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Annual fall musical kicks off on Thursday night

By Ayanna Eckblad

The stage is set for Albert Lea High School’s fall musical, “The Wizard of Oz.”

Since auditions in late September, students have been rehearsing the show almost every day after school.

“The Wizard of Oz” tells the story of a young girl named Dorothy as a tornado carries her from her farm in Kansas to Oz, a magical land full of munchkins, talking trees and witches. Joined by a scarecrow, a tin man and a cowardly lion, Dorothy and her dog, Toto, must travel to the Emerald City so she can ask the Wizard of Oz to get her back home while being pursued by the Wicked Witch of the West over a pair of magical ruby slippers.

Some of the main cast members for the play include Evie Dawson as Dorothy, Katelyn Schmidt as the Wicked Witch of the West, Connor Hanson as the Scarecrow, Mayzie Paulson as the Tin Man, Adele Helleksen as the cowardly Lion, Bailey Abrego as Glinda and Albert Bierman as the Wizard.

The play is directed by ALHS English teacher Tess Douty-Amick.

“It’s a classic; it’s really fun,” Douty-Amick said.

She also explained some of the process that went into deciding on “The Wizard of Oz.”

“Last year we had a lot of really super talented singers,” she said, describing the school’s performance of “Beauty and the Beast.” “Now that [the past singers] are gone, we wanted to do a show that had a lot of different moments for different people to shine.”

This year’s show is especially challenging as many of the actors have multiple roles to play. The Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion also act as farmhands for Auntie Em and Uncle Henry at the start of the show; Bierman’s role of the Wizard doubles as Professor Marvel, and Schmidt acts as both the Wicked Witch and the odious neighbor Miss Gulch.

This culminates in a performance with multiple costume changes, entrances and exits and lots of lines to memorize.

Despite its unique challenges, the students have risen to the occasion. Everyone has their own motivator for making the performance the best that it can be.

“I’m most excited to just kind of show off all of the hard work that all the crew has done and all everyone has put into this show,” said Dawson, an 11th grader. “I’m just excited to see it all come together.”

Schmidt said she enjoyed the dress rehearsals and performing for younger children. This is not her first play as she has been acting since she was in third grade.

Ninth-grader Bierman said he was excited about his costume.

“I’m also really excited to show everyone what we’ve been working on,” he said.

Last year, Bierman ran the spotlight for the school play.

Paulson said her favorite part of the show is the bow that everyone does at the end.

Performances will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, 7 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday.

Tickets are $6 for students and seniors and $8 for adults. They can be purchased at the door or at the district’s website, https://alschools.hometownticketing.com/embed/all.

Cast
Dorothy Gale: Evie Dawson
Aunt Em: Kylie Lee
Uncle Henry: Jackson Bighley
Hickory/Tin Man: Mayzie Paulson
Hunk/Scarecrow: Connor Hanson
Zeke/Lion: Adele Helleksen
Miss Gulch/Wicked Witch: Katelyn Schmidt
Professor/the Wizard of Oz: Albert Bierman
Glinda: Bailey Abrego
Emerald City Guard: Kuol Dual
Crows: Kylie Lee, Maddie Balthazor
Trees: Emma Weckwerth, Christian Flatness, Jaelani William
Jitterbug: Myla Wright
Ensemble: Maddie Balthazor, Damien Estes, Christian Flatness, Tayla Hendrickson, Evalyn Holcomb, Isaac Lowe, Gaviciano Madrigal, Gigi Madrigal, Keisha Navarrete, Nataleigh Nelson, Nelson, Amaiya Sanchez, Given Saw, Eh Snow Taw, Laniyah Jackson Kaylee Verness, Mint (Ta Wah), Emma Weckwerth, Nora Smith Jaelani William

Set Crew
Elizabeth O’Brien,Blake Gonzalez, Avery Mauer, Lauren Raleigh, Albert Bierman

Stage and Tech Crew
Sophie Guthmiller, MJ Ruiz-Ceronio, Eric Steele, Bella Hafstad, Alexis Sorum, Avery Mauer, Christian Flatness

Pit Orchestra
Conductor: Erik Zinter
Piano: Aaron Bartz
Violin: Alyssa Schmidt
Cello: River DePoppe
Bass: Parker Jensen
Oboe/English Horn: Suzanne Mauer
Clarinet: Ruby Mykkanen
Bassoon: Gayle Brownlow
Trumpet: Maxx Richards
Percussion: Brodie Rassler

Production Team
Director: Tess Douty-Amick
Music Director: Erick Zinter
Choreography: Mary Schoppers
Set Design: Ken Fiscus