{"id":36724,"date":"2013-03-30T07:10:48","date_gmt":"2013-03-30T12:10:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/?p=36724"},"modified":"2013-04-01T05:45:41","modified_gmt":"2013-04-01T10:45:41","slug":"wizard-of-oz-production-comes-together-at-vwhs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/2013\/03\/30\/wizard-of-oz-production-comes-together-at-vwhs\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Wizard of Oz’ comes together at VWHS"},"content":{"rendered":"

CINDY WOOD\/<\/strong>independent feature writer<\/em><\/p>\n

No, they are definitely not in Kansas anymore. Anxiously awaiting the highly-anticipated Van Wert High School production of The Wizard of Oz<\/em>, fans of the classic tale will find themselves following the yellow brick road, or in this case, following Ohio 118 to the Niswonger Performing Arts Center.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Harley Danylchuk (Dorothy, seated) practices a song with castmates in preparation for Van Wert High School's production of the classic tale of \u201cThe Wizard of Oz\u201d. Tickets are now on sale at the NPAC box office. (Cindy Wood\/Van Wert independent)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The curtain opens at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 18, with subsequent shows on Friday and Saturday, April 19 and 20.\u00a0 The production will be the culmination of months of practicing and memorizing lines, and extensive work behind the stage to create dramatic sets, in addition to over-the-top special effects.<\/p>\n

Auditions for the production were held before Christmas break, and students and stage crew have been intensely working and practicing three nights a week to ensure the show goes off without a hitch. Director Chad Kraner said the much-loved classic tale of Dorothy and friends will appeal to a wide audience, and he\u2019s hoping the community gets behind the production and comes out to support their efforts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had some experience with Oz<\/em>, and I just thought the kids did such a great job with Beauty and the Beast<\/em> last year that we wanted them to have this opportunity for this year\u2019s kids to do something like Oz<\/em>,\u201d Kraner said, adding that the recent release of Oz<\/em> on the silver screen will help boost interest as well. \u201cWe didn\u2019t know that movie was coming out when we made the decision to go with Oz<\/em>, but I would think that the publicity will help bring more people out to see our show.\u201d<\/p>\n

The main characters in the play just recently began practicing \u201coff book\u201d and Kraner said they\u2019re doing a fantastic job of getting into their roles. Playing Dorothy is Harley Danylchuk, while Hunter Munroe goes on a quest to find courage as the Cowardly Lion, Jesse Daniels plays the Tin Man, and Drew Hoffman is in search of a brain as the Scarecrow.<\/p>\n

Morella Mills plays Glinda, the Good Witch, and Ashlee Dowdy takes on the role of the Wicked Witch of the West. Rounding out the main characters is Jacob Hoverman, who takes on a dual role as Professor Marvel and the Wizard of Oz himself. \u201cAnd yes, we will have a Toto as well,\u201d Kraner said with a laugh.<\/p>\n

Many of the costumes for the main and supporting characters will be rented, saving valuable time needed to construct the elaborate sets required for the production. \u201cWe\u2019re renting most of the costumes, but we did make the scarecrow and the tin man\u2019s, because what\u2019s out there for rentals for those two characters really doesn\u2019t look that good,\u201d Kraner said.<\/p>\n

Josh Schumm is serving as the main set builder, and Schumm is currently working on the construction of a castle, something Kraner said the audience would most definitely be impressed with. \u201cThere are so many different scenes, so we have a lot of set pieces,\u201d Kraner said, adding, \u201cour back stage area will actually be pretty full with all the pieces.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Kraner said he doesn\u2019t like to compare productions, there are certain special effects that will put the audience in mind of last year\u2019s highly successful production of Beauty and the Beast<\/em>. \u201cThere are quite a few differences, too, but some similarities,\u201d he said, adding that one thing the audience might not expect is a comedic element the cast has added. \u201cI think people will find some really funny stuff,\u201d he said, adding that Hoverman, as Professor Marvel\/the wizard, is a laugh a minute. \u201cHe\u2019s playing a dual role, which is really challenging, but he\u2019s nailing it and he\u2019s very funny,\u201d Kraner noted.<\/p>\n

There will also be humorous elements surrounding scenes involving the wicked witch and the Army of Winkies. Stepping up to fill some of these roles will be several local elementary students. \u201cThere is a lot of interaction between the witch and the Army of the Winkies, and there\u2019s quite a bit of humor in that scene,\u201d Kraner said, adding, \u201cI\u2019m just totally impressed with how everything is coming together. You can really tell everyone has studied their lines and they\u2019re taking it and running with it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Together, the cast and crew total about 60 people, making for one of VWHS\u2019s largest productions. Additionally, the show presents quite a few technical and special effect challenges, something the crew is looking forward to. \u201cWe have some unique aspects with the tornado scenes, as well as some of the forest scenes,\u201d Kraner said. \u201cI don\u2019t want to give too much away, but I think people will be highly entertained with this production.\u201d<\/p>\n

As expected, Matt and Hugh Saunier will be leading the charge in the special effects and technical aspects of the show. \u201cMatt is just a really talented kid and he has a lot of really neat things planned with lighting the show,\u201d Kraner said, adding that Melissa Bloomfield and Kim Pollock are assisting with choreography, and Tonia Gamble is assisting with the Munchkin scenes.<\/p>\n

Tickets are now on sale at the NPAC box office. Cost is $7 for adults and $5 for students. Those wanting to catch up with the characters can visit their blog post at www.vwhsdramaclub.blogspot.com<\/a>. A \u201cMeet the Cast\u201d party will be held from 1:30-2:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 13, at the NPAC. The event will offer snacks, coloring, as well as a chance to meet the characters from the show. Cost is $1. Those planning to attend should email vwhsdramaclub@gmail.com<\/a> with their RSVP.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

CINDY WOOD\/independent feature writer No, they are definitely not in Kansas anymore. Anxiously awaiting the highly-anticipated Van Wert High School production of The Wizard of Oz, fans of the classic tale will find themselves following the yellow brick road, or in this case, following Ohio 118 to the Niswonger Performing Arts Center. The curtain opens […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36724","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-07 14:12:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36724","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36724"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36724\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36724"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36724"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thevwindependent.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36724"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}