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The Wizard of Oz and Its Companion Study Guide for Educators • Family

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The Wizard of Oz and Its Companion Study Guide for Educators • Family The Of Wizard Oz L. Frank Baum Resource Guide Welcome to Carousel Theatre’s production of THEMES The Wizard of Oz and its companion Study Guide for Educators • Family and Families! • Home • Courage • Personal Growth Follow the yellow brick road with Dorothy and the gang in • Independence Carousel Theatre’s production of The Wizard of Oz. This brave • Friendship adventure follows Dorothy and her three strange friends; a Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion as they journey on to see the great • Problem Solving and powerful Wizard of Oz. During Dorothy’s search for the • Teamwork Wizard she discovers the true meaning of friendship, personal • Overcoming Obstacles growth, and most important, that there is no place like home! We hope you enjoy this Resource Guide. TABLE OF CONTENTS (Page) If you have any questions or suggestions, please give us a call at 1. Themes 604.669.3410 or email us at [email protected]. 2. Synopsis 3. About the Writer • Character Breakdown 4. Interview with Director 5. Classroom Activities Family Performances Dec 8, 2012 - Jan 6, 2013 6. Activities Continued School Matinees Dec 5 - 21, 2012 7. Theatre Etiquette • Theatre Terms AUDIENCE WARNING: Strobe lights and haze will be used in this production. If you have concerns about student reactions to these elements, please speak 8. Production Crew/Cast • Interesting Links with a Carousel staff member prior to your visit. 9. About Carousel Theatre • Our Sponsors • Contact Us Page 1 The Synopsis After Dorothy almost has her dog, Toto, taken away by the cruel neighbour Miss Gultch, Dorothy and Toto run away from home just as a tornado strikes her Kansas farm. As Dorothy fights her way through the storm, she gets hit on the head and gets swept up in the middle of the tornado. When the tornado ends Dorothy learns she has landed in Munchkinland; on top of the Wicked Witch of the East! The Wicked Witch of the West arrives and discovers that Dorothy is wearing the Wicked Witch of the East’s powerful ruby slippers. The Wicked Witch of the West vows that she will get the slippers from Dorothy- no matter what. After the Wicked Witch of the West leaves, Dorothy realizes the danger and has no choice but to leave Munchkinland in search of the Emerald City to ask the great and powerful Oz to send her home. During their journey Dorothy and Toto meet three special friends: a Scarecrow with no brain, a Tin Man with no heart, and a Lion without any courage. Dorothy suggests to her new friends that they come along and ask the Wizard of Oz to grant them their wish. On the way, they meet a bunch of crabby apple trees, some wickedly enchanted poppies, and many misfortunes. When Dorothy and the gang meet the great and powerful Oz he promises to help them... but only after they bring back the Wicked Witch of the West’s broomstick! The friends head to the evil Witch’s castle through the Haunted Forest. While walking through the spooky forest Dorothy and Toto are stolen away by the flying monkey’s and swooped off to the Witch’s castle. While Dorothy is trapped in the Witch’s castle the door crashes open and her three friends appear dressed in Winkie uniforms. Before they can escape the Witch appears. Dorothy throws a bucket of water on the Witch, who melts away, leaving only her hat and broom. The friends return to the Wizard of Oz to hand him the Witch’s broom. Dorothy, Toto, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion learn the truth about the Wizard and themselves. Dorothy learns the most important lesson of all - she had the power to return home in the entire time, all she had to do was believe in herself. THE WIZARD OF OZ Costume Rendering by Costume Designer Barbara Clayden Page 2 TOP: Wicked Witch, MIDDLE: Scarecrow, BOTTOM: Glinda About the Author L. Frank Baum is an American Author of children’s literature. He is best known for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz written in 1900, but is also credited for his 55 novels, 9 sequences, 82 short stories, 200 poems, and countless scripts. Baum was born May 15, 1856 in Chittenango, New York where he lived with his mother and father and nine siblings. At a young age he took an interest in literature. He began to take old classics and turn the old and grim stories into a pleasant fairytales that children could relate too. Baum worked in the New York Theatre community for a few years as an Opera Theatre Manager and continuing writing his own plays that he often performed in such as The Maid of Arran (1882). In 1883 Baum decided to leave the Theatre community and move his wife and himself, Maud Gage, to South Dakota where they would later raise four children. It was there in South Dakota that Baum opened a department store that failed and was publisher of the Saturday Pioneer newspaper which failed, and then moved to Chicago in search of more financial success, which also failed. It was then that Baum started writing down the nursery stories that he read to his children. In 1887 Mother Goose in Prose was published which became the best-selling book of the year and is estimated to have sold 175,000 copies. It was in 1900 that The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published; it was adapted into a musical in 1903. Character Breakdown (many actors play more than one part in our production) Dorothy Gale A young Kansas girl Aunt Em A young Kansas girl Uncle Henry Dorothy’s Uncle Miss Gultch Dorothy’s neighbour Huck/Scarecrow Farmhand/Scarecrow with no brain Hickory/Tin Man Farmhand/Tin Man with no heart Zeke/ Lion Farmhand/ Lion with no Courage Glinda Witch of the North Wicked Witch Witch of the West Professor Marvel Country magician/charlatan Munchkins Residents of Munchkinland Winkies The Wicked Witch of the West’s slaves Nikko & Flying Monkeys The Wicked Witch of the West’s winged army Citizens of Oz Citizens of the Emerald City Darren Burkett (Scarecrow) in THE WIZARD OF OZ. Photo by Tim Matheson. Wizard of Oz The Great and Powerful Ruler of Oz AND MANY MORE! Talking trees, dancing poppies, twirling tornados... Page 3 An Interview with Director CAROLE HIGGINS Carole has the best job in the whole world! Her many directing credits for Carousel Theatre include Aesop’s Fables, Bird Brain, Seussical, A Year with Frog and Toad, Love You Forever…, Silverwing, The Big League, and Peter Pan. She has received four Jessie Nominations and two Jessie Awards for Directing. Carole has worked as an actor/director/playwright in theatres across BC including Western Canada Theatre, the Caravan Farm Theatre and TheatreOne. She and her husband live with their two dogs, Molly and Sammy, and their cat, Kitten. What made you decide to direct The Wizard of Oz? The Wizard of Oz is a wonderful classic story that I have been wanting to stage at Carousel Theatre for some time. The story of a spunky kid looking for the meaning of home is one that I think so many people can relate to. What research did you have to do to prepare for rehearsals? I spent a lot of time asking ‘what is the story of each scene’, and then asking myself what are the ways we can tell that story. I also spent time thinking about each character and what their story is within the play. What is each character’s objective, and how do they go about pursuing that objective? I did a lot of reading and sketching in the early stages, making notes of images and ideas. Once I had the maquette (model of the set design) I spent several days playing ‘doll house’ with it, moving miniature figurines and set pieces around. I went into rehearsals with entrance and exit points mapped out, as well as a clear picture of how each scene change will work - of course that all changes as we rehearsed! I also met a lot with my design team and the creative team prior to rehearsals starting, discussing ideas, playing through the music and basically jamming together. Are there any staging challenges and how are you working around them? It is an immense challenge to stage this production at the Waterfront Theatre, as there is no fly gallery and very limited backstage areas. These limitations mean that we need to look for alternative ways to tell the story, and to strip each scene down to its essence in terms of what type of set pieces are essential to the storytelling, and then let things Set Design by Heidi Wilkinson evolve. Costume Renderings by Barbara Clayden Page 4 Classroom Activities (Please feel free to use any of these activities, tailored to your group’s needs) Please read and discuss the section in this Study Guide about Theatre Etiquette. Encourage your students to look at different aspects of the production. Assign a group to each of the following, and have a discussion following the performance: Lights, Sound, Costumes, and Set. Make your own Tornado! You will need: - Two 2-liter pop bottles (empty, labels removed and clean) - Water - 1-inch metal washer - Duct tape that will connect the two bottles together - Optional: food colouring and glitter. Directions: Fill one bottle two-thirds of the way full of water and add food colouring or glitter if desired. Place the metal washer over the opening of the bottle then turn the second empty bottle upside-down and place it on the washer.
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