The Wizard of Oz at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre stars Drag Race UK winner, The Vivienne as the Wicked Witch of the West, Aviva Tulley as Dorothy, Nic Greenshields as The Cowardly Lion, Femi Akinfolarin as The Tin Man, Alex Bourne as The Wizard, Benjamin Yates as Scarecrow, Emily Bull as Glinda, and Abigail Matthews skilfully operating the cute and funny sidekick puppet, Toto the dog.
The show features the iconic score from the MGM film including Over the Rainbow, Follow the Yellow Brick Road, Ding Dong the Witch is Dead, If I Only Had a Brain/a Heart/the Nerve, and We're Off to See the Wizard, with additional songs from Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice.
This all-singing, all-dancing, updated production adds a further burst of colour and glitter to the already much-loved classic. Aviva Tulley in the lead role of Dorothy Gale takes viewers somewhere over the rainbow with her incredible voice and fantastic performance.
The Vivienne’s enchantingly evil turn as the Wicked Witch of the West would easily have won her a ‘Rusical challenge’ with her sharp humour, villainously victorious vocals, and captivating performance.
While Nic Greenshields, Femi Akinfolarin, and Benjamin Yates, as the Lion, Tin Man, and Scarecrow respectively, provide light-hearted camp laughter and warmth.
The simple, yet brilliantly effective set for this show uses screens to provide the backdrop. While impressive set pieces that manoeuvre in or are lowered from above, take the audience on a journey along the yellow brick road, onwards to the Emerald City, and finally home to Kansas. The original Wizard of Oz star, Judy Garland, is even paid homage to in this show with billboards featuring her face when Dorothy reaches the Emerald City.
The costuming is also equally as impressive, bringing a whimsical sense of camp, sparkle and splendour to the stage. Glinda arrives in glitzy, pink style on a Barbie-inspired Vespa, the people of Emerald City shimmer in green, the frightening flying monkeys are given a motor-cycle style makeover, and perhaps the best costuming is awarded to The Wicked Witch who swishes in and out of scenes in a billowing purple gown.
Head to the merry old land of Oz in this nostalgic but modernised take on The Wizard of Oz which features jokes and innuendo that are perfectly placed for an audience that is surely filled with ‘friends of Dorothy’.
Direct from London's Palladium, The Wizard of Oz tour flies to the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre from 30th July until 4th August. There really is no place like the theatre with this production, so click your heels three times and book tickets online.
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