely, and season 3 will be different than both." Lindelof also asked why "Battlestar Galactica" was also overlooked by the Emmy's to much applause. "I think that tells you something about what the tastes are," said Lindelof. "We don't write the show to get Emmys, we write it because it's cool and we want you guys to like it."
Asked how many days the series will cover (since the first season was 48 and the second cover 23), Cues explained, "It never came up, but by the end, we're going to cover a lot of history." The weird statue (from the second season finale), is "at least 50 years old, maybe older," and he hinted that the history of the Island may be a lot more extensive than we've dealt with. Lindelof threw out a meaty tease with the line, "You're making a basic assumption that they've been there as long as they think they've been." But he was hushed before he said more. Lindelof promised that by the end of Season 3, "you and they may have a different idea."
A question about the "underwater hatch" brought more cryptic hinting, with Lindelof not denying there was one, and Cues not confirming there is.
A theory that Bernard and Rose (from the Others) work for the Dharma Initiative was met with a resounding "no" from both Lindelof and Cues.
The next question was from a woman identifying herself as Rachel Blake. "Have you no shame?" she asked the assembled producers, "Tell us what you know about the Hanso Foundation!" She claims the training films are real, and that the Hanso Foundation is "a very real, very dangerous organization."
She also mentioned Joop, the 105-year-old Orangutan, Hugh MacIntyre and the Global Welfare Consortium, and asked what "Werner Middelwerk" was doing in Sri Lanka. She finished by asking where Alvar Hanso was. The whole time, Damon was pleading that "Lost" is only a TV show.
Before she was dragged off by security, she shouted a website name: Hansoexposed.com. A video of Rachel's rant at the panel can be found here.
Things were quickly back to normal, with a fan postulating that the Island was, in fact, the Land of Oz from L. Frank Baum's famous novels. Lindelof joked that, "If you play Pink Floyd's 'The Wall' from the beginning of the pilot, just as the O is approaching the screen, it'll completely sync up." But the fan brought up the interesting item that Oz is "an invisible island in the middle of the pacific." Lindelof confirmed that there are Oz references in the show, and that it was an "interesting theory."
The actors were asked if they had their own theories. Kim explained that originally, "We both [he and Jorge] thought it was some alien ant farm, another race or higher being watching us run around and...experiment with each other." These days, Garcia lets fans come up with the theories. The oddest one uses cloning as an explanation for the dead people that have seemingly appeared on the island, like Jack's dad. Lindelof assures us, however, "you will never, ever hear the word clone on 'Lost.'"
A special feature on the Season 2 DVD is a video that has edited together every single insult Sawyer has uttered on "Lost."
The upcoming third season is going to focus more heavily on the scientific than the prior seasons. "Lost" was always conceived as dancing between the supernatural and scientific, and we'll start to see more focus on Jack's background as a spinal surgeon. We may also start to see how Locke's paralysis was cured.
Hurley's time in the mental institution, who he met there, and his interaction with Lily, is definitely going to be woven into the fabric of season 3, according to the producers.
The "Lost Diaries" mobisodes, will be available to download a week after they hit the Verizon phone network. They're hoping to do 13 episodes total and many will probably come out between the two programming pods.
According to Lindelof, Vincent is still on the island. "You'd never get to see his flashbacks if he left," said Lindelof.
Questioned about the use of the word "Namaste," a traditional greeting of blessings, by the Dharma Initiative, Cues explained, "They were good guys," their projects were for "the betterment of humanity." (It's interesting to note that he continually refers to Dharma in the past tense.)
According to Lindelof, "There are at least four, probably five seasons planned out" but there is a defiite end point that all the producers and writers have in mind. "After that, we'd have to start tap dancing." Lindelof and the other producers would prefer the show to end on their own terms, but if it came to the network wanting to keep the show on the air, they would probably all walk, rather than drag it through the dirt. Or zombies.
The literal translation of the five hieroglyphics that appeared when the timer in the Hatch was allowed to count down are the symbol for the Underworld. It's subject to interpretation, but that's the closest translation, according to the producers
Desmond will be back on the show along with some new regulars next season, and Burk confirmed that the final sequence form the second season finale was off-island.
Is the monster a cloud of nanobots? "No, it is not a cloud of nanobots."
The plot of the "Lost" videogame is under wraps, but will follow the spirit of the show.
Asked "When is Sun going to have Michael's baby?" Lindelof said, "Well, going back to the question about how each season takes a couple of days, I'll say Season 13?"
Kate will be get with somebody "soon. Very soon."
Libby's past will be filled in more with flashbacks of other characters.
Series co-creator J.J. Abrams will co-write the premiere of Season 3 and hopefully direct the 7th episode.
Another disappointed fan asked if we'd see more action in Season 3, to which Lindelof replied, "We tell the stories we want to tell at the speed that we want to tell them. 'Lost' was designed as a cult show, and somehow it became a mainstream show. You can't please all of the people all of the time."
Do Jack and Locke's rich fathers, and Libby's rich husband, have anything to do with Dharma? Lindelof could only say, "You're asking the right question, but we're certainly not going to confirm or deny it here."
Asked if there was anything we can look forward to, generally, in season three, the panel threw out a number of events:
The series will have a vastly different feeling than the last two seasons, a lot more adventure elements.
Kate, Jack, and Sawyer have been captured by these Other people.
Something's going to happen halfway through the year that's hopefully going to fry everybody's brains, said one of the producers.
Desmond, Locke and Eko, what happened to them, and how did they survive, if they survived?
There will be new characters, exploring how they get there.
And finally, Penny and Desmond's relationship will be explored
The show will also be "exploring the Others community." The title of the first episode is going to be, "A Tale of Two Cities."
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=7968
a little reminder
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
There's no place like home, especially if it's Kansas
Almost every time I read a piece of news Pam Spaulding has dug up, my mouth, as the song goes, drops open like a country pond. Posting at Pandagon, Pam tells about a 12-year-old Kansas boy who visited the Oz Museum and bought a souvenir, a rainbow-colored flag. "Over the Rainbow" is, of course, from the film, The Wizard of Oz. Judy Garland is said to have once remarked to a woman in a nightclub ladies' room, "Lady, I've got rainbows up my ass," and little did she know how true that would become now, Toto, that we really are in Kansas again.
The boy's father, J.R. Knight, who owns the Lakeway Hotel, a bed and breakfast, in Meade, Kansas, hung the flag on the outside his b&b, next to the American flag. Everything went fine until the local newspaper reported that a gay flag was hanging outside the Lakeway.
The first problem with this tale is that the local people did not know that there was such a thing as a rainbow flag until they read about it in the newspaper. So much for diversity education. But once they found out about it, they got busy running their mouths off, and how.
It turns out that the newspaper reporter didn't bother to call Knight and ask him about the flag. So much for journalism. The local radio station called him, though, to tell him it was removing the hotel restaurant's commercial spots if the flag didn't come down. A local pastor told him that what he had done was equivalent to hanging a pair of women's panties on a flag pole, which just goes to show you, these people are thinking about sex a lot. Another man said: “To me it’s just like running up a Nazi flag in a Jewish neighborhood. I can’t walk into that establishment with that flag flying because to me that’s saying that I support what the flag stands for and I don’t." Right--because we all know there are no gay or bisexual people or people who support them in Kansas. And certainly not in Meade.
Knight says that he is glad for the flag to be seen as a gay pride symbol or anything else.
http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2006/07/theres_no_place.html
The boy's father, J.R. Knight, who owns the Lakeway Hotel, a bed and breakfast, in Meade, Kansas, hung the flag on the outside his b&b, next to the American flag. Everything went fine until the local newspaper reported that a gay flag was hanging outside the Lakeway.
The first problem with this tale is that the local people did not know that there was such a thing as a rainbow flag until they read about it in the newspaper. So much for diversity education. But once they found out about it, they got busy running their mouths off, and how.
It turns out that the newspaper reporter didn't bother to call Knight and ask him about the flag. So much for journalism. The local radio station called him, though, to tell him it was removing the hotel restaurant's commercial spots if the flag didn't come down. A local pastor told him that what he had done was equivalent to hanging a pair of women's panties on a flag pole, which just goes to show you, these people are thinking about sex a lot. Another man said: “To me it’s just like running up a Nazi flag in a Jewish neighborhood. I can’t walk into that establishment with that flag flying because to me that’s saying that I support what the flag stands for and I don’t." Right--because we all know there are no gay or bisexual people or people who support them in Kansas. And certainly not in Meade.
Knight says that he is glad for the flag to be seen as a gay pride symbol or anything else.
http://www.motherjones.com/mojoblog/archives/2006/07/theres_no_place.html
CCI XTRA: SPOTLIGHT ON LINDA MEDLEY
by Emmett Furey, Contributing Writer Posted: July 25, 2006
Linda MedleyVeteran comics creator Linda Medley is a veritable jack of all trades: Her many and varied titles in the world of comics have included writer, penciller, colorist and story editor. She's also no stranger to San Diego's Comic-Con International. She first made the pilgrimage in 1980 as nothing more than a fan. And the "Spotlight on Linda Medley" panel at this year's Comic-Con was as much a retrospective on everything she's accomplished to date in the medium as it was a celebration of her triumphant return to comics.
Perhaps best known for the fan-favorite "Castle Waiting," Medley discontinued the series in 2002 after issue 16. She explained that going through a rash of publishers, and failing twice as a self-publisher, compelled her to quit the industry. She had also developed a crippling tendonitis, which made it nigh impossible for her to produce artwork. But in the gap between '02 and her return to comics towards the end of last year, Medley has triumphed over her tendonitis, and sunk her teeth into a new writing project which helped her get over the frustrating experience that was "Castle Waiting."
For the benefit of the uninitiated, Medley summed up "Castle Waiting" in just a few words: "What happens after happily ever after?" In short, it is a reconstruction of classic fairy tales. When asked why she felt the need to reconstruct the stories, Medley explained that these types of fables were designed to "educate and entertain the culture of the time." It is her hope that by updating the stories so that they apply to the culture of today, they won't be relegated to mere nostalgia.
And after getting some distance from the series, Medley has enthusiastically picked up where she left off. In addition to a new hardcover edition of "Castle Waiting," collecting the first three story arcs, the new issue of the series, continuing the "Interiors" story arc begun in issues 15 and 16, it debuted at Comic-Con this past Friday.
The project that reinvigorated Medley during her hiatus is a new comic series based on underused characters in L. Frank Baum's "Oz" stories (not the HBO prison drama, as the moderator suggested in jest). Ozma (the queen of Oz), Ev (the land beyond the deadly desert) and the Gnome King are just of few of the parts of Baum's mythology that she hopes to expand upon.
