THE WIZ

OZ:2006 advertises Des McAnuff’s final production at the La Jolla Playhouse THE WIZ, and there’s truth in their advertising, this production epitomizes the first decade of the new millennium; high-tech, fat & soulless. Despite all of it’s technology (and there’s lots) it seems very uninventive. Somewhere underneath this ironically light-skinned staging, there is a musical about missing values that has been swallowed by too much money. Mr. McAnuff has sold out, depending on MTV dialogue and laser beams over trusting real emotion and talent, it’s a sorry reflection on the state-of-the-art.

Designed like the overblown STARLIGHT EXPRESS and microscopically directed like TOMMY leaving no room for spontaneity, it borrows heavily from RENT and THE LION KING but this mish-mash never finds a voice of it’s own.

Amidst the mess, a few glimmers of talent do emerge. Mainly, the amazing hip-hop dancing Toto. Albert Blaise Cattafi‘s athletic agility and laser focus is mesmerizing, you can’t take your eyes off of him and luckily he’s almost always onstage. Michael Benjamin Washington as the Tin Man gives a heartfelt performance and his “If I Could Feel” is as deep as this show ever delves. E. Faye Butler as Eveline has a powerhouse voice that’s never utilized amidst the gratuitous dialogue or undermiked when it’s needed during her song. The rest of the cast is adequate but nothing more.

The biggest disappointment is the musicality. From the vapid orchestrations, the vocals are usually drowned out by sound effects and seem hindered by the clunky costumes.

Sergio Trujillo’s choreography is diffused by the gargantuan set. The four reprises of “Ease On Down The Road” never take off because they have so much space to cover climbing the catwalks that span the many levels of the set and throughout the audience. The Up With People feel strips the entire production of all heart and soul as witnessed in the laughable “Everybody Rejoice” in which the many colors of Benneton have been reduced to black and white and light-skinned black at that. This is Uncle Tom’s hood.

At the final preview, there was so much mic level trouble and all the rehearsal time was obviously spent on tech that they seemed to forget about rehearsing the music, the beautiful score that is supposed to reveal the characters emotions and give the actors a chance to shine but that is still sitting on the back burner, the show just didn’t seem ready for opening.

Mr. McAnuff needed to look no further than the backyard of the story, the universal truths of home and family are simple and powerful but he instead pimped us out with Gen M bling and shallowness.