As soon as she arrives, she makes a dangerous enemy – the Wicked Witch of the West. Happily, there are plenty of friends to protect her as she begins her journey along the yellow brick road, all the way to see The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, meeting some colourful characters on the way, including the outrageous Dame Żufjetta (from Valletta).
Audiences should expect the unexpected
WOZ, as it is affectionately known among the MADC cast and crew, has a lot of ‘twos’ in its equation. It has two directors: Denise Mulholland and Marco Calleja, as well as two Dorothys: Bettina Paris and Phillipa Cassar, and two Glindas: Gianella Mazzola and Chantelle Micallef-Grimaud.
The rest of the cast includes Alexander Gatesy-Lewis (Tin Man), Andy Catania (Scarecrow), Chiara Hyzler (Chimp), Maria Buckle (Zee), Ralph Mangion (Lion), Paula Fleri-Soler (Aunty Em), Chris Hudson (Oz). Izzy Warrington is The Wicked Witch of the West and the Dame-of-Dames is Alan Montanaro.
The musical director is Paul Abela, while vocal coaching is in the hands of Cathy Lawlor. Choreography is by Emma Loftus and the spectacular costumes are designed by Ernest Camilleri.
According to Mulholland, re-hearsals are crazy, busy, exciting and fun: “It is a huge showbut we have the advantage of having two directors, so we have been able to work twice as fast. We also have a fantastic cast – creative and fun to work with, so there are plenty of laughs too. The show is going to be spectacular – lots and lots of magic to marvel at, amazing costumes, brilliant singing and dancing and we have the set designs of the fantastic, Oscar-nominated Peter Howitt and constructed by Lino Mallia.”
Co-director Calleja says: “Just imagine hours upon hours of being creative and bringing a great script to life with a very talented bunch of performers, creatives and my amazing partner in crime, Denise. It’s what I describe an artist’s heaven where the possibilities are endless and the fun is limitless. Audiences should expect the unexpected. There’s a new theatre layout, over a 100 new costumes and lots and lots of magic, colour and energy.”
Reinventing the dame’s character while still giving people the persona they’ve grown to know and love is probably Alan Montanaro’s greatest challenge.
Another problem is playing a character that doesn’t exist at all in the original story… however, this has hopefully been credibly solved by making his dame the only character who’s fully aware she’s in the MADC panto.
“This is the first time that the Wizard of Oz has been turned into a panto – certainly on a Maltese stage. I believe the MADC has raised the bar again this year and we have thrown so much laughter, adventure, special effects… and magic into the mix that there really is something for everyone and it should be the show not to miss this season,” Montanaro says.
A veteran of over 20 pantos, Ralph Mangion, who plays the cowardly Lion, is looking forward to what he says will be his last pantomime. However, he is certainly not looking forward to the heavy and very hot costume that he will be wearing for three hours:
“The tail on its own weighs a ton! Having to take Alan’s abuse during rehearsal and on stage is another story – but that’s something that’s been happening for over 20 years now,” he laughs.
The part of Dorothy will be shared by two young up-and-coming actresses.
Phillipa Cassar says the best part has definitely been having the opportunity to work with such talented people:“I feel I’ve learnt so much already! WOZ has all the ingredients of a spectacular pantomime – a classic story, stunning costumes, song and dance, flying scenes... and a side-splitting Dame.”
For Bettina Paris, the main challenge about playing Dorothy is that she is such an iconic character that has withstood the test of time.
“At the same time, I would like to create a Dorothy that is very much my own, so I am trying to combine the two aspects together. The MADC have really upped their game this year. I believe part of the beauty of Christmas is its magic… and magic is definitely found in great amounts at the MADC panto, for people of all ages.”
• Wizard of Oz, written by Alan Montanaro and produced by the MADC, opens on December 22 and runs until January 6 at the Malta Fairs and Convention Centre, Ta’ Qali. Booking is open at www.panto.com.mt.
• Apart from the pantomimes at the Manoel Theatre and the MFCC, there are also a number of pantos in Maltese. Kumpanija Teatru Rjal is presenting Merry Poppins fil-Milied at the Catholic Institute in Floriana. The panto is directed by Augusto Cardinali, with musical direction by Neville Gatt and starring Toni Busuttil. For more information, visit www.kumpanijateatrurjal.com.
• Another panto is being presented by Bronk Productions – Shrek mill-Gżira tat-Tliet Għoljiet – at Sir Temi Zammit Hall at the University of Malta. More information is available at www.bronk.org.