Over the years, the world of Entertainment has always had a great reputation of giving back to those in need. One of those great moments happened in the Fall of 1995 where some of the greatest performers in Entertainment joined together to raise money for Children’s Defense Fund with a one night only concert presentation of the family favorite The Wizard of Oz.
Founded in 1973 by Marian Wright Edelman, the Children’s Defense Fund is a non for profit NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND organization that helps young children get a jump start at life.
The all star cast of THE WIZARD OF OZ IN CONCERT featured an incredible lineup of the best of Broadway, Film, TV, and the Music industry including….
Grammy nominated singer/songwriter Jewel as “Dorothy”,
Grammy nominated folk singer Jackson Browne as “The Scarecrow”,
The Who’s lead singer Roger Daltrey as “The Tin Man”,
Tony winning versatile stage and screen actor Nathan Lane as “The Cowardly Lion”,
Tony and Oscar winner Joel Grey as “The Wizard” (a role he later originated in the prequel Broadway blockbuster WICKED The Musical),
the late soulful singing sensation Natalie Cole as “Glinda The Good Witch of the North”,
Oscar nominated actress Debra Winger as “The Wicked Witch of the West”,
the legendary stage and screen actress Lucie Arnaz Official as “Aunt Em”,
The Boys’ Choir of Harlem (under the direction of the late Dr. Walter Turnbull) as “The Munchkins”,
and more.
Accompanied by a full orchestra, the concert (held at David Geffen Hall (formerly Avery Fisher Hall) at Lincoln Center) was set up as a “Reader’s Theatre” with the actors on stools with music stands and microphones. It featured an abbreviated script featuring all the beloved songs by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg that we know in love from the original 1939 MGM film (including OVER THE RAINBOW, DING DONG THE WITCH IS DEAD, IF I ONLY HAD A (BRAIN, HEART, THE NERVE), WE’RE OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD, and more). It also included the swingin’ number THE JITTERBUG that was cut from the film before it was even released.
In addition, several songs were rearranged to showcase each of the singer’s talents. For Jackson Browne’s rendition of IF I ONLY HAD A BRAIN, the song was performed as a folk tempo ballad. For Roger Daltrey’s rendition of IF I ONLY HAD A HEART, the song was performed with a Rock N’ Roll tempo which Daltrey’s also included some of his WHO persona that included swinging his cord microphone. For Natalie Cole’s rendition of OPTIMISTIC VOICES (YOU’RE OUT OF THE WOODS), it was performed as a soulful, blues, and gospel version (accompanied by Dr. John on Piano).
In addition, the concert also features special guest appearances by…
The late blues singer Pheobe Snow performing a stirring blues reprise of IF I ONLY HAD A (BRAIN, HEART, THE NERVE)
and
legendary singer Ronnie Spector performed a Rock N’ Roll reprise of DING DONG THE WITCH IS DEAD (HAIL, HAIL).
THE WIZARD OF OZ IN CONCERT was seen on PBS and later VH1 in 1996-1997. It was later released as a Live CD and Video. Both renditions are currently out of stock and was never released on DVD. Luckily thanks to YouTube, the concert has been found.
Who remembers watching this concert?
FUN FACT: Broadway favorite Julia Murney who later went on to play “The Wicked Witch of the West” (named “Elphaba) in WICKED was also part of this concert. She appeared as one of the Female Ensemble members in the sparkly Ruby red dress. It was one her first major professional performance gigs in NYC.
The Wizard of Oz in Concert: Dreams Come True was a 1995 television musical performance based on the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz. Digitally transferred from VHS
If you loved In The Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams, there is even much more Broadway coming your way next Friday on the 2017 edition of the PBS Arts Fall Festival.
Next Friday, November 17th, 2017, Great Performances l PBS will present highly anticipated airing of one of the most powerful and moving plays ever written, this year’s Tony winning smash hit play Indecent on Broadway by Pulitzer Prize winner Paula Vogel.
Filmed in front of a sold out audience during it’s final week at Broadway’s Cort Theatre earlier this summer, INDECENT is inspired by a real true event in Theater History. It follows Sholem Asch as he produced one of the most controversial Yiddish plays ever written God of Vengeance.
The actual play GOD OF VENGEANCE tells the tale of a Jewish brothel owner who attempts to become respectable by commissioning a Torah scroll and marrying off his daughter to a yeshiva student. Set in a brothel, the play includes 2 Jewish females making out in the rain, and the hurling of a Torah across the stage. The play was a triumph in Europe. However, everything changed when GOD OF VENGEANCE arrived on Broadway in 1923 at the original Apollo Theatre (which was now the 42nd Street entrance and exit to Broadway’s Lyric Theatre). Because of the one shocking onstage lesbian kiss onstage at the time, the entire company was arrested on Opening Night and the play was immediately shut down for obscenity.
This production features a breathtaking Ensemble cast featuring Max Gordan Moore as “Sholem Asch “, Katrina Lenk (Broadway’s Spider-Man On Broadway, Once the Musical, and currently starring in The Band’s Visit) as “Menke”, Adina Verson as “Rifkele”, Richard Topol (Broadway’s A Fish in the Dark) as “Lemml”, Mimi Lieber as “Esther”, Tom Nelis as “Older Asch”, Steven Rattazi as “Nakhmen”, and some very talented musicians,
Be sure to set your DVR’s and get ready to be reminded that ART MATTERS and tune in next Friday to INDECENT. Be sure to check your local listings.
If you enjoyed Present Laughter on PBS this past Friday, there is more Best of Broadway on the 2017 PBS Arts Festival coming up.
This Friday night on Great Performances l PBS, there will be a special encore presentation of In The Heights: Chasing Broadway Dreams. This 1 hour documentary will take you behind the scenes into the journey into the making of the 2009 Tony winning hip hop, funky, and inspirational musical that is IN THE HEIGHTS, the debut of Lin-Manuel Miranda (long before Hamilton: An American Musical). You will be there from the first days of rehearsals, tech, Opening Night at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, and up to the show’s night of glory at the 2008 Tony Awards.
In addition, you will see interviews with Miranda, Tony nominee Christopher Jackson, Tony winner Karen Olivo, Mandy Gonzalez, and members of the cast and creative team sharing their stories, journeys, and more.
Get ready to discover that PATIENCE & FAITH really works and you can make your Broadway dreams a reality too when IN THE HEIGHTS: CHASING BROADWAY DREAMS airs again this Friday.
Making it in New York City is tough. Few get the chance to live out their dreams, and the cast and crew of In the Heights know this all too well. This young, diverse group of relatively unknown artists and performers have dreamed of making it on Broadway, but are well aware that a new ?
Everyone working on Broadway dreams of being a question on Jeopardy! but it gets even more exciting when a certain show gets called out as the wrong answer. During an episode the aired 2 years ago, the Tony, Grammy, and Olivier Award nominated smash Kinky Boots on Broadway was called out as the wrong answer during FINAL JEOPARDY even though the answer was supposed to be the Tony nominated 80’s themed hit musical Rock of Ages. Who remembers this?!
What is…Kinky Boots?! Huh? Check out this Jeopardy! moment gone viral:
