One good thing about writing a review of The Wiz, the new revival of the show that once rocked Broadway, is that you don't have to explain the story. Indeed, for most humans on Earth, L. Frank Baum's "The Wizard of Oz" yarn has been part of our DNA from an early age. We have all seen the 1936 film more times than we can count and know all about Dorothy, her trio of highly verbal non-human pals, and the good and wicked witches on a cellular level.
That's why it was so brilliant when William F. Brown (book) and Charlie Smalls (music and lyrics) decided to retell that beloved story in 1974 from a contemporary African-American perspective. That was a time when all Black casts were virtually unknown in mainstream theaters and The Wiz was a breath of desperately needed fresh air.
This spanking new revival is on a 12-city tour before its grand opening on Broadway this coming April, and in some ways it's fully ready to go. While it is based on the book, this stage version begins as the film does, in "black and white" before it blossoms into color when Dorothy lands in Oz. But there are glitches and wrinkles in the production that one hopes will be ironed out in the weeks to come.
The undeniable strength of this production are the voices, led by TikTok sensation Nichelle Lewis in the linchpin role of Dorothy. The slight and even fragile-looking Lewis has a voice that is muscular, resonant and downright startling as it hops from octave to octave with ease. Although she can work on developing her physical stage presence along with capturing the emotional nuances of her character's longing for home, her voice is all that and a bag of chips.
Lewis is supported by excellent voices in the company that do justice to the music which is a blend of gospel, R&B and Soul. Melody A. Betts as Aunt Em offers a tender "The Feeling We Once Had" to her niece early on, and later switches into the role of the wicked witch Evillene, when she stops the show with the kickass "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News."
Each of Dorothy's yellow brick road travelers also sing up a tornado. The Scarecrow (Avery Wilson), Tinman (Phillip Johnson Richardson) and Lion (Kyle Ramar Freeman) handle their solos with vocal dexterity. But none of the three jump off the stage and become fresh, indelible characters.
The Scarecrow comes closest, as his shy and slightly dim nature (he doesn't have a brain, after all), is frequently endearing. And while Wilson's straw-stuffed movements never reach the improbable flexibility of the film-scarecrow Ray Bolger, his dancing is a pleasure. The Tinman starts off rusty but not enough fun is had with it (sfx, please?) as he tries to loosen up his joints. And as the Lion, Freeman doesn't take enough chances with his cowardly traits, making this psychologically distressed jungle cat less than memorable.
In the featured cameo role of Glinda, a glitz-bedecked Deborah Cox does fine with a couple songs "He's the Wiz" and "Believe in Yourself." That's true even though some lyrics in the latter song are a tad confusing: "Believe what you feel/And know you're right because/The time will come around/When you say it's yours."
The scenic design by Hannah Beachler, while easy on the eyes, doesn't dazzle as one might expect. Most of the scene changes on the compacted stage (masking flats bracket both sides and extend down from above) are indicated by projections. After the whirling storm that deposits Dorothy in Oz, thrillingly enacted by dancers in black, most of the scenes are conveyed with simple backwall projections. With all the remarkable projection technology now available, it seems odd that this production would opt for basic projections that could have been done decades ago.
The same is true for some critical character reveals and other moments. When the all-powerful Wiz (a sly Alan Mingo, Jr.) finally appears, there is precious little drama or import. He emerges out of a 1960's-style pod chair with about as much flair as an elderly man trying to extricate himself from an overstuffed recliner. And our heroes' escape from the druggy Poppy girls is so bland as to be sleep-inducing all by itself.
There are gaps in the flow of the show which director Schele Williams will no doubt solve in time. But the beating heart of this American fairytale—the revelation that what each of the main characters needs is already within them—is given short shrift. Sure, we know the story, but please, please, tell it to us again with clarity and resonance.
This revival of The Wiz is a feast of voices that will ring in your ears for a long time. And once the rest of the production rises to that level, this can be a Wiz for the ages.
The Wiz
Through October 22 at the Cleveland Play House, Playhouse Square, Connor Palace Theatre, 1407 Euclid Ave., playhousesquare.org, 216-241-6000.
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