Friend, colleague and self-ascribed protégé Jim Ottaviani moderated the panel (in Gary Groth's stead). Ottaviani has been lucky enough to see some of the 300 odd pages of as yet unpublished "Oz" material that Medley has produced. He notes that her newer work boasts a marked change in page layouts and panel construction, and he asked Medley to expound on the form and function of the new storytelling method. Linda explained that she'd started using fewer panels per page, making the work more friendly for the collected editions. Ottaviani also recalled that Medley had once recommended a book called "The Five Scenes of Cinematography." But on this subject, Medley was quick to add the caveat that "the rules of film are not always going to apply to the printed page." She does, however, believe that since the modern audience has been brought up on film and television, static comic panels are forced to find a way to convey motion to keep pace with what people are accustomed to seeing. That being said, Medley admitted that, as an audience, it takes more effort to interpret the narrative in comics than it does in film. And as far as she is concerned, making the reader do the work makes the experience all the more engaging.
Medley has an interesting take on the writer/artist relationship. "As an artist," she explained, "it is your job to do what the writer wants." She encourages writers to ask more of their artists, and to "never, ever waste the pictures." She cited Alan Moore as an extreme example, who has been known to devote an entire page of a comic manuscript to the description of a single panel.
On the other hand, an accomplished artist herself, Medley also recounted a dark era of her career working as the penciller on an unnamed Vertigo title with a writer (who also remained nameless) whose work she did not hold in the highest regard. To make the experience bearable, she endeavored to infuse as much characterization as she could into the drawings themselves. Years later, in telling this story to a contemporary Vertigo editor, the editor recalled the artistic flourishes clear as day. And he was shocked to learn that Medley was the brainchild, because, in his words, "we thought that was the only thing the writer was doing right." She took this as an affirmation that people really do notice the little details.
"I see drawing comics as a performance art," Medley said. And her approach to creating them, both as a writer and an artist, is decidedly nonlinear. She'll break an entire project into its component scenes and pick and choose which one she's in the mood to work on at any given moment. "It's actually acting. I can play a 90 year old man. Angelina Jolie can't do that."
Medley's entire family was in attendance at the panel, and took a few moments out of the Q&A to weigh in on Linda's career. They too recalled her journey from convention attendee to honored guest. And they couldn't be prouder of what she has accomplished.
Fantagraphics is currently publishing Medley's new run on "Castle Waiting," and her "Oz" stories are still looking for a home.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=7962
Linda MedleyVeteran comics creator Linda Medley is a veritable jack of all trades: Her many and varied titles in the world of comics have included writer, penciller, colorist and story editor. She's also no stranger to San Diego's Comic-Con International. She first made the pilgrimage in 1980 as nothing more than a fan. And the "Spotlight on Linda Medley" panel at this year's Comic-Con was as much a retrospective on everything she's accomplished to date in the medium as it was a celebration of her triumphant return to comics.
Perhaps best known for the fan-favorite "Castle Waiting," Medley discontinued the series in 2002 after issue 16. She explained that going through a rash of publishers, and failing twice as a self-publisher, compelled her to quit the industry. She had also developed a crippling tendonitis, which made it nigh impossible for her to produce artwork. But in the gap between '02 and her return to comics towards the end of last year, Medley has triumphed over her tendonitis, and sunk her teeth into a new writing project which helped her get over the frustrating experience that was "Castle Waiting."
For the benefit of the uninitiated, Medley summed up "Castle Waiting" in just a few words: "What happens after happily ever after?" In short, it is a reconstruction of classic fairy tales. When asked why she felt the need to reconstruct the stories, Medley explained that these types of fables were designed to "educate and entertain the culture of the time." It is her hope that by updating the stories so that they apply to the culture of today, they won't be relegated to mere nostalgia.
And after getting some distance from the series, Medley has enthusiastically picked up where she left off. In addition to a new hardcover edition of "Castle Waiting," collecting the first three story arcs, the new issue of the series, continuing the "Interiors" story arc begun in issues 15 and 16, it debuted at Comic-Con this past Friday.
The project that reinvigorated Medley during her hiatus is a new comic series based on underused characters in L. Frank Baum's "Oz" stories (not the HBO prison drama, as the moderator suggested in jest). Ozma (the queen of Oz), Ev (the land beyond the deadly desert) and the Gnome King are just of few of the parts of Baum's mythology that she hopes to expand upon.
Friend, colleague and self-ascribed protégé Jim Ottaviani moderated the panel (in Gary Groth's stead). Ottaviani has been lucky enough to see some of the 300 odd pages of as yet unpublished "Oz" material that Medley has produced. He notes that her newer work boasts a marked change in page layouts and panel construction, and he asked Medley to expound on the form and function of the new storytelling method. Linda explained that she'd started using fewer panels per page, making the work more friendly for the collected editions. Ottaviani also recalled that Medley had once recommended a book called "The Five Scenes of Cinematography." But on this subject, Medley was quick to add the caveat that "the rules of film are not always going to apply to the printed page." She does, however, believe that since the modern audience has been brought up on film and television, static comic panels are forced to find a way to convey motion to keep pace with what people are accustomed to seeing. That being said, Medley admitted that, as an audience, it takes more effort to interpret the narrative in comics than it does in film. And as far as she is concerned, making the reader do the work makes the experience all the more engaging.
Medley has an interesting take on the writer/artist relationship. "As an artist," she explained, "it is your job to do what the writer wants." She encourages writers to ask more of their artists, and to "never, ever waste the pictures." She cited Alan Moore as an extreme example, who has been known to devote an entire page of a comic manuscript to the description of a single panel.
On the other hand, an accomplished artist herself, Medley also recounted a dark era of her career working as the penciller on an unnamed Vertigo title with a writer (who also remained nameless) whose work she did not hold in the highest regard. To make the experience bearable, she endeavored to infuse as much characterization as she could into the drawings themselves. Years later, in telling this story to a contemporary Vertigo editor, the editor recalled the artistic flourishes clear as day. And he was shocked to learn that Medley was the brainchild, because, in his words, "we thought that was the only thing the writer was doing right." She took this as an affirmation that people really do notice the little details.
"I see drawing comics as a performance art," Medley said. And her approach to creating them, both as a writer and an artist, is decidedly nonlinear. She'll break an entire project into its component scenes and pick and choose which one she's in the mood to work on at any given moment. "It's actually acting. I can play a 90 year old man. Angelina Jolie can't do that."
Medley's entire family was in attendance at the panel, and took a few moments out of the Q&A to weigh in on Linda's career. They too recalled her journey from convention attendee to honored guest. And they couldn't be prouder of what she has accomplished.
Fantagraphics is currently publishing Medley's new run on "Castle Waiting," and her "Oz" stories are still looking for a home.
http://www.comicbookresources.com/news/newsitem.cgi?id=7962
Wayne Brady and David Alan Grier to Star in La Jolla Wiz
By Andrew Gans and Ernio Hernandez25 Jul 2006
Wayne Brady
Casting for the La Jolla Playhouse's production of The Wiz — directed by Jersey Boys' Des McAnuff — has been announced. Former talk-show host Wayne Brady and stage and screen star David Alan Grier will be among the cast.
Producers announced July 25 that Brady, who made his Broadway debut in Chicago, will play the Scarecrow, while Grier will star in the title role.
The cast will also include Nikki M. James (All Shook Up) as Dorothy, Titus Burgess (Jersey Boys) as the Lion, Michael Benjamin Washington (La Cage aux Folles) as the Tinman, E. Faye Butler as the wicked witch Evillene, Orville Mendoza as Uncle Henry, Valarie Pettiford as Glinda and Aunt Em and Heather Lee as Addaperle.
"Our production will reflect the shifts that have occurred in the dominant pop culture, in both music and theatre, since The Wiz's history-making Broadway debut in the 1970s," explained McAnuff about the new take. "This is modern Oz, with a modern look and modern sounds. It is a privilege to working with such an esteemed company of actors as we head together into this great adventure. This promises to be an exciting ride for all of us!"
McAnuff will work with Harold Wheeler, who orchestrated the original Broadway production of The Wiz, on giving this version a more contemporary sound. An environmental set by Robert Brill will also be part of the show's new concept, which includes a dancer (Albert Blaise) rather than a dog in the role of Dorothy's beloved Toto.
The creative team will also feature Howell Binkley (lighting design), Sergio Trujillo (choreography) and Paul Tazewell (costume design).
The "re-imagining" of the Charlie Smalls (score)-William F. Brown (book) musical The Wiz is scheduled to begin previews Sept. 26 in the Mandell Weiss Theatre. With an official opening Oct. 8, the limited and possibly Broadway-bound production will run through Nov. 12.
Wayne Brady is known for bursting into song as the host of the recent "The Wayne Brady Show" as well as for his improvisational skills on ABC's "Whose Line is it Anyway?" Brady has also made guest appearances on television's "I'll Fly Away," "Home Court," "In the Heat of the Night," "Chappelle's Show" and "American Dreams." His stage credits include productions of A Chorus Line, Fences, I'm Not Rappaport, A Raisin in the Sun and Blade to the Heat. Brady made his Broadway debut as slick lawyer Billy Flynn in Chicago.
David Alan Grier last appeared on Broadway in the lead role of Pseudolus in the revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. His Broadway debut came in the musical The First, as baseball great Jackie Robinson — which earned the actor a Tony nomination. The comedic actor is also known for his roles on television in "In Living Color," "Life With Bonnie" and in the films "The Woodsman," "15 Minutes," "Return to Me," "Jumanji," "Boomerang" and "Bewitched."
The Wiz opened at Broadway's Majestic Theatre Jan. 5, 1975, and later transferred to the Broadway Theatre. The musical closed Jan. 28, 1979, after playing 1,672 performances. The original cast included Hinton Battle as the Scarecrow, Tiger Haynes as the Tinman, Stephanie Mills as Dorothy, Ted Ross as the Lion, Dee Dee Bridgewater as Glinda, André De Shields as The Wiz, Mabel King as Evillene and Clarice Taylor as Addaperle. The Wiz won seven 1975 Tony Awards including Best Musical. A 1984 revival — also with Mills as Dorothy — managed only 13 performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.
For more information visit www.lajollaplayhouse.com.
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/101047.html
Wayne Brady
Casting for the La Jolla Playhouse's production of The Wiz — directed by Jersey Boys' Des McAnuff — has been announced. Former talk-show host Wayne Brady and stage and screen star David Alan Grier will be among the cast.
Producers announced July 25 that Brady, who made his Broadway debut in Chicago, will play the Scarecrow, while Grier will star in the title role.
The cast will also include Nikki M. James (All Shook Up) as Dorothy, Titus Burgess (Jersey Boys) as the Lion, Michael Benjamin Washington (La Cage aux Folles) as the Tinman, E. Faye Butler as the wicked witch Evillene, Orville Mendoza as Uncle Henry, Valarie Pettiford as Glinda and Aunt Em and Heather Lee as Addaperle.
"Our production will reflect the shifts that have occurred in the dominant pop culture, in both music and theatre, since The Wiz's history-making Broadway debut in the 1970s," explained McAnuff about the new take. "This is modern Oz, with a modern look and modern sounds. It is a privilege to working with such an esteemed company of actors as we head together into this great adventure. This promises to be an exciting ride for all of us!"
