I chose to do my personal passion piece on an oldie but a goody, “The Wizard of Oz.” This is a musical I have never seen live but I know is something I would love to see eventually in my life. I have seen the movie numerous times as a child and even today I still enjoy watching the movie. To give you a background about the show. L. Frank Baum first published The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in 1900, and the success of that book then led to a number of sequels. Several adaptations of Baum's Oz stories for stage and screen appeared before MGM's classic movie was released in 1939. Surprisingly, this film was never regarded as a box-office success in the years following its original release. Its status as an American classic owes more to television, as The Wizard of Oz became an annual television event in the 1950s and 1960s.The movie originally premiered in Chicago but later got its debut in Broadway in 1903. In Broadway the Wizard of Oz ran for nearly 293 performances from January 21, 1903 to December 31, 1904, followed by travelling tours of the original cast. The show starred Anna Laughlin as Dorothy Gale, Fred Stone as The Scarecrow and David C. Montgomery as the Tin Woodman, Arthur Hill played the Cowardly Lion, but in this version, his role was reduced to a bit part.
The movie is a charming story that is based on the popular L. Frank Baum stories. As many know, Dorothy the protagonist lives on a farm in Kansas with her family and lovable dog Toto. When a malicious neighbor tries to have her dog put to sleep, Dorothy takes Toto and runs away. A cyclone appears and carries her and Toto to the magical Land of Oz. I love how in the beginning the movie is shown in black and white, but when she arrives in Oz it magically becomes color. In the Land of Oz, Dorothy befriends many different creatures. She learns that in this magically land not everyone is nice and friendly there is some evil in Oz as well. Dorothy is helped by Glenda the Good Witch of the North, but she's also in trouble with the Wicked Witch of the West, who seeks revenge on Dorothy for the death of her sister. The Wicked Witch of the East, for which she blames Dorothy since her house landed on the sister and killed her. Scared of the threats in Oz Dorothy is determined to get home and learns that she needs to find the Wizard of Oz. He has the answers to the land and can help her return home and even grant her new friends their goals of a brain, heart and courage.
This musical has always had such an impact on me because I believe even though a story for all ages, there is many meanings, themes, and life lessons to learn from the musical as well. The first lesson I see in the movie is really to accept your friends for who they are. Friends are a great thing in life that will help you in life journey. Even though they may have quirks or different habits, as a friend they are there to help you. So even though the lion had no courage or the scarecrow did not have a brain they were still there to support and help Dorothy in her journey back home. The yellow brick road is another analogy of life itself. Dorothy is told by the good witch that she needs to follow the yellow brick road which was right there in front of her. Surely Dorothy would have been able to find the road on her own, which is lesson everyone should realize in life. Even though we have people guiding us down certain paths it really is our own responsibility to discover the path we want to take. Once we come to self realization of what we want, you should make sure that is how you want to live and then pursue it. One of the monumental moments in the movie, is when you find out the Wizard of Oz is just a man behind a screen. He really does not have any magical powers. Instead he is hiding behind a screen and lying about his true identity to everyone in the land. This is something we should not do in our lives. It is important to show your true self and learn to love it. This is the key to life happiness. These and many other lessons in the story is why I will always have a deep love and passion of the Wizard of Oz.
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