As a child of the 60s, one of the things I looked forward to each year was watching “The Wizard of Oz” on television. I was mesmerized by Munchkinland, the Yellow Brick Road, and Emerald City…while The Wicked Witch of the West simply scared me to death!
When I read this script in January, it immediately transported me back to my childhood, but as an adult, I had a different perspective of the story. It struck me that God gifts every person and forms their brain, heart, and spirit. I got so excited about working on this story with the Artists and Mentors, to encourage them to recognize the strengths that they already have. During the rehearsal process, we shared four scriptures with our cast and crew:
- God is within her; she will not fall. Psalm 46:5a
- Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2a
- Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart. Psalm 37:4
- God didn’t give us a spirit that is timid but one that is powerful, loving and self-controlled. 2 Timothy 1:7
As I think about what it takes to bring each production to the Willow Creek stage, I am grateful for the technical and creative brains of our production teams - led by Joanne Botten, Dan Smith, Jordan Monson, and Scott Lambert. Your incredible, detailed minds take each production to a whole new level.
And it takes a dedicated team of volunteers, who have a heart for students with special needs. A handful of passionate people have worked on every production since 2012- Belinda Fitzner, Keith Bellof, Amy Bellof, Val Nash, and Marius Van Heerden! Others, with huge hearts, joined over the years and are part of our team today - Barb Stark, Michelle Pilafas, Jenni Von Tobel, Ella Bracero, Josh Moeller, Jeff Kreye, Beth Boge, Brenda Kuntz, Danny Bell, Deb Behnke, Kendra Alexander, Kristi Aldag, Deb Russ, Sandee Thomas, Gayle Gianopulos, and Christine Maxwell. One of our first Artists - Emma Kotecki – has grown into an awesome audio volunteer, whose heart is as big as her effervescent personality.
But the thing that is most evident to audiences is the courage of each Artist and Mentor who takes the stage. It is an utter joy to watch our students do things that they didn’t think they could do. For some, it’s speaking one line, but for others, it could be learning challenging choreography or singing a solo. As you will see, we set the bar high and our Artists and Mentors rise to that quality standard year after year!
My partner and sister in this adventure is Heather Froslid, whose mind and heart are committed to making every production memorable. I am blessed to work alongside a producer who motivates me to have courage throughout the process - and is also my friend.
Heather and I hope that you enjoy our vision of “The Wizard of Oz”. We pray that you are inspired to discover within yourself the gifts that God has already given you and that you share them with the world!
Kathy Lambert
Director, The Wizard of Oz
2022
