Next week, community members are invited to journey somewhere over the rainbow as the First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist, Children’s Choir prepares to perform L. Frank Baum’s musical, “The Wizard of Oz.”
Two casts of local kids have been rehearsing the beloved story and songs from the show, which debuted in 1902 after Baum’s book (“The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”) was published in 1900.
Ian Garvie, the church’s director of music, said about 60 kids in kindergarten through ninth grade are part of the church’s 46th-consecutive musical. Participants do not have to belong to the church but do have to join the choir program for the year.
“Oz” was the first show the Woburn resident ran when he became director in 2015. Now more than 10 years later, he decided enough time had passed that a trip back to the Emerald City was appropriate.
The story tells a tale of three characters who are searching for “missing” elements in their lives – a heart for the Tin Man, a brain for the Scarecrow, and courage for the Cowardly Lion — but each discovers they had those attributes all along.
It’s an “affirmation of our core qualities,” said Garvie. “It resonates.”
To allow even more kids to play starring roles, the musical has been double cast. For example, during performances when one child plays Dorothy, the second child playing Dorothy takes on a smaller part in the production, and then they switch.
Despite having to memorize two different roles, “they manage to do a really phenomenal job,” according to Garvie.
Children in kindergarten through fourth grade are part of the “junior cast,” who sing reprises of the songs as crew members behind the curtain change scenery.
“This gives the [younger] children a very gentle introduction to performance,” said Garvie. “They learn things as a group.”
Over the years, the young actors have enjoyed themselves and formed great friendships, he said. There are even a few second-generation children participating.
The group effort “culminates in something that they feel so proud of,” said Garvie. “It’s definitely something that stays with them in a really positive way.”
The First Church in Belmont, Unitarian Universalist, Children’s Choir will perform L. Frank Baum’s, “The Wizard of Oz,” Nov. 19-22, at 404 Concord Ave.
To purchase tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/the-wizard-of-oz-4869797/
