Spring Musical: The Wizard of Oz

          In late March, the Millburn Middle School showcased their production, The Wizard of Oz, for their annual spring musical. The original film was first released in 1939. It was an adaptation of the fantasy novel published in 1900, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum. It describes the story of Dorothy, a young girl living in rural Kansas when suddenly, a tornado sweeps her away to the magical land of Oz. The plot follows young Dorothy as she collaborates with a Cowardly Lion, a Scarecrow, and a Tin Woodsman to search for the great Wizard of Oz, who can send her home.

The middle school’s performances took place for three days (March 22nd, 23rd, and 24th), featuring an amazing cast onstage and crew working behind the scenes from all grades. Students auditioned as early as late November and the cast worked to rehearse for the following four months, with help from multiple directors and staff members: Ms. Reilly, Ms. Abrams, Ms. Salvante, Ms. Dalerta, Mr. Ng, and Mr. Danowsky. In addition to the talented cast, backstage crew and tech organized lights, mics, and props while the design crew painted the set with help from Ms. Dalerta, Ms. Reilly, and Ms. Sohr. The cast and crew put on their first showing on March 20th for the MMS teachers to view, and their first run through went exceptionally well. Their following public performances received incredible reviews and were showered with praise from students, parents, and teachers. The cast greatly enjoyed their hard work paying off, and The Wizard of Oz marked another successful musical for the Millburn Middle School. 

Lead Cast Shout Outs: 

Dorothy: Jordyn Gulliford

Auntie Em: Lillian Hark

Uncle Henry: Praveer Ketty

Scarecrow/Hunk: Gabriella Volpicelli

Tinman/Hickory: Jack Bouton

Cowardly Lion/Zeke: Jonah Callahan

The Wicked Witch of the West/Miss Almira Gulch: Ari Crofton

The Wizard of Oz/Professor Marvel: Samara Tichauer

Glinda: Sofia Ghelfi

Emerald City Guard: Rian Chadha

Sources: https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Wonderful-Wizard-of-Oz