McAnuff will work with Harold Wheeler, who orchestrated the original Broadway production of The Wiz, on giving this version a more contemporary sound. An environmental set by Robert Brill will also be part of the show's new concept, which includes a dancer (Albert Blaise) rather than a dog in the role of Dorothy's beloved Toto.
The creative team will also feature Howell Binkley (lighting design), Sergio Trujillo (choreography) and Paul Tazewell (costume design).
The "re-imagining" of the Charlie Smalls (score)-William F. Brown (book) musical The Wiz is scheduled to begin previews Sept. 26 in the Mandell Weiss Theatre. With an official opening Oct. 8, the limited and possibly Broadway-bound production will run through Nov. 12.
Wayne Brady is known for bursting into song as the host of the recent "The Wayne Brady Show" as well as for his improvisational skills on ABC's "Whose Line is it Anyway?" Brady has also made guest appearances on television's "I'll Fly Away," "Home Court," "In the Heat of the Night," "Chappelle's Show" and "American Dreams." His stage credits include productions of A Chorus Line, Fences, I'm Not Rappaport, A Raisin in the Sun and Blade to the Heat. Brady made his Broadway debut as slick lawyer Billy Flynn in Chicago.
David Alan Grier last appeared on Broadway in the lead role of Pseudolus in the revival of A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum. His Broadway debut came in the musical The First, as baseball great Jackie Robinson — which earned the actor a Tony nomination. The comedic actor is also known for his roles on television in "In Living Color," "Life With Bonnie" and in the films "The Woodsman," "15 Minutes," "Return to Me," "Jumanji," "Boomerang" and "Bewitched."
The Wiz opened at Broadway's Majestic Theatre Jan. 5, 1975, and later transferred to the Broadway Theatre. The musical closed Jan. 28, 1979, after playing 1,672 performances. The original cast included Hinton Battle as the Scarecrow, Tiger Haynes as the Tinman, Stephanie Mills as Dorothy, Ted Ross as the Lion, Dee Dee Bridgewater as Glinda, André De Shields as The Wiz, Mabel King as Evillene and Clarice Taylor as Addaperle. The Wiz won seven 1975 Tony Awards including Best Musical. A 1984 revival — also with Mills as Dorothy — managed only 13 performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.
For more information visit www.lajollaplayhouse.com.
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/101047.html
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Full Production of Wicked Likely to Open in Japan in 2007
By Andrew Gans24 Jul 2006
Although the Universal Studios theme park in Osaka, Japan, is currently presenting a 30-minute version of Wicked, a full-scale production of the hit Stephen Schwartz musical will likely open in Japan next year.
Wicked producer Marc Platt told Variety, "We now have fairly definite plans with the Shiki Theatrical Company to undertake a full Japanese language production in 2007." The Shiki Theatrical Company is responsible for the Japanese tours of The Lion King and Mamma Mia!.
The current 30-minute version of the musical, the industry paper says, was created with the help of composer Schwartz and book writer Winnie Holzman. It features a paired-down version of the first act, focusing mainly on the relationship between Glinda and Elphaba, and concludes with the first-act finale, “Defying Gravity.”
About 30% of the Universal Studios version, which is presented several times each day, is in English; the full-scale production will be completely translated into Japanese. The Universal production also features three Elphabas and three Glindas; the green-faced witches are played by American or Australian actresses, while the Glindas are all Japanese.
In addition to a national tour, Wicked currently plays Broadway’s Gershwin Theatre and Chicago’s Ford Center for the Performing Arts' Oriental Theatre. The musical will begin previews in London Sept. 7 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, and a new production will open at Los Angeles’ Pantages Theatre in February 2007.
Based on Maguire's novel, which turned every Oz myth inside out, Wicked explores the early life of the witches of Oz: Glinda and Elphaba. The two main characters meet at Shiz, a school where both hope to take up sorcery. Glinda is madly popular and Elphaba is, well, green. By a misunderstanding, they wind up roommates and, after an initial period of mutual loathing, begin to learn something about each other. Their life paths continue to intersect through a shared love, entry into the Emerald City and interaction with the Wizard himself. Eventually, their choices and convictions take them on widely different paths.
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/101022.html
Although the Universal Studios theme park in Osaka, Japan, is currently presenting a 30-minute version of Wicked, a full-scale production of the hit Stephen Schwartz musical will likely open in Japan next year.
Wicked producer Marc Platt told Variety, "We now have fairly definite plans with the Shiki Theatrical Company to undertake a full Japanese language production in 2007." The Shiki Theatrical Company is responsible for the Japanese tours of The Lion King and Mamma Mia!.
The current 30-minute version of the musical, the industry paper says, was created with the help of composer Schwartz and book writer Winnie Holzman. It features a paired-down version of the first act, focusing mainly on the relationship between Glinda and Elphaba, and concludes with the first-act finale, “Defying Gravity.”
About 30% of the Universal Studios version, which is presented several times each day, is in English; the full-scale production will be completely translated into Japanese. The Universal production also features three Elphabas and three Glindas; the green-faced witches are played by American or Australian actresses, while the Glindas are all Japanese.
In addition to a national tour, Wicked currently plays Broadway’s Gershwin Theatre and Chicago’s Ford Center for the Performing Arts' Oriental Theatre. The musical will begin previews in London Sept. 7 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre, and a new production will open at Los Angeles’ Pantages Theatre in February 2007.
Based on Maguire's novel, which turned every Oz myth inside out, Wicked explores the early life of the witches of Oz: Glinda and Elphaba. The two main characters meet at Shiz, a school where both hope to take up sorcery. Glinda is madly popular and Elphaba is, well, green. By a misunderstanding, they wind up roommates and, after an initial period of mutual loathing, begin to learn something about each other. Their life paths continue to intersect through a shared love, entry into the Emerald City and interaction with the Wizard himself. Eventually, their choices and convictions take them on widely different paths.
http://www.playbill.com/news/article/101022.html
Casting Is Announced for a ‘Wiz’ Revival
Wayne Brady will play the Scarecrow and David Alan Grier (“In Living Color”) will be the Wiz in a revival of the musical “The Wiz,” to be directed by Des McAnuff at the La Jolla Playhouse in California. The show begins previews on Sept. 26 and opens on Oct. 11. Robert Brill (“A Streetcar Named Desire”) will design the set in the Mandell Weiss Theater, which has been redesigned for the production. Mr. McAnuff has won two Tony Awards for direction, and was nominated this year for “Jersey Boys,” winner of the best musical award. “The Wiz,” based on “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” by L. Frank Baum, with a book by William F. Brown, and music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls, opened on Broadway on Jan. 5, 1975, won seven Tony Awards that year and ran for 1,672 performances. A 1984 revival closed after only 13 performances. Also in the cast of the revival are Nikki M. James (“All Shook Up”) as Dorothy, Tituss Burgess (“Jersey Boys”) as the Lion and Michael Benjamin Washington (“La Cage aux Folles”) as the Tin Man.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/25/arts/25arts.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/25/arts/25arts.html
Brady and Grier Among the Cast of The Wiz at La Jolla
Principal casting as been announced for The Wiz, directed by Des McAnuff, at La Jolla Playhouse. The cast will feature Nikki M. James as Dorothy, Wayne Brady as the Scarecrow, Tituss Burgess as the Lion, Michael Benjamin Washington as the Tinman, David Alan Grier as The Wiz, E. Faye Butler as Evillene, Valarie Pettiford as Aunt Em and Glinda, Heather Lee as Addaperle and Orville Mendoza as Uncle Henry.
James has been featured on Broadway in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and All Shook Up. Other notable credits include the recent off-Broadway musical Bernarda Alba, the Encores! mounting of House of Flowers and Babes in Arms at Goodspeed Musicals.
Brady is best known as the Emmy Award-winning host and executive producer of The Wayne Brady Show, a syndicated talk show that went off the air in 2004. A comedian, writer and performer, Brady began his career on stage. His theatrical credits include A Chorus Line, Fences, I'm Not Rappaport, A Raisin in the Sun and Blade to the Heat at the Mark Taper Forum. He made his Broadway debut in Chicago in 2004. In addition to The Wayne Brady Show, his television credits include the improvisational comedy program Whose Line is it Anyway? (for which he was awarded an Emmy for Individual Performance, Variety or Music Program), Kevin Hill and Girlfriends.
Burgess is currently appearing on Broadway in McAnuff's production of Jersey Boys, which he also appeared in at La Jolla. He additionally appeared on the Great White Way in Good Vibrations.
http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=533929
James has been featured on Broadway in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and All Shook Up. Other notable credits include the recent off-Broadway musical Bernarda Alba, the Encores! mounting of House of Flowers and Babes in Arms at Goodspeed Musicals.
Brady is best known as the Emmy Award-winning host and executive producer of The Wayne Brady Show, a syndicated talk show that went off the air in 2004. A comedian, writer and performer, Brady began his career on stage. His theatrical credits include A Chorus Line, Fences, I'm Not Rappaport, A Raisin in the Sun and Blade to the Heat at the Mark Taper Forum. He made his Broadway debut in Chicago in 2004. In addition to The Wayne Brady Show, his television credits include the improvisational comedy program Whose Line is it Anyway? (for which he was awarded an Emmy for Individual Performance, Variety or Music Program), Kevin Hill and Girlfriends.
Burgess is currently appearing on Broadway in McAnuff's production of Jersey Boys, which he also appeared in at La Jolla. He additionally appeared on the Great White Way in Good Vibrations.
http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=533929
Monday, July 24, 2006
Time to Register for Munchkin Convention....
