Before you follow the Yellow Brick Road, get to know the production a little better. Here are 10 things you might not know about The Wizard of Oz:

  1. A three-company collaboration: Choreographed by Septime Webre, The Wizard of Oz was created as a joint production of Kansas City Ballet, Colorado Ballet and Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet. More than 120 professionals spent nearly three years bringing it to life, with Royal Winnipeg Ballet crafting the show’s hundreds of custom costumes.
  2. A road that dances: The Yellow Brick Road is played by eight dancers called the “Yellow Brick Roadies,” whose rambunctious, athletic moves were inspired in part by K-pop boy bands.
    The Yellow Brick Road in The Wizard of Oz is played by eight dancers called the “Yellow Brick Roadies.” Photo by Brett Pruitt & East Market Studios.
  3. A different kind of Toto: While the 1939 film used a real terrier, the ballet brings Dorothy’s faithful companion to life as a puppet.
  4. A soundtrack for every character: The custom score gives each of Dorothy’s friends a musical style: disco for the Cowardly Lion, folksy country for the Scarecrow and a soulful sound for the Tin Man, complete with mechanical oil-can sound effects.
  5. Sparkling slippers: Each pair of Dorothy’s ruby red slippers has 288 red rhinestones attached by hand.
  6. A rainbow of pointe shoes: The production uses 220 pairs of hand-painted pointe shoes in 23 colors, including six shades of green.
  7. A wardrobe to match: The show features 150 costumes, 108 hats and 23 pairs of spats.
  8. Details you might miss: The bark on the apple trees is actually faux fur, and dancers in the Emerald City wear green glitter on their lips.
  9. Hidden clues: Characters in Act I foreshadow who they’ll become in Act II. Look for straw in Hank’s hair before he becomes the Scarecrow.
    There are eight flying dancers, including Dorothy and the Wicked Witch, in The Wizard of Oz. Photo by Brett Pruitt & East Market Studios.
  10. Oz by the numbers: The production includes 92 roles (eight of them flying), 43 puppets (of which 24 are flying monkeys), 214 props and set pieces, 30 pieces of hanging scenery, 4.5 tons of lighting, and 100 yards of LED lights (the length of a football field) incorporated into the scenery.

Kansas City Ballet’s production of The Wizard of Oz, runs Oct. 16-25 at the Muriel Kauffman Theatre in the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

Header image: Kansas City Ballet Dancers in The Wizard of Oz in 2022. Photo by Brett Pruitt & East Market Studios.