'The Wizard of Oz' at The Gilbert School - My Review

The Gilbert School is presenting The Wizard of Oz this weekend. The show is under the direction of community theater vet Jimmy Donohue with assistance from Katie Brunetto. Adam Atkins is the music director and Scott Minnerly serves as Technical Director.

Where is the Gilbert School? From the Waterbury area, you essentially take Route 8 as we know it until the end and you end up in the Winsted area. The Gilbert School is a private secondary school that serves as the public high school for the towns of Winchester and Hartland.  Friends and family packed the large school auditorium for opening night for which I had a complimentary ticket and the Principal Alan Strauss attended to support his students.

Mr. Donohue has directed a group of students that ranged in age but worked together to bring the classic story to life. The production used the full musical script, as opposed to the junior version, and therefore included additional music and scenes. Clever sets and colorful costumes by the two directors helped to bring us to the iconic settings.

After the voice of Glinda (Sarah Martin) gave the house announcements, Dorothy entered through the audience to open the show. Selena West was a great actress who sang well and maintained the Kansas accent throughout her performance. The canine Trixie acted well the role of Toto.

Most of the other students played dual roles. Ms. Martin was magical in the role of Glinda the Good and the loving Auntie Em, while Nick Komons did well as Uncle Henry and a Guard in Oz. Nick Kulinski played a fine Tinman/Hickory and Tristan Houle was good as Scarecrow/Hunk. Several students appeared in multiple ensemble roles and danced well the choreography by Ms. Brunetto. The three young ladies who played the apple trees were terrific. Shout outs to the Lullaby League played by the Wallace sisters (and daughters of the always wonderful pianist Beckie Scattergood Wallace who enjoyed their performance from the pit.) Also adorable was the coroner played by Patrick Minnerly.

Stand out performances were given by Rik Emery in the role of the Cowardly Lion/Zeke. This young man had wonderful comic timing and rocked his costume. His Lion King reference was a crowd pleaser. In the role of the Wicked Witch and Miss Gultch, Alyssa Jamieson was pitch perfect as she commanded the stage. Her melting scene was quite impressive. Ian Scherer was another fine actor in the roles of Professor Marvel/Gatekeeper/Oz. Kudos to all the students who worked hard to produce this show for an appreciative audience.

I really liked the tornado scene with Dorothy's house on wheels which featured lots of timpani. Glinda's arrival by bubble and the singing crows were also memorable. Nineteen musicians made up the great pit orchestra under the direction of Adam Atkins. Six pit singers also sounded great.

The two chances that remain to see The Wizard of Oz are on Saturday at 7 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m.