2006 IWOC Munchkin Convention, Aug 11 - 13, Hyatt Regency, Princeton Posted by: "sheriebaby2002" warkala@comcast.net sheriebaby2002 Date: Fri Jul 14, 2006 7:19 am (PDT)Greetings Fellow Oz Enthusiasts!We are posting this message to invite everyone to attend the 2006 International Wizard of Oz Club Munchkin (East Coast) Convention ("MunchCon") and to provide you with some of the highlights of the fantastic program planned for this year. Our theme this year –"Ozma's Birthday Party for L. Frank Baum" – celebrates the 150th anniversary of the birth of the creator and Royal Historian of Oz and pays tribute to Baum, his works, and all things Oz that have derived from them. The convention will be held August 11th to 13th at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Princeton, New Jersey. Our weekend program will feature:-- Clarence Swensen – An original MGM Munchkin Soldier. Accompanied by his lovely wife Myrna, Clarence will spend the weekend with us and will be featured as a part of our Saturday evening program. Clarence will also be accessible to the general public on Saturday Afternoon in our MunchkinLand MarketPlace area and will be posing for photos and selling/signing his own photos and autographs. -- John Fricke -- Author, director, Emmy-award winning producer, renowned Judy Garland expert and biographer, Oz historian, entertainer, and long-time friend and member of the Int'l Wizard of Oz Club, John Fricke will join us and will help us pay tribute to the 50th Anniversary of the first televised broadcast of MGM's "The Wizard of Oz".-- Michael Patrick Hearn - One of the world's leading Oz scholars and author of The Annotated Wizard of Oz, Michael Patrick Hearn, will come to Munchkin Convention to discuss his latest Oz-related endeavor as curator of The Wonderful Art of Oz exhibition at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art and provide his unique perspective on our tributes to Baum and Denslow on their sesquicentennials.--Land of Oz, Banner Elk, NC -- MunchCon's favorite Scarecrow, Sean Barrett, in collaboration with David Maxine, owner of Hungry Tiger Press, will bring a fantastic multimedia presentation on the Land of Oz Theme Park in Banner Elk, North Carolina. Also on hand will be the entire cast of costumed Oz Characters from the annual Banner Elk Autumn at Oz event including Sean as the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, Wicked Witch of the West, and, of course, Dorothy with a real live Toto too! The Oz gang will be on hand ALL WEEKEND LONG, so bring your cameras for plenty of photo opportunities with your favorite characters! -- The Madame Alexander Doll Company will feature a weekend long display of their extensive line of Wizard of Oz collectible dolls. MADC representatives will give a presentation on the creation of their collectible dolls on Friday evening. MADC will also be displaying and selling their dolls on Saturday during at the MunchkinLand MarketPlace. They promise special treats and surprises for MunchConventioneers throughout the weekend including a special, one-of-a-kind piece to be included in the MunchCon Auction – doll and Oz collectors won't want to miss this!-- IWOC's own John Bell will give a celebratory talk on the centennial of L. Frank Baum's non-Oz fantasy "John Dough and the Cherub".-- All of new IWOC publications will be available and on sale at MunchCon (save on shipping costs and buy them at MunchCon) and we are anxiously waiting for word on availability on the release of the latest new Oz title from author Gina Wickwar and illustrator Anna-Maria (Cool) Basom – Toto of Oz! IWOC tells us that the book is in the final stages of publication and we hope that it will be ready to debut at MunchCon. Gina and Anna-Maria will both be at MunchCon to sign their new book and their past collaboration – The Hidden Prince of Oz - too! Anna-Maria will also be selling/signing pieces of her original artwork from Toto and Hidden Prince at the MunchkinLand MarketPlace on Saturday Afternoon!-- Author David Anthony will be at the MunchkinLand MarketPlace on Saturday selling/signing his new book - In Search of Dorothy: What If It Wasn't A Dream? - the first of a trilogy published by Frederick Fell Publishers. What if Oz wasn't a Dream? What if it was real? In Search of Dorothy picks up where the movie, The Wizard of Oz, left off. Get your signed copy at MunchCon and read the story that Rolling Stone Magazine says is, "the best sequel of OZ yet!"-- Origins of Oz – Things You Didn't Know That You Didn't Know About Oz! NEW THIS YEAR! Long before Wicked came to Broadway and Judy Garland took us over the rainbow to Oz and ever since, Oz has been an enduring and pervasive topic in art, literature, entertainment, and popular culture. In honor of the 150th anniversary of the birth of the creator of Oz, L. Frank Baum, the International Wizard of Oz Club will present a series of lectures by renowned Oz scholars on a variety of Oz-related topics. You don't have to register for the convention to attend the lectures -- they are FREE and OPEN TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC. Spend a Saturday afternoon expanding your Oz horizons and exploring the Land of Oz beyond the yellow brick road!ATTENTION OZ COLLECTORS: Our auctioneer, Bruce Conklin, has some great items that will be featured in the Auction on Saturday. Some of the featured items that serious collectors won't want to miss: At least fifteen 1st edition books including nine from the Baum fourteen and a John Dough and the Cherub (100 years old this year!), 2nd editions including the Wizard of Oz, MIB Mego Dolls, a Mego Emerald City Playset with box, rare British Wizard of Oz Card Game, 50th anniversary WOZ promotional jacket, and the one-of-a-kind Oz piece from Madame Alexander Doll Company that will only be available at MunchCon, and more, more, more!! Past attendees and serious collectors know that the prices can't be beat at the MunchCon Auction! So if you consider what you might pay for any one of these pieces on Ebay – you can probably finance your entire weekend of Ozzy fun at MunchCon AND leave with an armful or more of goodies for your Oz collection!Our Saturday evening gala reception and dinner banquet will feature the theme Ozma's Birthday Party for L. Frank Baum. As is Ozma's custom when celebrating her own birthdays and as a tribute to L. Frank Baum, the Royal Historian of Oz, the party will begin with a procession of the "Citizens of Oz" dressed in their Oz finery. Munch-Conventioneers are invited to come dressed as their favorite "Citizen of Oz" and all costumed citizens will be entered into the Munchkin Costume Contest! If you don't want to don a full costume -- wear your best Ozzy party hat instead! And if you don't have one or forget to bring it -- we'll have a party hat crafting opportunity during the auction! Prizes will be awarded for the best Ozzy costumes and party hats!In addition, we will have games, contests, the Antiques Road to Oz Show (bring your Oz collectibles and have them appraised by the Oz Experts), displays of Ozzy collectibles, tributes to significant Oz anniversaries, and a few more special surprises that are still in the works! For more information and to keep abreast of program updates, visit the Munchkin Convention website at mywebpages.comcast.net/munchcon or email us at munchcon@comcast.net.We invite all to attend this great annual event! Hope to see you there!Yours in Oz,Chris & Sharon WarkalaMunchkin Convention CoordinatorsEmail: munchcon@comcast.netWebsite: mywebpages.comcast.net/munchcon/
Something 'Wicked' this way comes
By Anne Marie WelshUNION-TRIBUNE THEATER CRITIC
July 23, 2006
Cool! A chance to get some hot seats 'Wicked” was snubbed by most Tony Award voters in favor of “Avenue Q,” which took home the coveted best musical trophy in 2004. But the witches of Oz have been cackling all the way to the bank, for the mildly subversive musical about a misunderstood outsider, who just happens to be green, has been raking in the yellow bricks on Broadway, in a sit-down run in Chicago, and across the country on tour.
In San Diego, where the show based on the popular Gregory Maguire novel opens a two-week stand this week, all 16 performances are virtually sold out, although a dozen or so tickets will be available for each performance in a pre-show lottery.
DATEBOOK
"Wicked" Opens 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Runs 7:30 Tuesdays, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 2, 7:30 Fridays, 2 and 7:30 Saturdays, 1 and 6:30 Sundays, through Aug. 6, with a 2 p.m. show this Thursday; Civic Theatre, 201 C St., downtown; $29 to $127; (619) 570-1111 or www.broadwaysd.com
The show was dismissed by New York critics when it opened in October of 2003. Still, “Wicked” went on to become a nationwide word-of-mouth phenomenon when the cast CD moved its self-empowerment message set to a bland pop score by Stephen Schwartz into the minds and hearts of teen listeners, the majority of them girls.
In fact, the savvy show deserved better reviews than it got. With a top-flight cast featuring Joel Grey along with co-stars Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda the Good and Idina Menzel as Elphaba the Green, the show raced past the bad reviews on the strengths of their performances, the psychological and moral ideas in Winnie Holzman's book, and the shrewd direction of Joe Mantello. A massive and fanciful set helped, as did the flying scenes.
Six months after opening, “Wicked” was pulling in $1.2 million a week at the Gershwin where it reminded producers (Marc Platt and Universal Pictures) of the glory days of “Phantom of the Opera” and “The Producers.” Two years later, “Wicked” had racked up an impressive $32 million in advance sales, with the combined grosses from Broadway, the Chicago run and the tour topping a quarter of a billion dollars.
Now, 18 months later, with some of the bigger tour venues taking in $2 million a week, the show is moving toward the half-billion mark. In New York, where it took in $1.4 million last week, “Wicked” vies with “Spamalot” as the hottest ticket on “The Great White Way.”
In San Diego, says Willcox, “the speed of ticket sales was faster than any we've ever seen. That may be a symptom of the fact that 'Phantom' and 'The Lion King' were both scheduled for six weeks and 'Wicked' is only for two weeks.” So great was local demand that Broadway/San Diego, which give first dibs to subscribers, had to stop marketing group sales, “in order to be certain we had enough left for single ticket purchase. We stopped groups in February. We were aware that we wouldn't have enough seats left for single sales beginning May 1.”
The night before May 1 outside the Civic, one intrepid group of fans formed a line and camped out. Others arrived at 5 a.m. “Something like 800 people were in line before the box office closed,” Willcox says, including many who paid $127 for what the presenter calls “VIP seats” in 16 rows of the center section of the orchestra area. That's $17 more than the regular top price in new York. So what's the pull?
“Wicked” dramatizes the speculative backstory to the two witches of Oz – before Dorothy and Toto arrive. The tale subverts the usual division of witchery into good and bad. Elphaba, the birth name of the Wicked Witch of the West played by Margaret Hamilton in the mega-popular film, is definitely not bad. She's just green, smart and different. Golden girl Galinda, on the other hand, with her smiling wiles that led to her role as Glinda the Good, isn't so much good as canny and politically astute – and, most of all, popular.
Schwartz's best song, a bubble gum pop number called “Popular,” anatomizes Galinda's shallowness, as she merrily tries to transform the hardheaded, thoughtful Elphaba into an airhead, just like her. That mock tune carries much of the show's appeal – not only for girls, but for their moms who want to encourage their darlings to be something more than bimbotic Barbie dolls, or little Britneys in bud.
“What we started experiencing,” says Willcox, “was primarily moms telling us their daughter was e-mailed a song by someone, so they went out and bought either the book or the CD. When teenagers read this book about the relationship between these two young women, they identify with that pull in society that says if you're a strong woman, you may not be looked kindly upon. If you're not the goody two-shoes who give people what they want like Galinda, you may be labeled something else, like Elphaba. Maguire wrote the book as a political protest.”
Willcox says that the core audience here will be those mother-daughter duos, but she thinks that the show, which includes major plotlines about animals fighting for their civil rights, “has so many layers that my 8-year-old will have a fabulous time and there's plenty there for my husband as well.”
Some of the negative criticism directed at the show found its message a throwback to the worst days of the culture wars over political correctness. The winners, like Galinda and L. Frank Baum, used to get to write Oz history, and now the losers, like Maguire and Elphaba, get to rewrite it.
But as Willcox points out, both women in “Wicked” pay a price for the way social labels define and thwart them. It's a far heavier price in the novel than in the show, needless to say, as writer Holzman gives Elphaba pretty much everything that her heart desires – but she must enjoy her rewards out of the limelight that Galinda-turned-Glinda hogs.
It's that conflict between insider and outsider that even the show's casting tapped. Chenoweth, playing peppy Galinda, was already an insider beloved by drama queens and extolled for showing a sharp new comic sense in “Wicked.” The Variety critic praised “her voice shifting between operetta-ish trills and Broadway brass, her posture melting between prom-queen vampiness and martial arts moves . . . (as) she evokes everyone from Jeanette MacDonald to Cameron Diaz, from Mary Martin to Madonna.”
Menzel, on the other hand, playing the thoughtful loner Elphaba, was mostly known for originating the role of bisexual Maureen in “Rent,” but that was back in 1996.
