AGE RECOMMENDATION & CONTENT ADVISORY

Ages Recommended: Most enjoyed by children 7 & up

Run Time: 90 minutes (includes 15-minute intermission)

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Language:
● Dorothy calls Miss Gulch’s cat a “nasty, old cat.”
● Hunk says to Dorothy that he would think she doesn’t “have any brains at all” when she asks him what to do about Miss Gulch.
● Zeke calls Miss Gulch a “heifer”
● Dorothy tells Miss Gulch, “I’ll bite you myself” when she is taking Toto away.
● Dorothy calls Miss Gulch a “wicked old witch!”
● Dorothy says that “witches are old and ugly.”
● The Wicked Witch of the West threatens to “make a beehive” out of the Tin Man, and that she will “stuff a mattress” out of the Scarecrow.
● The Cowardly Lion calls Toto a “pee-wee.”
● Dorothy calls the lion “ a great, big coward.”
● The Wizard of Oz calls the Tin Man a “clinking, clanking, clattering collection of caliginous junk!”
● The Wizard of Oz calls the Scarecrow a “billowing bale of bovine fodder!”
● The Witch threatens to tie a rock around Toto’s neck and throw him into the river.


Themes and Situations:
● The themes of The Wizard of Oz are self-discovery, overcoming self-doubt, friendship, home, and good vs. evil.
● There are situations of brushing people off. Dorothy tries to ask Zeke, Hunk, and Auntie Em about the situation with their neighbor, Miss Gulch.
● There is a situation where Miss Gulch takes Toto away from Dorothy because he bit her.
● There are situations of magic. Dorothy and Toto are transported to a magic land. The Wicked Witch of the West magically appears in Munchkinland. Ginda the Good Witch makes the slippers disappear and appear on Dorothy’s feet. The Scarecrow, the Tinman, and the Cowardly Lion can all talk.
● There are situations of a long and arduous journey to get to the Emerald City.
● There are situations of bargaining. The Wizard of Oz tells Dorothy and the trio that they must bring him the broomstick of The Wicked Witch of the West before he will grant them their requests.
● There are situations of venturing into danger and having to be courageous and brave. Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion willingly walk through the haunted forest to get to the Wicked Witch's castle.
● There are situations of death. Both the Wicked Witch of the East and West are unintentionally killed by Dorothy.
● There is a situation of deceit. The Wizard of Oz lies to Dorothy and the trio because he is not actually a Wizard at all.

Potential Scary Moments
● Miss Gulch demands that Mr. Gale deals with Toto or she will take him to the sheriff to “be destroyed.”
● Miss Gulch takes Toto away from Dorothy.
● The Professor says he sees Auntie Em collapse on the bed in the crystal ball.
● There is a tornado that blows Dorothy to Oz.
● A house falls on top of The Wicked Witch of the East and kills her.
● The Wicked Witch of the West threatens to kill Dorothy when she finds her sister.
● The trees that Dorothy picks an apple from are alive and fight for their apples.
● The Wicked Witch appears after the Tin Man agrees to go see the Wizard with Dorothy and the Scarecrow.
● Dorothy, the Scarecrow, and Tin Man walk through a creepy forest. The lion growls ferociously before he gets scared.
● The Wicked Witch sends her Jitterbugs to make the trio dance until the ruby slippers fall off.
● The Wizard’s booming voice scares and silences Dorothy and the trio.
● The Flying Monkeys attack Dorothy and the trio, and they take Dorothy to the Witch.
● The Witch tries to take the ruby slippers from Dorothy, but they zap her. She tells Dorothy that she will kill her when the hourglass goes down.
● The trio finds Dorothy and they all try to escape, but the Witch and the guard discover them.
● The Witch lights The Scarecrow on fire. Dorothy tries to put it out by throwing water on him, but ends up hitting the witch too. This causes her to melt.
● The audience sees a silhouette of the Wicked Witch melting
● Theatrical haze/fog and flashing lights will be used in this production.