SCR to Present OZ 2.5, Now thru 6/7

L. Frank Baum's beloved classic story of Dorothy and her friends in the land of Oz gets a reboot-literally-in a video game setting. OZ 2.5, a world premiere by Catherine Trieschmann, wraps up the Theatre for Young Audiences season at South Coast Repertory, today, May 22-June 7, on the Julianne Argyros stage. The production is directed by Shelley Butler. Tickets are on sale now: www.scr.org.

Oz was never like this-now it's brighter, bolder, customized for every player and with surprises around every corner. Dee's screen name is Dorothy14 and, with the help of Scarecrow, Tin Man and cowardly Lion, she gets through each level of the game on her way to defeating the Witch of the Western Realm. But what happens when she wins the game and wants to go back to Kansas?

This SCR commission is Trieschmann's first play written for young audiences.

"I found a tremendous amount of freedom in writing this play," she said. "The actual act of writing well doesn't change, but I found myself less concerned with impressing an imaginary audience than with just having fun. And I admit that I fell hard for the Tin Man. There's something about his journey from being a detached almost robotic observer to a full human being with deep feeling that is delightful."

Trieschmann moved to western Kansas nearly a decade ago and re-read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; after that, she felt a strong connection to the story and Baum's description of the Kansas prairie.

SCR previously produced Trieschmann's How the World Began. She is the author of The Bridegroom of Blowing Rock, Crooked, How the World Began, Hot Georgia Sunday and The Most Deserving. Her work has been produced off-Broadway at the Women's Project, the Bush Theatre (London), Out of Joint at the Arcola Theatre (London), Milwaukee Repertory Theater, the New Theatre (Sydney), Florida Stage, the Summer Play Festival, Actors Theatre of Louisville, American Theatre Company and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, among others. She has received commissions from South Coast Repertory, Manhattan Theatre Club and the Denver Center for the Performing Arts. She is the recipient of the Weissberger Award, the Otis Guernsey New Voices Playwriting Award from the Inge Theatre Festival and the Edgerton New Play Award. She also wrote the screenplay for the film Angel's Crest.

The cast for OZ 2.5 includes Larry Bates, Celeste Den, Amin El Gamal, Michael Faulkner, Joe Fria, Christopher Rivas and Emily Yetter.

The design and creative team includes François-Pierre Couture, scenic design; Sara Ryung Clement, costume design; Lonnie Rafael Alcaraz, lighting design; John Ballinger, sound design; Kaitlyn Pietras, projection/video designer; E.D. Brown, choreographer; Jackie S. Hill, production manager; and Kathryn Davies, stage manager.

OZ 2.5 is generously supported by Corporate Honorary Producer Wells Fargo; the production's media partner is OC Family magazine.

Tickets start at $20 for children ages 4-12; $25 for adults. For complete information, visit: www.scr.org.

Related Information for OZ 2.5

Tickets: May be purchased online at www.scr.org, by phone at (714) 708-5555 or by visiting the box office at 655 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa. Ticket prices start at $20 for children ages 4-12; $25 for adults. Low-priced preview performances run May 22-24 and May 29. Performances run May 22-June 7.

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