When it came time for Broadway parodist Gerard Alessandrini to create a “Wicked” number for the eighth installment of his satire “Forbidden Broadway,” he played up the competition of outsider Menzel (Elphaba) and insider Chenoweth (Galinda) for the best actress in a musical Tony. To the strains of “Popular” the two belters – Chenoweth, the consummate, beloved star and Menzel, the dark horse who emerged with the bohemians of “Rent” – duke it out. Galinda must hear herself called “a cute obnoxious phoney” while misfit Elphaba becomes “a vulgar one-trick pony.”
In real life, as in “Forbidden Broadway,” Menzel, the green underdog, won the Tony and the hearts of the masses who've made “Wicked” the latest critic-proof mega-hit to sell out the Civic.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20060723-9999-1a23wicked.html
July 23, 2006
Cool! A chance to get some hot seats 'Wicked” was snubbed by most Tony Award voters in favor of “Avenue Q,” which took home the coveted best musical trophy in 2004. But the witches of Oz have been cackling all the way to the bank, for the mildly subversive musical about a misunderstood outsider, who just happens to be green, has been raking in the yellow bricks on Broadway, in a sit-down run in Chicago, and across the country on tour.
In San Diego, where the show based on the popular Gregory Maguire novel opens a two-week stand this week, all 16 performances are virtually sold out, although a dozen or so tickets will be available for each performance in a pre-show lottery.
DATEBOOK
"Wicked" Opens 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Runs 7:30 Tuesdays, 7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 2, 7:30 Fridays, 2 and 7:30 Saturdays, 1 and 6:30 Sundays, through Aug. 6, with a 2 p.m. show this Thursday; Civic Theatre, 201 C St., downtown; $29 to $127; (619) 570-1111 or www.broadwaysd.com
The show was dismissed by New York critics when it opened in October of 2003. Still, “Wicked” went on to become a nationwide word-of-mouth phenomenon when the cast CD moved its self-empowerment message set to a bland pop score by Stephen Schwartz into the minds and hearts of teen listeners, the majority of them girls.
In fact, the savvy show deserved better reviews than it got. With a top-flight cast featuring Joel Grey along with co-stars Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda the Good and Idina Menzel as Elphaba the Green, the show raced past the bad reviews on the strengths of their performances, the psychological and moral ideas in Winnie Holzman's book, and the shrewd direction of Joe Mantello. A massive and fanciful set helped, as did the flying scenes.
Six months after opening, “Wicked” was pulling in $1.2 million a week at the Gershwin where it reminded producers (Marc Platt and Universal Pictures) of the glory days of “Phantom of the Opera” and “The Producers.” Two years later, “Wicked” had racked up an impressive $32 million in advance sales, with the combined grosses from Broadway, the Chicago run and the tour topping a quarter of a billion dollars.
Now, 18 months later, with some of the bigger tour venues taking in $2 million a week, the show is moving toward the half-billion mark. In New York, where it took in $1.4 million last week, “Wicked” vies with “Spamalot” as the hottest ticket on “The Great White Way.”
In San Diego, says Willcox, “the speed of ticket sales was faster than any we've ever seen. That may be a symptom of the fact that 'Phantom' and 'The Lion King' were both scheduled for six weeks and 'Wicked' is only for two weeks.” So great was local demand that Broadway/San Diego, which give first dibs to subscribers, had to stop marketing group sales, “in order to be certain we had enough left for single ticket purchase. We stopped groups in February. We were aware that we wouldn't have enough seats left for single sales beginning May 1.”
The night before May 1 outside the Civic, one intrepid group of fans formed a line and camped out. Others arrived at 5 a.m. “Something like 800 people were in line before the box office closed,” Willcox says, including many who paid $127 for what the presenter calls “VIP seats” in 16 rows of the center section of the orchestra area. That's $17 more than the regular top price in new York. So what's the pull?
“Wicked” dramatizes the speculative backstory to the two witches of Oz – before Dorothy and Toto arrive. The tale subverts the usual division of witchery into good and bad. Elphaba, the birth name of the Wicked Witch of the West played by Margaret Hamilton in the mega-popular film, is definitely not bad. She's just green, smart and different. Golden girl Galinda, on the other hand, with her smiling wiles that led to her role as Glinda the Good, isn't so much good as canny and politically astute – and, most of all, popular.
Schwartz's best song, a bubble gum pop number called “Popular,” anatomizes Galinda's shallowness, as she merrily tries to transform the hardheaded, thoughtful Elphaba into an airhead, just like her. That mock tune carries much of the show's appeal – not only for girls, but for their moms who want to encourage their darlings to be something more than bimbotic Barbie dolls, or little Britneys in bud.
“What we started experiencing,” says Willcox, “was primarily moms telling us their daughter was e-mailed a song by someone, so they went out and bought either the book or the CD. When teenagers read this book about the relationship between these two young women, they identify with that pull in society that says if you're a strong woman, you may not be looked kindly upon. If you're not the goody two-shoes who give people what they want like Galinda, you may be labeled something else, like Elphaba. Maguire wrote the book as a political protest.”
Willcox says that the core audience here will be those mother-daughter duos, but she thinks that the show, which includes major plotlines about animals fighting for their civil rights, “has so many layers that my 8-year-old will have a fabulous time and there's plenty there for my husband as well.”
Some of the negative criticism directed at the show found its message a throwback to the worst days of the culture wars over political correctness. The winners, like Galinda and L. Frank Baum, used to get to write Oz history, and now the losers, like Maguire and Elphaba, get to rewrite it.
But as Willcox points out, both women in “Wicked” pay a price for the way social labels define and thwart them. It's a far heavier price in the novel than in the show, needless to say, as writer Holzman gives Elphaba pretty much everything that her heart desires – but she must enjoy her rewards out of the limelight that Galinda-turned-Glinda hogs.
It's that conflict between insider and outsider that even the show's casting tapped. Chenoweth, playing peppy Galinda, was already an insider beloved by drama queens and extolled for showing a sharp new comic sense in “Wicked.” The Variety critic praised “her voice shifting between operetta-ish trills and Broadway brass, her posture melting between prom-queen vampiness and martial arts moves . . . (as) she evokes everyone from Jeanette MacDonald to Cameron Diaz, from Mary Martin to Madonna.”
Menzel, on the other hand, playing the thoughtful loner Elphaba, was mostly known for originating the role of bisexual Maureen in “Rent,” but that was back in 1996.
When it came time for Broadway parodist Gerard Alessandrini to create a “Wicked” number for the eighth installment of his satire “Forbidden Broadway,” he played up the competition of outsider Menzel (Elphaba) and insider Chenoweth (Galinda) for the best actress in a musical Tony. To the strains of “Popular” the two belters – Chenoweth, the consummate, beloved star and Menzel, the dark horse who emerged with the bohemians of “Rent” – duke it out. Galinda must hear herself called “a cute obnoxious phoney” while misfit Elphaba becomes “a vulgar one-trick pony.”
In real life, as in “Forbidden Broadway,” Menzel, the green underdog, won the Tony and the hearts of the masses who've made “Wicked” the latest critic-proof mega-hit to sell out the Civic.
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/features/20060723-9999-1a23wicked.html
Which witch captures your imagination?: ’Along the Yellow Brick Road: The Changing Look of Oz’ at Eric Karle Museum
Which witch captures your imagination?: ’Along the Yellow Brick Road: The Changing Look of Oz’ at Eric Karle MuseumBy Jennifer Lord/ Daily News StaffSunday, July 23, 2006 When L. Frank Baum first followed the Yellow Brick Road of his imagination into the land he dubbed "Oz," his Dorothy wore silver slippers and looked absolutely nothing like Judy Garland.
Baum’s goal was to create a "modernized American fairy tale," and he knew part of the magic must lie in the story’s illustration. He worked closely with artist William Wallace Denslow to create a landscape and characters like no one had ever seen before -- resulting in the children’s classic now known as "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz."
In honor of the 150th anniversary of both Baum and Denslow’s births, the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst has brought together not only Denslow’s original Art Nouveau work for the book but also artwork inspired by Oz in a new exhibition, "The Wonderful Art of Oz."
"The idea was to take a deep look at the art of the first book, the Denslow material," said H. Nichols B. Clark, the museum’s founding director."This is probably the largest gathering of Denslow’s material since the left the printer’s office."
Published in 1900, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" was designed to look like no other children’s book on the market. It included 24 color plates and over 100 two-color textural illustrations that change color as Dorothy and her friends traverse the yellow brick road.
According to Michael Patrick Hearn, author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz" and guest curator for the exhibit, Denslow conceived the book as a unified work of art and paid close attention to detail as he developed the look of Oz and its characters.
The story required him to "work out and invent characters, costumes and a multitude of other details for which there is no data -- and there never can be in original fairy tales," Denslow is quoted as saying in Hearn’s essay on the exhibit. For the Scarecrow and the Tin Man, for example, he made 25 sketches before he was satisfied with their final look, which includes the detail that the Scarecrow’s left eye is always bigger than his right.
Baum and Denslow parted ways despite the success of their collaboration -- actually, it was because of it. Their egos clashed over the preparation of a musical version of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" and both pushed forward with separate Oz projects. "Denslow’s Scarecrow and the Tin-Man," the illustrator’s follow-up, is little known today, while Baum’s "The Marvelous Land of Oz" was the second book in what became a 40-book series.
Many visitors to the exhibit are surprised to discover Baum actually wrote 14 Oz titles, Clark said. Denslow’s successor as illustrator, John R. Neill, went on to illustrate 35 Oz books, both with Baum and his successor, Ruth Plumly Thompson. Neill even wrote and illustrated three Oz titles on his own.
Neill’s first illustrations of Oz are largely faithful to Denslow’s style. In later books, his pen and ink drawings take on an airier feel. Where Denslow’s Dorothy is small and plump, with thick braids, Neill’s Dorothy is slender and blond, with short hair and an ever-present hair ribbon. [continue
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/artsCulture/view.bg?articleid=136091
Baum’s goal was to create a "modernized American fairy tale," and he knew part of the magic must lie in the story’s illustration. He worked closely with artist William Wallace Denslow to create a landscape and characters like no one had ever seen before -- resulting in the children’s classic now known as "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz."
In honor of the 150th anniversary of both Baum and Denslow’s births, the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst has brought together not only Denslow’s original Art Nouveau work for the book but also artwork inspired by Oz in a new exhibition, "The Wonderful Art of Oz."
"The idea was to take a deep look at the art of the first book, the Denslow material," said H. Nichols B. Clark, the museum’s founding director."This is probably the largest gathering of Denslow’s material since the left the printer’s office."
Published in 1900, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" was designed to look like no other children’s book on the market. It included 24 color plates and over 100 two-color textural illustrations that change color as Dorothy and her friends traverse the yellow brick road.
According to Michael Patrick Hearn, author of "The Annotated Wizard of Oz" and guest curator for the exhibit, Denslow conceived the book as a unified work of art and paid close attention to detail as he developed the look of Oz and its characters.
The story required him to "work out and invent characters, costumes and a multitude of other details for which there is no data -- and there never can be in original fairy tales," Denslow is quoted as saying in Hearn’s essay on the exhibit. For the Scarecrow and the Tin Man, for example, he made 25 sketches before he was satisfied with their final look, which includes the detail that the Scarecrow’s left eye is always bigger than his right.
Baum and Denslow parted ways despite the success of their collaboration -- actually, it was because of it. Their egos clashed over the preparation of a musical version of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" and both pushed forward with separate Oz projects. "Denslow’s Scarecrow and the Tin-Man," the illustrator’s follow-up, is little known today, while Baum’s "The Marvelous Land of Oz" was the second book in what became a 40-book series.
Many visitors to the exhibit are surprised to discover Baum actually wrote 14 Oz titles, Clark said. Denslow’s successor as illustrator, John R. Neill, went on to illustrate 35 Oz books, both with Baum and his successor, Ruth Plumly Thompson. Neill even wrote and illustrated three Oz titles on his own.
Neill’s first illustrations of Oz are largely faithful to Denslow’s style. In later books, his pen and ink drawings take on an airier feel. Where Denslow’s Dorothy is small and plump, with thick braids, Neill’s Dorothy is slender and blond, with short hair and an ever-present hair ribbon. [continue
http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/artsCulture/view.bg?articleid=136091
Munchkin-sized tuner
By GORDON COX
"Wicked" plans to be big in Japan. But for now, it's a little smaller.
The Universal Studios theme park in Osaka recently opened a 30-minute version of the "Wizard of Oz"-themed tuner, of which U is one of the producers, as the centerpiece of an Oz-themed area at the park.
The "Wicked" hors d'oeuvre is priming the pump for the full meal. "We now have fairly definite plans with the Shiki Theatrical Company" -- which has produced successful Japanese tours of "Mamma Mia!" and "The Lion King" -- "to undertake a full Japanese-language production in 2007," says "Wicked" producer Marc Platt.
Until then, though, Japanese auds can develop a taste for the show at the $4 million theme park production. The pared-down story, assembled with the input of composer Stephen Schwartz and book writer Winnie Holzman and maintaining the design of the original, strings together what Platt calls "the essentials of the first act," focusing on the relationship between Wicked Witch-to-be Elphaba and Glinda the Good Witch, and finishing with the climactic number "Defying Gravity."
It's a rare instance of the creative content of a Broadway show appearing as a live theme park attraction. Disney parks have developed short shows based on the same properties that inspired the company's Rialto tuners, but Disney Theatrical Prods. keeps its content separate, in part to help define its Broadway brand as not just for kids.
Platt originally resisted requests from U's theme parks to do a reduced version of "Wicked." It's still early in the show's life, he points out, and the market is still growing. (Consistently the Rialto's top earner since it opened in 2003, "Wicked" also has a national tour out, a sit-down in Chi and upcoming productions in L.A. and London.)
But the opportunity to introduce the property to Japan, while sticking closely to the creative elements of the original, was too good to pass up.
The half-hour show, which runs several times a day at Universal Studios Japan, has three pairs of actresses alternating in the roles of Elphaba and Glinda. All three Elphabas are American or Australian, to enhance the green girl's status as an outsider in Oz, playing opposite Japanese Glindas.
And Platt estimates that while most of the show has been translated, about 30% remains in English, especially Elphaba's lines.
That helps keep the theme park incarnation from stepping on the toes of the upcoming, fully translated version. Besides, "part of why the consumer goes to a theme park in Japan is to have the full 'American' experience," he says.
But don't look for a reduced "Wicked" to appear at any of Universal's U.S. theme parks anytime soon. "At some point way down the line, perhaps," Platt says.
For now, he aims to maintain the status of "Wicked" as an in-demand theatrical experience. "It's why we haven't rushed to a film," he says.
London calls 'Drowsy'
Cameron Mackintosh is hot for "The Drowsy Chaperone."
The Brit producer has said he's a fan of the Tony-winning tuner, and those involved in "Drowsy" say he'd like to get a London production up and running ASAP.
But it's too soon to say where another incarnation of the production might show up first. Producer Kevin McCollum says he's still deciding whether the next step for "Drowsy" is a U.K. production or a U.S./Canadian tour.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117947179?categoryid=2076&cs=1
"Wicked" plans to be big in Japan. But for now, it's a little smaller.
The Universal Studios theme park in Osaka recently opened a 30-minute version of the "Wizard of Oz"-themed tuner, of which U is one of the producers, as the centerpiece of an Oz-themed area at the park.
The "Wicked" hors d'oeuvre is priming the pump for the full meal. "We now have fairly definite plans with the Shiki Theatrical Company" -- which has produced successful Japanese tours of "Mamma Mia!" and "The Lion King" -- "to undertake a full Japanese-language production in 2007," says "Wicked" producer Marc Platt.
Until then, though, Japanese auds can develop a taste for the show at the $4 million theme park production. The pared-down story, assembled with the input of composer Stephen Schwartz and book writer Winnie Holzman and maintaining the design of the original, strings together what Platt calls "the essentials of the first act," focusing on the relationship between Wicked Witch-to-be Elphaba and Glinda the Good Witch, and finishing with the climactic number "Defying Gravity."
It's a rare instance of the creative content of a Broadway show appearing as a live theme park attraction. Disney parks have developed short shows based on the same properties that inspired the company's Rialto tuners, but Disney Theatrical Prods. keeps its content separate, in part to help define its Broadway brand as not just for kids.
Platt originally resisted requests from U's theme parks to do a reduced version of "Wicked." It's still early in the show's life, he points out, and the market is still growing. (Consistently the Rialto's top earner since it opened in 2003, "Wicked" also has a national tour out, a sit-down in Chi and upcoming productions in L.A. and London.)
But the opportunity to introduce the property to Japan, while sticking closely to the creative elements of the original, was too good to pass up.
The half-hour show, which runs several times a day at Universal Studios Japan, has three pairs of actresses alternating in the roles of Elphaba and Glinda. All three Elphabas are American or Australian, to enhance the green girl's status as an outsider in Oz, playing opposite Japanese Glindas.
And Platt estimates that while most of the show has been translated, about 30% remains in English, especially Elphaba's lines.
That helps keep the theme park incarnation from stepping on the toes of the upcoming, fully translated version. Besides, "part of why the consumer goes to a theme park in Japan is to have the full 'American' experience," he says.
But don't look for a reduced "Wicked" to appear at any of Universal's U.S. theme parks anytime soon. "At some point way down the line, perhaps," Platt says.
For now, he aims to maintain the status of "Wicked" as an in-demand theatrical experience. "It's why we haven't rushed to a film," he says.
London calls 'Drowsy'
Cameron Mackintosh is hot for "The Drowsy Chaperone."
The Brit producer has said he's a fan of the Tony-winning tuner, and those involved in "Drowsy" say he'd like to get a London production up and running ASAP.
But it's too soon to say where another incarnation of the production might show up first. Producer Kevin McCollum says he's still deciding whether the next step for "Drowsy" is a U.K. production or a U.S./Canadian tour.
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117947179?categoryid=2076&cs=1
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Shakespeare by the Sea set to stage its own adaptation of classic tale, The Wizard of "Uh" Oz
By Dean LiskShakespeare by the Sea is getting ready to click its heels three times and wish for a hit with its new family show, The Wizard of "Uh" Oz."It is going to appeal to kids and be funny to adults," said Kevin MacPherson, who is in charge of the production, which official opens today. "It tries to be clever, there are subversive things for the parents to enjoy."Rather than basing their adaptation on the film version, the play is based on L. Frank Baum's 1901 book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz."It's markedly different than the movie," said MacPherson about the book. "A lot of people know the story, but they don't know the whole story, so we are filling in the gaps."They aren't ruby red slippers in the book, they are silver shoes - I don't know why they made them ruby red."He said all the main characters are there; Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, Cowardly Lion, Wicked Witch of the West, and Wizard of Oz. We also get to meet characters from the book not included in the movie, like the Quadlings and Winkies.The play stars Zack Apostoleris, Emily Bartlett, Adam Bayne, Nathan Bender, Rhys Bevan-John, Lacey Haynes, Mike McPhee, Andrea Norwood, Drew O'Hara and Gordon White.Macpherson is in it, too. He plays Toto.All about tweakingThe adaptation started when he took the book and turned into straight dialogue. That dialogue was then adapted into a skeleton script, which the actors tweaked to add humour and wit."That's the thing about directing a play that doesn't exist; it's all tweaking," MacPherson said. "They actors are all pretty much on the same page. They get the cheekiness, and they get the humour. The cast has some funny people."We've taken liberties here and there. We've created one character - we thought it would be fun to have the ghost of the Wicked With of the East in the story so she can torment people. It provides an interesting angle.
"This is MacPherson's third year being involved in the summer family productions. Along with "Uh" Oz and last year's Robin Hood, he was also in 2005's Snow White.He says the company is being clever with the costumes. If you dressed the actor playing the Tin Woodman in actual metal, he'd probably bake to death in the Halifax sun."It's a lean budget too, so we are making due with what we have. But, that's part of the charm of it."dlisk@hfxnews.ca
http://www.hfxnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=7113&sc=8
"This is MacPherson's third year being involved in the summer family productions. Along with "Uh" Oz and last year's Robin Hood, he was also in 2005's Snow White.He says the company is being clever with the costumes. If you dressed the actor playing the Tin Woodman in actual metal, he'd probably bake to death in the Halifax sun."It's a lean budget too, so we are making due with what we have. But, that's part of the charm of it."dlisk@hfxnews.ca
http://www.hfxnews.ca/index.cfm?sid=7113&sc=8
Irvine Welsh takes on raunchy munchkins
By Sean Rubinsztein-Dunlop. Posted: Sunday, July 23 2006 .
Don't let the cute suits fool you... Three of the remaining nine original munchkin actors from The Wizard of Oz. (Photo: Reuters)
When filming The Wizard of Oz, Judy Garland and producer Mervyn Le Roy commented on "dwarf sex parties" and "orgies and drunkenness" among the munchkin actors.
Almost 70 years later, Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh writes that allegations like those have inspired him to try his hand at a play:
"We decided that Babylon Heights would be about the 'little people' of Oz, the munchkin performers. There is an old myth that in the film's original print, during the Tin Woodsman scene, the small shadowed figure you can see is actually a dead munchkin hanging from a tree. The official line was that it was a dead bird. Our starting point was to take this myth as a reality."
Already before its Dublin premiere, the on-stage dwarf debauchery has faced exploitation claims from an Irish little peoples' group, but Welsh has a different take on the sex, drugs and rock and roll.
"Well, what else were they supposed to do? The small people, billeted separately from the other performers, were under de facto house arrest in their Culver City hotel. They were taken from there directly on to the studio set, and then taken straight back. The actors have since claimed, in accounts of that period and biographies, to have been paid far less than the other actors, even less than the dog playing Toto.
