Last Friday, March 13, I got the opportunity to see Holyoke High School’s 16th annual musical. This year the students put together a reenactment of “The Wizard of Oz.” Although I wasn’t sure how this year’s production would even compare to last year’s enchanting performance of “Cinderella”, I was pleasantly surprised with how the show turned out. All the cast and crew’s hard work during rehearsals was evidently displayed throughout the show.

Once the lights went down, the orchestra started playing a medley of Wizard of Oz classics to build anticipation for the start of the show. Samantha Monsalve ‘16 showed off her ability to get into character as she came out as Dorothy, calling for Toto in her spot-on country accent. I eagerly awaited the start of my favorite tune, “Somewhere over the Rainbow” and I was not disappointed. I have to say for being a junior and getting the lead, Samantha did an amazing job portraying the character of Dorothy.

Toto, played by Dusty and Snickers, were a huge with the crowd! Thanks to renowned animal director and trainer William Berloni, the furry actors brought a charm not seen by any other HHS musical to date! See our previous article on the canine actors here.

From there the roles of Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West filled by Emma Price ‘16 and Ibeliz Velez ‘18 respectively, showed the good and evil sides of the story through their acting.

The stuents from Mountain View, E.N. White, Sullivan, McMahon, and Mater Dolorosa schools who played the little munchkins did a tremendous job filling the stage with cheer!

As Dorothy followed the yellow brick road into the woods, she met the Scarecrow (Dylan Lasante ’18), the Tinman (Chad Correia ’17), and the Lion (John Dochod ’17); what an accurate replication of the characters! The excellent costumes added to the performances. I was delighted with each of the solo performances of “If I Only Had A…” leaving me rooting for them to get to Oz to find a brain, a heart, and the nerve.

The director’s unique twist to the scenes that seemed impractical to bring to life in a high school auditorium left me me completely impressed! Flying monkeys on roller skates, the Wicked Witch of the West melting into the castle’s balcony, the dancing poppies, the big head of Oz, and much more showed off how creatively flexible everyone could be.

The Land of Oz guarded by the emotionally bipolar gate keeper, played by Darian Gonzalez (’17), added a few light hearted moments to the intense journey. The wizard stepped out from behind the curtain (Josh Ortiz ‘15) and Dorothy clicked her ruby red shoes, back to Kansas she went!

I was very impressed overall with this year’s production of the “Wizard of Oz.” If you did not catch this year’s musical, I would definitely recommend taking a trip to Holyoke High next year. The professional acting amazed me. Bravo to Mr. Todd and the rest of the cast and crew on a wonderful production!