Interview: Jos Vantyler Talks THE WIZARD OF OZ

Somewhere over the rainbow (well, just up in Birmingham actually) a re-imagining of The Wizard of Oz is taking shape. Liam Steel's production plays the Birmingham Repertory Theatre this Christmas, and our interviewee couldn't think of anywhere better: "This is the MGM of the Midlands, which makes it the perfect home for MGM's classic The Wizard of Oz".

Playing the Wicked Witch of the West, actor Jos Vantyler shares the challenges of taking on such well-known roles, the joys of performing villains, and what audiences can expect from the show.

What's your earliest memory of theatre?

Well somewhat appropriately, it was a Christmas show! It was seeing Peter Pan when I was about four. I remember not being able to see because of the person's head in front of me, so I could only see every time Peter Pan flew (now we have booster seats, fortunately).

Did you always know you wanted to get into performing?

It was all I'd really done from a young age. I had that dancing route into it, which I didn't continue to do. But you sometimes get asked to do a bit of dancing in stuff now, so I'm always thankful for that.

I was just out there doing it: auditions, plays, all that stuff as a kid. So I guess I never really had that gap. I never didn't do it.

And because of that background, you've worked across a range of shows: musicals, new writes, Shakespeare. What draws you to particular projects?

For me, the part is everything. Wherever the part takes you, you have to go. You know, I never thought that anybody would say, "Come and play the Wicked Witch of the West!" It's not on your bucket list! My list didn't really read "Richard III, Jesus Christ, the Wicked Witch of the West!"

There are reasons for doing every job and money should always be the last. (It's not always the case, because you have to work to live.) But I always look at the part and the people involved. So with The Wizard of Oz, I've always admired Liam Steel, who's directing and choreographing it and I've seen lots of Birmingham Rep's stuff and wanted to do be part of that.

How familiar were you with The Wizard of Oz?

Well the film is a classic and it should never ever be tampered with. The book, L. Frank Baum's story, I think it takes a very confident person with a very clear vision to say, "This is our reimagining of The Wizard of Oz". And that's what Liam is doing so brilliantly. His imagination and his fabulous level of creativity brings to this piece a complete reimagining of that.

So I knew the story and the film incredibly well. I've had to kind of forget a lot of that which is very hard, because the performances in the film are so ingrained and wonderful. Especially Margaret Hamilton. She's the first person you think of when you think of the Wicked Witch.

You've played a few of those iconic roles (Jesus aside!) I suppose the same may be true when you played the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Exactly! And both villains! Random thing, but I was actually thinking this to myself the other day: why do I mainly play villains or lovers?! I think the answer is they are very similar in the respect that they're both very passionate. Lovers are passionate about romance and love often another person. Villains are passionate about being awful! And I love that.

But when somebody like Robert Helpmann portrays the Child Catcher or somebody like Margaret Hamilton portrays the Wicked Witch of the West, they are two iconic performances. And you cannot blame an audience for turning up and wanting to see something very similar, because it's what they know and what was so successful.

How do you balance that as an actor?

For me, I have to honour what they did but in the same breath, I also have to do what I do which is do my version of the character that was written.

It's a hard call. Because the easy thing is to try and imitate, but you can't because that would be against the new vision of it and you'd be doing a disservice to the audience really. Because you're never going to be what those people were.

Can you take us through your Wicked Witch of the West then?

To be honest, I took everything I could out of the situation of the story of where it is set. The time we're setting it in is the mid to late 1950's in Kansas.

She is a very wealthy land owner and she looks it. She's rather glamorous, she's quite fierce, she's obviously an incredibly cruel and malicious person. But that isn't telegraphed to the audience via her appearance, which really helps.

Our designer's done a beautiful job of giving her first appearance as Miss Gulch some very sharp, hard 1950's American style. The look had a lot to do with the way that I portray her and it's helped me an awful lot. She's very couture, a hybrid of the 50's Dior, Chanel kind of American, vicious Republican. She's got that waspy, hard veneer of tight, narrow glamour which comes across in the way that she is.

So I'm not grotesque and I'm not made to look evil per say. There's a strong whiff of evil about her but on the whole she looks pretty good, I hope! And that overly gives you the opposite to be able to play. It's not a baddie with a baddie's face playing a baddie!

And you double as the Wicked Witch of the West and Miss Gulch. This isn't the first time you're taking on two roles this year, is it?

She says knowingly! It's not and it's my favourite thing, I love it.

It's been a year of learning two sets of lines. So I was in Love's Labour's Lost at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, playing Don Armado and his servant Moth (they shared a lot of scenes together!) But I don't play Nikko, Miss Gulch's assistant! That's played by a wonderful dancer called Rhys [Batten]. Unlike Don Armado, I don't have to play my own servant...can you imagine!

What's great about doubling in this is you start to see essences of the Witch when Miss Gulch is there. She really has it in her to become this awful person that you then meet in the following scene.

You had a few numbers in Love's Labour's Lost. Do we get to hear you sing in this one as well?

No, she's the only person without a number.

The Child Catcher didn't sing either. There's something just a little bit nicer than not having to sing as a villain. I mean we all want a lover to sing, I hope people loved that Don Armado sang! Lovers singing and people singing about love is wonderful.

But there's something I think is slightly detrimental to villains when they put their voice to an orchestra. So I'm kind of pleased that she just gets to be awful and doesn't have to wow you with a set of notes.

You mentioned the part and people draw you to a job. What's it like working with Liam Steel?

I never met Cecil B. DeMille...I'm far too young! But every book that I've read about Cecil and every time he's mentioned in something, everybody talks about his extreme attention to detail.

He never solves a problem by removing anything; he just builds up to make the picture bigger. There was an intense realness about anything he did; nothing was just for the sake of it. He was one of the best painters of pictures and one of the finest mergers of music, dance and acting. And I think all those things go for Liam Steel.

I've never known anybody so full of energy and so on it and so concentrated doing a musical like this. I've known it in plays, but doing a musical I've never seen it. So it's brilliant.

What can audiences expect from the show?

I think it's going to be magical. We've got two revolves, we've got a yellow brick road that lights up and moves around the stage, we've got flying, we've got fire, we've got illusions! Ben Hart is doing all of our illusions and magic and they're going to look brilliant.

It's wonderful, the work happening up here. Do you know what? I had never been to Birmingham before this, and I've been all over the place on tours. Birmingham's got a lot of money being spent on it and it deserves it: the people are charming, the theatre is sensational.

I've never seen a workshop like this and the sheer scale operationally. This is the MGM of the Midlands, which makes it the perfect home for MGM's classic The Wizard of Oz.

Finally, what would be at the end of your yellow brick road?

I can't say the real answer...

Which is...?

An Academy Award [laughs!]

A golden brick road then!

Yes! I would say with every single one of my favourite people with a drink in their hand and a big band playing.

The Wizard of Oz at Birmingham Rep, 24 November 2018 - 13 January 2019

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