But little people don't get too much of a say in this production either:
"We decided not to use persons of restricted growth as actors. Instead, we opted to deploy regular-sized performers and outsized furnishings and fittings. This was the hardest call, and it took a lot of soul-searching. But we decided we didn't want to have a situation whereby sensationalist elements of the media might portray the experience as a bunch of 'normal-sized' people sitting in a theatre watching 'dwarfs' perform. Crucially, we wanted the audience to feel empathy with the performers, to feel that they, too, were small and locked into an outsized, inhospitable space with larger, often menacing figures lurking outside."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/arts/articulate/200607/s1693974.htm
Don't let the cute suits fool you... Three of the remaining nine original munchkin actors from The Wizard of Oz. (Photo: Reuters)
When filming The Wizard of Oz, Judy Garland and producer Mervyn Le Roy commented on "dwarf sex parties" and "orgies and drunkenness" among the munchkin actors.
Almost 70 years later, Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh writes that allegations like those have inspired him to try his hand at a play:
"We decided that Babylon Heights would be about the 'little people' of Oz, the munchkin performers. There is an old myth that in the film's original print, during the Tin Woodsman scene, the small shadowed figure you can see is actually a dead munchkin hanging from a tree. The official line was that it was a dead bird. Our starting point was to take this myth as a reality."
Already before its Dublin premiere, the on-stage dwarf debauchery has faced exploitation claims from an Irish little peoples' group, but Welsh has a different take on the sex, drugs and rock and roll.
"Well, what else were they supposed to do? The small people, billeted separately from the other performers, were under de facto house arrest in their Culver City hotel. They were taken from there directly on to the studio set, and then taken straight back. The actors have since claimed, in accounts of that period and biographies, to have been paid far less than the other actors, even less than the dog playing Toto.
But little people don't get too much of a say in this production either:
"We decided not to use persons of restricted growth as actors. Instead, we opted to deploy regular-sized performers and outsized furnishings and fittings. This was the hardest call, and it took a lot of soul-searching. But we decided we didn't want to have a situation whereby sensationalist elements of the media might portray the experience as a bunch of 'normal-sized' people sitting in a theatre watching 'dwarfs' perform. Crucially, we wanted the audience to feel empathy with the performers, to feel that they, too, were small and locked into an outsized, inhospitable space with larger, often menacing figures lurking outside."
http://www.abc.net.au/news/arts/articulate/200607/s1693974.htm
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Top Ten Ways The Wizard of Oz Would Be Different if it Were Made Today
10. Grisly scene in which Dorothy blasts flying monkeys out of the sky with an uzi
9. Katie bar the door! There's a giant asteroid headed straight for Oz!
8. Dorothy steps outside and says, "Like, this is so not Kansas!"
7. Instead of "oil," tin man moans, "Viagra"
6. Kathie Lee Gifford plays Dorothy -- audience roots for witch
5. It would be named "Twister II"
4. To prepare for his role as the Scarecrow, DeNiro would have his brain removed
3. Lovable dog Toto replaced by lovable droid T.O.T.O.
2. Lions and tigers and bears, oh sh**!
1. New title -- "Wiz Got Game"
--David Letterman
http://www.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/top_ten/archive/ls_topten_archive1998/ls_topten_archive_19980507.shtml
9. Katie bar the door! There's a giant asteroid headed straight for Oz!
8. Dorothy steps outside and says, "Like, this is so not Kansas!"
7. Instead of "oil," tin man moans, "Viagra"
6. Kathie Lee Gifford plays Dorothy -- audience roots for witch
5. It would be named "Twister II"
4. To prepare for his role as the Scarecrow, DeNiro would have his brain removed
3. Lovable dog Toto replaced by lovable droid T.O.T.O.
2. Lions and tigers and bears, oh sh**!
1. New title -- "Wiz Got Game"
--David Letterman
http://www.cbs.com/latenight/lateshow/top_ten/archive/ls_topten_archive1998/ls_topten_archive_19980507.shtml
Wicked Week Contest
YOU can be a contestant in the "Be WICKED " Singing Contest! Here's how... Beginning July 25th download official forms ONLINE or in New York during regular theatre hours go to the merchandise stand in the Gershwin Theatre Lower Lobby located at 222 W. 51st Street to pick up forms (while supplies last). You must register on the WICKED FAN area. Complete and sign the Official Entry Submission and Release Form.Registration will begin on July 25th, so you still have some time to practice!SongsContestants will sing their choice of a pre-determined selection from one of WICKED's most dynamic musical numbers. Send us a DVD or a VHS of your performance. Click on one of songs below that you wish to perform and begin practicing!The top 10 candidates in each of the following regions will be uploaded to the website where the public will cast their votes to see who makes it to the next round.The BE WICKED Online contest is open to legal residents of the contiguous continental United States and Canada (except Province of Quebec), ten (10) years of age or older. The specific areas of eligibility for each of the four (4) regional Events are as follows:East Coast Regional Event: Washington, DC, Florida, Maine, Vermont, Virginia, New Jersey, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Delaware, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia.Midwest Regional Event: N. Dakota, S. Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, W. Virginia.West Coast Regional Event: Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Wyoming, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico.Canadian Regional Event: Canada (excluding Province of Quebec).For a list of what prizes you could win click here.
for more information, go to
http://www.wicked-week.com/contest_info.html
for more information, go to
http://www.wicked-week.com/contest_info.html
In this "Wiz," everyone's a lion
By John Moore Denver Post Theater Critic
-->
Regan Linton plays a Tin Girl in need of some oil in "The Wiz." (Courtesy PHAMALy)
If courage is doing what you are afraid to do, no one is even remotely in need of a wizard here.
The players from the handicapped theater company PHAMALy screw their courage to the witch's broomstick each time they get out of bed. Heart, brains and bravery are on full display in all five corners of the Denver Center stage for this year's production of "The Wiz."
But while you can count on PHAMALy to rise to any challenge, "The Wiz" is, regrettably, kind of a lousy challenge.
If you've never seen this remarkable troupe's annual musical spectacular, you'll likely leave duly impressed, perhaps even awed. But anyone who has followed PHAMALy likely will admit "The Wiz" is a problematic choice of fare. That or they're looking at things through emerald-colored glasses.
It's not only because "The Wiz" is a black musical and only three of its 32 actors are black. It is counterintuitive to what it does best. This 1978 urban "Wizard of Oz" take-off is a dated pile of schmaltz that invites patronizing admiration bordering on condescension. Its few good tunes are trumped by ack-worthy ones.
At its stereotype-obliterating best, PHAMALy takes sentimentality, cliché and "woe are we" and melts them like a witch. It blows people away because it is self-deprecating and jarringly unsentimental. I gaped during 1999's "Sideshow," when the most disfigured actors got in my face and challenged me in song to "come look at the freaks." It was genius last year when director Steve Wilson set the otherwise mirthful "Joseph" in an institution. That layering entertains audiences while forcing them to re-examine their preconceptions and prejudices.
"The Wiz" is a long exercise with a children's theater mentality. Telling a handicapped actor to "be a lion" and to "believe in yourself" is too trite and simplistic for PHAMALy. And taking nearly three hours to say so becomes a drag.
The creative team, perhaps sensing the shortfalls in the score and script, throws more bells and whistles at "The Wiz" than ever before. We're talking costumes, lighting, set, props, sound and special effects, a terrific live band and astounding makeup. All of which is great - and a clue that there is some serious compensation going on.
This year the actors' disabilities are incorporated into certain characters: Dorothy (Juliet Villa) and the cowardly Lion (Don Mauk) are blind; good witch Addaperle (Lucy Roucis) has Parkinson's. It's inconsistent, and the storytelling doesn't always track, but the performances are memorable.
Classy Villa's pristine and lilting voice is reminiscent of Dinah Shore's, and her impeccably precise, memorized stage movements in the dark are awe-inspiring. And no one is more at home on the stage than her seeing-eye dog, a black lab who doubles as Toto.
Veterans Leonard Barrett and the ridiculously funny Roucis are at their best as His Wizness and Addaperle. Roucis has a smile that could light up the yellow-brick road at midnight. Barrett appears on giant prosthetic legs that make him look 16 feet tall, then blows the ozone off the Ozian
sky with "Y'all Got It."
Thanks to some fancy effects, the wicked witch (Tara Cowan) first appears by video across the stage floor (she's acting into a live camera backstage). When this industrial hag finally wheels herself onstage, it's in full, 3-D, "Blade Runner" glory.
Wilson's signature touch is his clever asides, including jokes about what Dorothy can't see, Toto being color blind and a wheelchaired Tin Girl (Regan Linton) performing a tap dance with cans in her hands.
In the end, what's most moving may be inadvertent. Of course it's not written for Dorothy to ask the Wiz to see, or for the Tin Girl to walk, so they don't. But this omission tells the story of PHAMALy far better than "The Wiz" ever could - they all believe in themselves, just the way they are.
Theater critic John Moore can be reached at 303-820-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com.
"The Wiz" *** RATING
MUSICALPhysically Handicapped Amateur Musical Actors LeagueDirected by Steve WilsonSpace Theatre at the Denver Performing Arts ComplexTHROUGH JULY 307:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays (plus 7:30 p.m. July 24)2 hours, 45 minutes$28 303-893-4100, phamaly.org, all King Soopers
2more
COLORADO FESTIVAL OF WORLD THEATRE This annual innovative Colorado Springs gathering continues through July 30. Highlights include Peter Shaffer's "Black Comedy," Lynn Redgrave and Brian Murray appearing in Alan Bennett's "Talking Heads" and the return of Daniel Beatty's one man phenom "Emergence-See!" Other offerings include "Frogz," an amphibious performance piece from Portland, Ore., that includes penguins in musical chairs, acrobatic larvae, cats in paper bags and, yes, frogs. Also: actor Steven Berkoff performing as an array of Shakespeare's villains, and "Toxic Audio," a highly theatrical vocal band that explores the boundaries of the human voice. 719-955-2599 or go to cfwt.org for times and locations.
"THE SEARCH FOR SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE ..." The hilarious Pam Clifton revisits Trudy the Bag Lady and the dozen other time-travelling aliens who populate this one-woman show. Opens tonight, then 7:30 p.m. alternating weekends only through Aug. 20 at the Backstage Theatre, 121 Ridge St. in Breckenridge. Tickets $15 (970-453-0199). Adults only.
http://www.denverpost.com/entertainment/ci_4071595#
-->
Regan Linton plays a Tin Girl in need of some oil in "The Wiz." (Courtesy PHAMALy)
If courage is doing what you are afraid to do, no one is even remotely in need of a wizard here.
The players from the handicapped theater company PHAMALy screw their courage to the witch's broomstick each time they get out of bed. Heart, brains and bravery are on full display in all five corners of the Denver Center stage for this year's production of "The Wiz."
But while you can count on PHAMALy to rise to any challenge, "The Wiz" is, regrettably, kind of a lousy challenge.
If you've never seen this remarkable troupe's annual musical spectacular, you'll likely leave duly impressed, perhaps even awed. But anyone who has followed PHAMALy likely will admit "The Wiz" is a problematic choice of fare. That or they're looking at things through emerald-colored glasses.
