The Wizard of Oz
A SHORT PLAY BY
Erin Detrick
BY L. FRANK BAUM
ADAPTED FROM THE BOOK
P Playscripts
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For Kyle and Carola
Cast of Characters
DOROTHY
WITCH OF THE NORTH
MUNCHKINS (5)
FARMERS (2)
CROWS (2-5)
SCARECROW
TIN WOODMAN
LION
KALIDAHS (2)
FLOWERS (5-20)
GUARDIAN OF THE GATES
SOLDIER
LADIES OF THE COURT (7)
GENTLEMEN OF THE COURT (2)
OZ (1-6)
T
WICKED WITCH OF THE WES
WINKIES (4-8)
WINGED MONKEY KING
WINGED MONKEYS (4-8)
GLINDA
TOTO
Place
The Land of Oz.
6
Production Notes
adaptation may be produced as simp
ly or elaborately as
This
mble as imaginatively as
desired-the key is to use the ense m
create scenes, and to facilita
te the transition fro
possible to assume many of
one Oz locale to the
next. The ensemble may
play, including the Crows,
inhabitants of
the roles found in the
ens, Winkies, Flowers,
Munchkinland, Emerald City citiz
the forest, and so forth. If you can
Winged Monkeys, Trees in
ef-
scene, or make a transition between scenes more
enhance a
fective with the use of the ensemble, go for it.
the novel,
In many ways, this play is faithful to the heart of
ties have certainly been take
n. I encourage you
although liber
wonderfully detailed descriptions
in the book as a
to use the
reference for costumes, sets, soun
d, etc.
7
THE WIZARD OF OZ
adapted by Erin Detrick
FROM THE BOOK BY L. FRA
NK BAUM
Scene 1
(In the dark. The screaming wind of a cyclone. Louder, closer, until
it's as loud as possible, then a sudden eerie quiet. Lights up on a
ing from underneath,
small house-there are two legs stick out
t, the door
wearing astonishingly silver slippers. After a brief momen
opens, andDOROTHY cautiously
sticks her head out.)
DOROTHY. Toto?
(Toto appears.)
DOROTHY. What happened to Kansas?
all in blue have begun to
(Toto barks strange-looking people dressed
hiding places on stage. A woman approaches.)
-
pop up from their
welcome, most noble Sorceress,
WITCH OF THE NORTH. You
are
to the land of the Munchkins.
DOROTHY. Sorceress?...
WITCH OF THE NORTH. We are
eternally grateful to you for
for setting our peo-
having killed the Wicked Witch of the East, and
ple free from bondage.
MUNCHKINS. Free!
DOROTHY. I didn't kill anything, especially a witch!
MUNCHKINS. The witch is dead
!
house did, and that is the same
WITCH OF THE NORTH. Your
thing. (Gestures to the silver shoes.)
I'm not even sure how I got here.
DOROTHY. I'm very sorry, but
WITCH OF THE NORTH. Noth
ing to apologize for, dearie, noth-
Munchkins of this land her
slaves, and
ing at all! She made all the
e shy.
they are very grateful to you. If a littl
9
Erin Detrick
10
(She nudges MUNCHKIN 3. He steps forward haltin
gly and hands
DOROTHY a fantastical flower.)
DOROTHY. Thank you-how strange! Are we in a part of Kansas
I've never seen before?
WITCH OF THE NORTH. What is Kansa
s?
MUNCHKIN 1. Is it a country?
MUNCHKIN 2. A disagreeable food, maybe?
Em and Uncle
DOROTHY. It's my home-where I live with Aunty
see, I ran to
Henry. It's where I was before the cyclone came.
.. You
the house, looked for Toto, bumped my head,
flew up in the air,
, flyin g r and higher until
and then kept flying, and flying and highe
all these odd people and you
I shut my eyes and now I'm here with
heard of Kansas, and
all seem very nice but you clearly have never
to my Aunty
that's the only place I want to be. How do I get home
Em?
an Aunty Em is, but
WITCH OF THE NORTH. I do not know what
as I said, you are in the Land of
Munchkins, and oh my, I haven't
North!
introduced myself. I'm the Witch of the
DOROTHY. You're a witch?
in the whole land of
WITCH OF THE NORTH. One of only four
's and the Witch of the
Oz! Well, that's three now, isn't it? There
me,
South, and then there was the one you
killed, and of course, there's
the Wicked Witch of the West!
DOROTHY. I thought all witches were wicke
d.
MUNCHKIN 4. There must not be witches in Kansas.
OF THE NORTH. Ahh. Is Kansas civilized country?
WITCH a
DOROTHY. I think so.
WITCH OF THE NORTH. That accounts
for it. In the civilized
countries there are no witche s left, nor wizard s, nor sorceresses, nor
been civilized, for
magicians. But you see, the Land of Oz has never
cut off-pffft-from all the rest of the world. And so, we
we are
