Audiences of all ages are invited to follow Dorothy and company on a Yellow Brick Road as they’ve never seen it before in Tyler Junior College’s original dance production of “The Wizard of Oz.”
Performances will be in Wise Auditorium, located in the Rogers Palmer Performing Arts Center on the TJC central campus, on the following dates and times:
- 7 p.m. Thursday, March 13
- 7 p.m. Friday, March 14
- 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday, March 15
- 2 p.m. Sunday, March 16
Admission varies from $15 to $40, and tickets are on sale at TJC.edu/WizardOfOz.
“We are super-excited to bring to East Texas the timeless tale of ‘Wizard of Oz’ told through dance,” said Shurrell Wiebe, artistic director/choreographer and TJC dance professor. “Our pre-professional division is hard at work preparing original dance works, spectacular set pieces, and new technical aspects of stagecraft to dazzle the audience and tell the story of Dorothy and her friends.”
The soloist role of Dorothy Gale will be danced by pre-professional student Ainsleigh Bolt of Tyler.
“Ainsleigh, with all of our incredible pre-professional students, put in countless hours of diligent training and dedication to achieve this level of success. Their commitment to this craft and professionalism is a real treat to observe,” said Carolyn Hanna, director of the TJC Academy of Dance and chair of the TJC Department of Dance.
Growth and collaboration
The TJC Academy of Dance has experienced a period of significant growth in recent years and is gaining a reputation as a fertile training ground for students who aspire to join prominent dance companies and conservatories in the U.S. and abroad.
“We have expanded our class offerings for more age groups, added a new studio space and increased our collaboration efforts with area organizations, including the East Texas Symphony Orchestra,” Hanna said.
Last year, academy students joined Maestro Richard Lee and ETSO on the Cowan Center stage for a joint performance of Igor Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring” and Aaron Copland’s “Rodeo.”
“There is such an important bond between dance and live music,” Hanna said. “This was a special experience for our dancers, and we look forward to sharing the stage again with ETSO in the near future. These collaborations shape the way our dancers perform, and you’ll certainly be able to see that during this production of ‘Wizard of Oz.’”
‘Wizard of Oz’ cast
The “Wizard of Oz” cast includes more than 100 TJC Academy of Dance students and performance majors from the TJC Department of Dance, including: Demi Adebutu, Morgan Aldinger, Ana Alzamora, Caroline Bailey, Elizabeth Bailey, Elena Baldwin, Kathryn Beard, Alice Black, Kathryn Bloser, Ainsleigh Bolt, Gio Borelli, Vio Borelli, Kennedy Bragg, Camila Bravo, Cambrie Brooks, Claire Brown, Cailyn Bryce-Cotes, Thereza Bryce-Cotes, Caroline Caccitolo, Lillyana Cash, Caroline Coleman, Qwynnen Davis, Wynnslo Davis, Anna Davis, Eduardo Delgado-Ramirez, Farrah Dobbs, Molly Donnan, Addie Draffen, Zoey Dyer, Kate Eagleton, Vivienne Elliott, Caylie Fernandez, Ella Fiske, Rose Foreman, Julia Forrest, Stella Franks, Olivia Gale, Alicia Garcia, Lillian Gardiner, Julia Gloria, Lucia Gorman, Maggie Gray, Jules Gregory, Laurel Harding, Tesla Hartweg, Rian Hendrix, Rylan Hernandez, Ellia Herrera, Millie Howard, Claire Hutcheson, Maggie Hutchins, Landry Jackson, Ainsley Jones, Evay Joyce, Parker Kersh, Milan Kummerfeld, Annabel Langford, Adelaide Ledbetter, Kaylee Lesniewski, Caroline Lesniewski, Esperanza Licea, Johnathan Little, Hunter Lubeck, Olivia Lubeck, Kate Margraves, Mary-Meadows Marshall, Vivienne Marshall, Nalani Mata, AnnMarie Mayfield, Cierra De’Asia Mays, Julia McClure, Tatum McDonald, Tenley McKinzie, Reese McWilliams, Deborah Mercado-Cotto, Charlotte Mercer, Nina Mikkleson, Mabry Monk, Valentina Morales, Amelia Morales, Maya Morgan, Delia Nava, Eva Navetta, Audrey-Daye Newland, Elsie Nite, Evie Noteware, Victoria Ortega, Paola Ortega, Mariana Ortiz-Oliveras, Gentry Owens, Annabelle Pace, Molly Patterson, Kaitlin Pearce, Quinn Perez-Farabee, Raegan Pettee, Allie Phillips, Georgia Price, Amaris Puren, Sydney Quintana, Liliana Rains, Ainsley Rhodus, Miya Richardson, Sidney Roden, Sam Rodgers, Jocelyn Rodriguez, Audrey Scarborough, Lily Scarborough, Emma Scott, Tenley Smiley, Catherine Smith, Fiona Solly, Leah Soto, Sierra Stoner, Laurel Stout, Larra Strickland, Ellie Jane Strout, Charlotte Stuebing, Sophia Tatum, Evie Temple, Brooklyn Thomas, Emma Tiemblo Zapico, Rose Tucker, Natalie Umbower, Adeline Uzzell, Emily Rose Vahovius, Samantha Valle, Andrea Velez, Sammy Vig, Ava Wamboldt, Ivy Wamboldt, Naomi Warriner, Vivian Watts, Macyn Whitehead, McKinley Whitehead, Carolyn Whitener, Molly Whitener, Brynn Wilder, Isabella Williamson, Mary Martha Woods, Sidney Woolverton, Lily York, Olivia Young and Anna Kate Zamora.
Recommended for you
