Where Dorothy Was

By Justin Sondak in Arts & Entertainment on Oct 26, 2005 5:15PM

Chicagoist has already railed against the Broadway in Chicago cash machine that is Wicked. New twists on classic tales intrigue us, and this new take on The Wiz caught our attention. But entrusting the man who scored The Baker’s Wife with such an idea made us queasy.

Whether you’re a Steven Schwartz devotee turned away from The Oriental Theater Box Office, a Wizard of Oz devotee who disdains overhyped adaptations, or you’re just looking for something else, Northwestern University’s new American Music Theatre Project is hoping you’ll trek up to Evanston to see Was.

Barry Kleinbort and Joseph Thalkennew’s new musical relates the life of Dorothy Gael, the Kansas orphan and model for Baum’s red-shoed heroine, and Jonathan Wood, an actor who sought to prove Gael actually existed. Was is an adaptation of Geoff Ryman's novel chronicling the true story that inspired Frank Baum’s classic tale. (Confused yet?)

Like that other Baum tribute, Was promises singing and dancing and perhaps the occasional winking nod to the original story. Both productions have a Steppenwolf connection—Rondi Reed stars downtown, Tina Landau directs in Evanston. But top tickets for Was are one-fifth what you’ll pay for prime seats at The Oriental. And they’re easier to score.