Interview: Mia Nelson of THE WIZARD OF OZ at Ashland Productions

Young Dorothy Gale is swept away by a tornado from her Kansas farm to the magical land of Oz. There, she encounters a host of whimsical characters: good witches, bad witches, animals that talk, scarecrows that walk, and things magical to behold.

To find her way home, she must journey along the Yellow Brick Road to see the mysterious and all-powerful Wizard in Emerald City. Along the way, she makes new friends, but must also brave many dangers, including the Wicked Witch of the West, who will stop at nothing to get her hands on Dorothy's magical Ruby Slippers. To make it home safely, Dorothy must learn an important lesson: there's no place like home.

We chat with Mia Nelson who plays Dorothy Gale about her role and the production.

How does this role compare to other roles you've played?

Well to start off, it's one of my first big lead roles. Having to memorize all these scenes was definitely difficult at first, but has been such a fun challenge! I would also say although it may not seem like it, the role of Dorothy is actually quite challenging. In our production, we wanted Dorothy to have a balance of being both sweet, innocent, and kind but also bold, outspoken, and confident. Getting to play around with these different character choices has been such a blast!

Do you have a favorite song in the show?

I have many favorite little moments in every single song in the show, I really love them all. But I think my favorite one would to perform would probably be "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". It's the iconic song that everyone knows and adores. I grew up singing that song, so getting to sing it onstage for the show has been such an honor. It has such a beautiful meaning, and getting to convey that onstage has been such a joy.

Did you face any challenges with your character or the production?

One of the biggest challenges I faced for the character of Dorothy was making the character my own. It's such an iconic movie and character, so finding a balance of keeping some elements from the movie, but creating my own moments and making her more authentic was definitely an exciting challenge. I will say, getting to play with a Dorothy voice definitely took a while but was extremely fun ;)

How was working with the cast and the creative team?

It's been such a wonderful experience. The talent that is in this cast is absolutely unbelievable; every single person brings their 100% to every rehearsal and it's been so fun to see the show come together. Getting to work beside and learn from the wonderful Karly Hennen (Scarecrow), Alex McKenzie (Tinman), Collin Krieger (Lion), and much more has been such a good learning experience for me. But getting to mentor and work with the younger kids is always one of my favorite parts of shows. I've also LOVED getting to learn from our incredible creative team. It has been such a wonderful opportunity. I'm so grateful for all the hard work that's been put into the show from our stage managers, costumers, makeup and hair artists, tech and design crew, and much more -- they have all worked together to make our show come to life. I absolutely loved getting to work with Cindy Novy (choreographer), her choreography is so insanely amazing. It's so much fun to see on stage, we have a lot of fun performing it:) All the work and energy that Tyler Eliason (vocal director) has given has been so wonderful. It really pays off on stage and he's truly such a wonderful person to be around. As for our incredible director, Rob Sutherland, I'm so honored to get the opportunity to work with him. The ideas, encouragement, work, and love that he puts in to the show really transfers on stage. He pushes everyone to their full potential every single time, and challenges people to be the best they can be. He not only creates wonderful performers but wonderful people as well. Getting to learn from the entire team has been such a great opportunity. I don't know what we would do without this amazing creative team.

What do you hope the audience takes away from seeing this production?

I really hope that after watching our show the audience can two important takeaways from the story. One being, stop pretending or wishing to be someone people need you to be, and start being who you truly are. The second one being how home is where you heart is. One of my favorite lines in the show is when Dorothy finally realizes the lesson that she needed to learn all along, "If I ever go looking for my hearts desire again, I won't have to look any further than my own backyard because if it isn't there, then I never really lost it to begin with."

What are your favorite local spots?

For lunch, I'm an old fashioned burger and malt girl. I think the best burgers and malts in the Twin Cities would be at Leo's Grill and Malt Shop in Stillwater.

After lunch I like walking up and down the main street to visit all the shops and boutiques, or getting to walk by the river is always fun too!

For dinner, my go to would always be Cheesecake Factory. It's a family favorite/tradition to go there before a show or special event.

After dinner I'd recommend coming to see our show or really any upcoming shows at the wonderful Ashland Productions!!

Thank you Mia for your time!

For more show and ticket information, please click the ticket button link below.

Photo Credit: Kara Salava

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