It's not only because "The Wiz" is a black musical and only three of its 32 actors are black. It is counterintuitive to what it does best. This 1978 urban "Wizard of Oz" take-off is a dated pile of schmaltz that invites patronizing admiration bordering on condescension. Its few good tunes are trumped by ack-worthy ones.
At its stereotype-obliterating best, PHAMALy takes sentimentality, cliché and "woe are we" and melts them like a witch. It blows people away because it is self-deprecating and jarringly unsentimental. I gaped during 1999's "Sideshow," when the most disfigured actors got in my face and challenged me in song to "come look at the freaks." It was genius last year when director Steve Wilson set the otherwise mirthful "Joseph" in an institution. That layering entertains audiences while forcing them to re-examine their preconceptions and prejudices.
"The Wiz" is a long exercise with a children's theater mentality. Telling a handicapped actor to "be a lion" and to "believe in yourself" is too trite and simplistic for PHAMALy. And taking nearly three hours to say so becomes a drag.
The creative team, perhaps sensing the shortfalls in the score and script, throws more bells and whistles at "The Wiz" than ever before. We're talking costumes, lighting, set, props, sound and special effects, a terrific live band and astounding makeup. All of which is great - and a clue that there is some serious compensation going on.
This year the actors' disabilities are incorporated into certain characters: Dorothy (Juliet Villa) and the cowardly Lion (Don Mauk) are blind; good witch Addaperle (Lucy Roucis) has Parkinson's. It's inconsistent, and the storytelling doesn't always track, but the performances are memorable.
Classy Villa's pristine and lilting voice is reminiscent of Dinah Shore's, and her impeccably precise, memorized stage movements in the dark are awe-inspiring. And no one is more at home on the stage than her seeing-eye dog, a black lab who doubles as Toto.
Veterans Leonard Barrett and the ridiculously funny Roucis are at their best as His Wizness and Addaperle. Roucis has a smile that could light up the yellow-brick road at midnight. Barrett appears on giant prosthetic legs that make him look 16 feet tall, then blows the ozone off the Ozian
sky with "Y'all Got It."
Thanks to some fancy effects, the wicked witch (Tara Cowan) first appears by video across the stage floor (she's acting into a live camera backstage). When this industrial hag finally wheels herself onstage, it's in full, 3-D, "Blade Runner" glory.
Wilson's signature touch is his clever asides, including jokes about what Dorothy can't see, Toto being color blind and a wheelchaired Tin Girl (Regan Linton) performing a tap dance with cans in her hands.
In the end, what's most moving may be inadvertent. Of course it's not written for Dorothy to ask the Wiz to see, or for the Tin Girl to walk, so they don't. But this omission tells the story of PHAMALy far better than "The Wiz" ever could - they all believe in themselves, just the way they are.
Theater critic John Moore can be reached at 303-820-1056 or jmoore@denverpost.com.
"The Wiz" *** RATING
MUSICALPhysically Handicapped Amateur Musical Actors LeagueDirected by Steve WilsonSpace Theatre at the Denver Performing Arts ComplexTHROUGH JULY 307:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays (plus 7:30 p.m. July 24)2 hours, 45 minutes$28 303-893-4100, phamaly.org, all King Soopers
2more
COLORADO FESTIVAL OF WORLD THEATRE This annual innovative Colorado Springs gathering continues through July 30. Highlights include Peter Shaffer's "Black Comedy," Lynn Redgrave and Brian Murray appearing in Alan Bennett's "Talking Heads" and the return of Daniel Beatty's one man phenom "Emergence-See!" Other offerings include "Frogz," an amphibious performance piece from Portland, Ore., that includes penguins in musical chairs, acrobatic larvae, cats in paper bags and, yes, frogs. Also: actor Steven Berkoff performing as an array of Shakespeare's villains, and "Toxic Audio," a highly theatrical vocal band that explores the boundaries of the human voice. 719-955-2599 or go to cfwt.org for times and locations.
"THE SEARCH FOR SIGNS OF INTELLIGENT LIFE ..." The hilarious Pam Clifton revisits Trudy the Bag Lady and the dozen other time-travelling aliens who populate this one-woman show. Opens tonight, then 7:30 p.m. alternating weekends only through Aug. 20 at the Backstage Theatre, 121 Ridge St. in Breckenridge. Tickets $15 (970-453-0199). Adults only.
http://www.denverpost.com/entertainment/ci_4071595#
Follow the Yellow Brick Road — To a Cure
By Raymond Drumsta Journal Staff
ITHACA — The results are in. The Tompkins County Ninth Annual Relay for Life netted a grand total of $180,000 to benefit the American Cancer Society
The results, including team awards, were announced during the relay's closing ceremonies held at Ithaca College Thursday evening.
The ceremonies were postponed because of a thunderstorm that cut the relay short at about 7 a.m. Saturday. About 50 people gathered at the college's Emerson Suites to hear the results and watch an 18-minute slideshow which featured pictures of the event and songs like “Follow the Yellow Brick Road” from “The Wizard of Oz,” “Ease on Down the Road” from “The Wiz” and Elton John's “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”
The relay's theme this year was “Follow the Yellow Brick Road — To a Cure.” Many of the slideshow pictures showed event participants dressed as characters from the “The Wizard of Oz.”
The slideshow also gave a break down of event participants, which consisted 1,100 walkers in 71 teams, including 185 cancer survivors.
The storm effectively ended the fund raiser, in which event participants take turns walking or jogging around the Lansing High School track. Event managers cancelled it when the thunderstorm forced them to evacuate the track. The ceremonies' cancellation also prevented a final tally of money the relay raised.
Though the relay fell short of its $200,000 goal, Deborah Mohlenhoff, the local relay chairperson, said the turnout was inspiring.
“The bottom line figure is not as important to me as the amount of people who came out to support this cause,” she said.
She also thanked event participants for their flexibility and understanding when the thunderstorm occurred.
The “IC Hope” from Ithaca College team raised $14,250, the most money overall, and the new team to raise the most money was Family Medicine, with a total of $5,200.
Anne Woodard of Ithaca College was recognized as the individual to raise the most money, with a total of $4,900, and the team that raised the most per capita was “Angels for Abby,” with a total of $9,248.
Mohlenhoff also announced the teams which gained the most spirit points — “IC Hope” team and the Ithaca Housing Authority team, with 11,940 and 7,280 points respectively.
Teams get spirit points when team members quit smoking, get early cancer screenings or recruit others for the relay, Mohlenhoff said.
“It's a really cool incentives program because it's mission driven,” she said. The two teams will receive a complimentary cruise on Cayuga Lake aboard the M/V Manhattan courtesy of the Cayuga Lake Cruises, she added.
Alison Knoth, the community executive for the American Cancer Society, said 60 percent of the money raised will go toward cancer research, and 40 percent will go toward American Cancer Society programs in Tompkins County.
These programs include the Man to Man Prostate Cancer Education and Support Program and Road To Recovery, which provides transportation for cancer patients to and from chemotherapy or radiation treatment, according to the American Cancer Society website.
The Tompkins County 10th Annual Relay for Life is scheduled for July 13 and 14, 2007, she said.
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060721/NEWS01/607210348/1002
ITHACA — The results are in. The Tompkins County Ninth Annual Relay for Life netted a grand total of $180,000 to benefit the American Cancer Society
The results, including team awards, were announced during the relay's closing ceremonies held at Ithaca College Thursday evening.
The ceremonies were postponed because of a thunderstorm that cut the relay short at about 7 a.m. Saturday. About 50 people gathered at the college's Emerson Suites to hear the results and watch an 18-minute slideshow which featured pictures of the event and songs like “Follow the Yellow Brick Road” from “The Wizard of Oz,” “Ease on Down the Road” from “The Wiz” and Elton John's “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.”
The relay's theme this year was “Follow the Yellow Brick Road — To a Cure.” Many of the slideshow pictures showed event participants dressed as characters from the “The Wizard of Oz.”
The slideshow also gave a break down of event participants, which consisted 1,100 walkers in 71 teams, including 185 cancer survivors.
The storm effectively ended the fund raiser, in which event participants take turns walking or jogging around the Lansing High School track. Event managers cancelled it when the thunderstorm forced them to evacuate the track. The ceremonies' cancellation also prevented a final tally of money the relay raised.
Though the relay fell short of its $200,000 goal, Deborah Mohlenhoff, the local relay chairperson, said the turnout was inspiring.
“The bottom line figure is not as important to me as the amount of people who came out to support this cause,” she said.
She also thanked event participants for their flexibility and understanding when the thunderstorm occurred.
The “IC Hope” from Ithaca College team raised $14,250, the most money overall, and the new team to raise the most money was Family Medicine, with a total of $5,200.
Anne Woodard of Ithaca College was recognized as the individual to raise the most money, with a total of $4,900, and the team that raised the most per capita was “Angels for Abby,” with a total of $9,248.
Mohlenhoff also announced the teams which gained the most spirit points — “IC Hope” team and the Ithaca Housing Authority team, with 11,940 and 7,280 points respectively.
Teams get spirit points when team members quit smoking, get early cancer screenings or recruit others for the relay, Mohlenhoff said.
“It's a really cool incentives program because it's mission driven,” she said. The two teams will receive a complimentary cruise on Cayuga Lake aboard the M/V Manhattan courtesy of the Cayuga Lake Cruises, she added.
Alison Knoth, the community executive for the American Cancer Society, said 60 percent of the money raised will go toward cancer research, and 40 percent will go toward American Cancer Society programs in Tompkins County.
These programs include the Man to Man Prostate Cancer Education and Support Program and Road To Recovery, which provides transportation for cancer patients to and from chemotherapy or radiation treatment, according to the American Cancer Society website.
The Tompkins County 10th Annual Relay for Life is scheduled for July 13 and 14, 2007, she said.
http://www.theithacajournal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060721/NEWS01/607210348/1002
Friday, July 21, 2006
Ozapalooza (An Event for the Family at the Indiana Oz Fest)
For those of you attending the Indiana Oz Festival with your family (especially with young children) or if you're young at heart and want a fun experience, I suggest attending Ozapalooza at Zao Island in Valpraiso on Friday night. Ozapalooza is a funfair with games and fun for the entire family. Events include: a game of minature golf through the land of Oz, watch out for the Oz characters along the way, they love meeting new friends; Melt the Witch; Have your fortune read by Prof. Marvel; tidy up at the Wash & Brush Up Co.; a hot dog dinner and much more. Tickets are just $10 and include everything mentioned above. Children 2 and under are free. Got older kids? For an additional charge there are batting cages and go-karts. Forget paying $50 to go to Disney World and meet the characters, for a lot less you can meet 6 of the most famous characters in the world: Dorothy (and Toto too!), Scarecrow, Tin Man, Lion, Glinda, and the Wicked Witch.
(Yes, this has been a shameless plug for an event I am working on at the festival. It went over great last year and we all had fun doing it)
-Zach/Oz Festival Scarecrow (#2)
(Yes, this has been a shameless plug for an event I am working on at the festival. It went over great last year and we all had fun doing it)
-Zach/Oz Festival Scarecrow (#2)