Arts & Entertainment

Three Village Kids Star in 'The Wizard of Oz'

Local theater company Productions Over the Rainbow will put on the show over two upcoming weekends.

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More than 50 local kids will transport their audiences out of Kansas – well, make that Three Village – when their aptly named theater company, Productions Over the Rainbow, puts on "The Wizard of Oz" starting this weekend.

"It’s one of my favorites," said Bob DePersio, founder/director of the theater group. "It's funny that in nine years, we actually have never done it."

Performances will be held at Comsewogue's JFK Middle School on Jayne Blvd. in Terryville, and are scheduled as follows:

  • Aug. 2 and Aug. 3: 7 p.m. showtime (tickets $15) – "The Wizard of Oz: Young Performers' Edition"
  • Aug. 8, Aug. 9, Aug. 10: 7 p.m. showtime (tickets $18) – "The Wizard of Oz" (full version)
Audiences at these shows can expect "an escape to Oz," DePersio said. In the full version of the show produced by POTR's teen company, you'll even experience a song that had been cut from the 1939 movie: "Jitterbug," in which the Wicked Witch sends out jitterbugs to make Dorothy and her friends dance until they are so tired. The costumes, sets and props respect the change from black-and-white to technicolor for which the film is famous. You'll even see an appearance by an actual terrier named Tucker, starring as Toto.

Patch last had the chance to chat with DePersio, a longtime music and theater arts teacher in Three Village, when POTR produced "Anything Goes" in 2012. The majority of the cast – 50 in the kids' company and 55 in the teens' company – hail from the Three Village area. 

"The level of talent here never ceases to amaze me," he said. "The talent, the attitude and professionalism are absolutely incredible."

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