As soon as I saw the commercial showing that the Wizard of Oz would be playing at
The Schuster Center, the memories came flooding back to my grade school days.
When my 1st grade teacher made the announcement I was thrilled.
Our class was going to do a play and it would be the Wizard of Oz!
I loved the movie and had a soft spot for the Tinman. He was my favorite character in the show, because
he needed a heart. I was born with a damaged heart, so I could relate to him.
I thought I would be perfect for the role, but It turns out I was wrong.
I wasn’t tall enough, rugged enough and my voice was too squeaky for the role.
As it turns out I was perfect for another role, the head Munchkin. When my teacher told me that
I would be a munchkin, I muttered under my breath. I said something like “I’d rather be a flying
monkey”. Since I was always the smallest kid in class, I took offense to being made a Munchkin!
To make matters worse, my best friend Eric was picked to be The Tinman. For a day or two I felt as bad
as the witch that had the house land on her, but once practice started and I saw my costume I became
more excited about my role as head Munchkin. I even got some important lines. I announced that
“The witch was dead” (Which old witch…the wicked witch) and I was the first one to tell Dorothy to
“Follow the yellow brick road”. For a munchkin, it doesn’t get any better than that.
The play went off without a hitch, I got big laughs and a loud applause for my performance.
I was proud of my friend Eric for playing the Tinman perfectly. My entire class did a great job.
The play was a fond memory for me and one that has lasted a lifetime.
Seeing the Wizard of Oz at the Schuster Center could be a lifetime memory for you
and your family as well. I highly recommend it for kids of all ages. They have performances, tonight,
tomorrow and Thursday. Each show starts at 7pm. Tickets are available for all performances!
