Originally published in The Baum Bugle, vol. 37, no. 1 (Spring 1993), pg. 17
Citations
Chicago 17th ed.:
Tobias, Patty. “Oz.” Baum Bugle 37, no. 1 (1993): 17.
MLA 9th ed.:
Tobias, Patty. “Oz.” The Baum Bugle, vol. 37, no. 1, 1993, pp. 17.
(Note: In print, this article was supplemented with an illustration that has not been reproduced here.)
For the first time, the Oz saga has been interpreted exclusively in dance by one of America’s leading dance companies. As part of its 38th anniversary year, the prestigious Paul Taylor Dance Company premiered its new dance, Oz, on October 27, adding to the company’s repertoire of 99 dances, all choreographed by Taylor. Oz opened the program the night of its premiere at the City Center Theater in New York City. Both the immense billboard and the program featured a John R. Neill illustration of the Patchwork Girl, promising that this would not be yet another retelling of The Wizard of Oz but might include some of the Oz characters from later Baum books.
Taylor, a lifelong Oz book fan, has indeed included many lesser known characters, with mixed results. Certainly Taylor, recently seen on television in the annual Kennedy Center honors tribute, is one of America’s foremost and most innovative choreographers. Despite its promise, Oz, however, is a disappointment.
Originally commissioned by Mikhail Barishnikov for his White Oak Dance Project, Oz is a plotless series of short pieces featuring Oz characters. Dorothy (Caryn Heilman) and her cousin Zeb (Tom Patrick) arrive in Oz, where in quick succession they meet Jellia Jamb (performed with hyperkinetic humor by Karla Wolfangle), Tik-Tok (Andrew Asnes), Dr. Pipt (called the Crooked Magician and danced by Elie Chaib), the Patchwork Girl (Rachel Berman Benz), Daughter of the Rainbow (Constance Dinapoli) and others. For much of the dance, Dorothy and Zeb look on as these unusual characters cavort around them.
Actually a succession of short, frenetic dances, Oz has no plot per se, but is an opportunity for Taylor to tailor his style to each character. Tik-Tok’s dancing is short and choppy; Jellia’s quick and nervous, punctuating her dance with high-pitched yelps that brought laughter from the audience; Dr. Pipt is crooked, through and through, carrying the Powder of Life around with him as he plays God, giving life and taking it. Scraps, as she should be, is a limp rag doll who, when brought to life, whirls and spins frenetically; and Polychrome is ethereal, floating in and around the other dancers holding a grand, multi-colored banner representing her rainbow.
The music, by Wayne Horvitz, is modern rock-jazz, very urban and disjointed, punctuating the stylism of the dances.
The piece concludes with Dorothy, alone and spotlighted on a darkened stage, singing a song called “Deliver Me.” The opening night audience thoroughly appreciated Taylor’s efforts, although it’s doubtful even a fraction recognized the characters. In fact, pre-premiere articles made it apparent that the Oz characters used by Taylor are unfamiliar to the general public.
With no plot to rely on, the dance Oz is a frenzied place, and Dorothy actually seems eager for her adventure to end. Perhaps, for Oz fans, a real story of some kind would have made this Oz more appealing. And, unfortunately, the costumes by Santo Loquasto, rather than filling Oz with brightness and colors, were constructed mostly in shades of green or light pastel shades. Even Scraps’s dress was an all-green patchwork—perhaps meant to emulate Oz as seen through green glasses or maybe the green used to print the Neill drawing on the program. The result was not the enchanting land we are familiar with from our color plate editions and from MGM’s Technicolor but instead seemed washed out.
All in all, the Taylor Company presented an interesting interpretation, although potentially unsatisfying to Oz fans, despite the use of the untraditional Oz characters. The New York Times said of the premiere: “A madcap fantasy with a wistful flavor unlike that of the L. Frank Baum books, this Taylor premiere possibly has too much originality for its own good. Reportedly reworked, it now appears to be a condensation of ideas that could use more development.” Well, you can’t argue with The New York Times.
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