By J. Scott Hill

Few performers can ever simply ease on down the road in The Wiz. Dorothy is Dorothy is Dorothy, ok, but all the other major characters are problematic; Scarecrow, Tinman, and Lion run perilously close to a minstrel show act, while the Wiz himself and all of the witches have their backs up against the worst of blaxploitation stereotypes. In the current production of The Wiz at Theatre at the Center, Director/Choreographer Stacey Flaster does an admirable job of leading her cast down the narrow, golden path.

As a Motown-inspired retelling of L. Frank Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The Wiz suffers from William F. Brown’s book, but succeeds through Charlie Smalls’s music and lyrics. Musical Director William A. Underwood does an outstanding job navigating this cast of wonderful vocalists through a collection of songs that range from funk to soul to blues to gospel.

Director/Choreographer Stacey Flaster has infused nearly every moment of The Wiz with unbounded joy. Many years ago, the national touring production of Vinnette Carroll’s Your Arms Too Short to Box with God ran TV and radio spots that said something like, “So much singing, so much dancing, so much all out joy, you’ll be dancing in the aisles.” As a director, Flaster seems to have made that line of old ad copy her mantra. Her Jesus Christ Superstar last summer at Theatre at the Center and even her Nunset Boulevard earlier this year radiated joy out from the stage and into the hearts of the audience. As The Wiz depends on joy to keep it afloat, it is the perfect showboat for Flaster to steer.

Dwelvan David brings more class than pimp to the Wiz’s gleaming white wardrobe. Alexis J. Rogers is charming enough to make Addaperle more sage than bag lady. Candice C. Edwards’s Dorothy owes more to Judy Garland than to Diana Ross, and that is splendid.

The three strongest performances in this production, not surprisingly, are Dorothy’s trio of incomplete companions. Darius Colquitt plays Scarecrow loose-limbed and loose-lipped. Tinman is played by Jesse Dean Stanford with Paul Bunyan-like swagger.

The most uproarious, most joyous performance in The Wiz is James Earl Jones II’s take on the Lion. Not only does Jones have the best voice among this cast of spectacular singers, but he also does the most to distinguish his performance from the iconic performances that came before him — Bert Lahr and Tony-award winner Ted Ross.

This Wiz is not perfect, but it is an awful lot of fun throughout. Stacey Flaster has deftly directed her cast to tiptoe around the negative stereotypes built into this yellow brick road, and to find firm footing in the manufacture of joy.

3 ½ STARS

(“The Wiz” runs through August 7 at Theatre At The Center, 1040 Ridge Rd., Munster, IN. .)

The Wiz Production photos by Michael Brosilow.

* Visit Theatre In Chicago for more information on this show. 

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