With apologies to Dorothy Gale, “Toto, I’ve a feeling we’re not in Eldridge anymore.” And in a way, we’re not. The tiny burg, located at the southern approach to Glen Ellen, is home to the Sonoma Developmental Center, the state-operated residential facility serving those with developmental disabilities. Next week, however, the semi-pastoral setting will look a little different, when the center’s Performing Arts Company transforms the campus gymnasium into the Land of Oz with its production of “The Wizard of Oz.”
The cast, comprised of special-needs clients accompanied by center staffers, has labored long and hard on the production, which opens to pre-sold-out performances on Sept. 24. Though the musical was chosen for its vast number of roles (nearly 40 residents, aided by nearly as many staffers, appear in the show), it is impossible to ignore the fact that a cast featuring performers with developmental disabilities puts into high relief the story’s theme of searching for wholeness. What makes this story particularly poignant is that the characters discover the resources they need are within them all along, teased out by personal trials and friendship, and serves to remind that every journey down the Yellow Brick Road is fraught with lions, tigers and bears, but the smarts, heart and courage necessary to overcome them are as varied as the colors in the rainbow.
“You see them shine. It’s unbelievable,” explained director Jim Tallent, chairperson of the center’s Performing Arts Committee, which is made up of Sonoma Developmental Center employees and cast members who live at the facility. “For somebody that would seem to be very quiet and laid back, when they get on set and they just open up to the lights and the audience, they just come out of their shell, and it’s just amazing,”
Tallent credits his predecessor, Melody Mitchell, with setting the bar high in previous productions including “Grease,” the musical revue “The Best of Broadway” and last year’s “The Music Man.” “She was very professional at what she did. It’s just overwhelming sometimes. It can be fun. It can also be very stressful getting people to do what you want them to do, and I’m not talking about the actors, I’m talking about their helpers,” he said with a laugh.
Since many of the residents are non-verbal, digital cuing devices are provided so that they may activate pre-recorded line-readings to supplement their performances. Images that underscore the dialogue and action will be projected on a screen to foster clarity.
For the center’s veteran actress Anya Peskin, the lines were, as she said, a “snap.” Peskin does a star turn as Dorothy, which is perfect casting given the actress and character share the same can-do spirit.
“She’s a smart lady. She’s been like the star of the whole thing, and I like being the star,” said Peskin with a smile. The plucky actress possesses an undeniable star quality and is said to delight in being the center’s resident diva. Peskin’s innate confidence is no doubt bolstered by her annual appearances onstage – experiences she rather poetically describes with an affirming simile.
“It’s like when you open your presents on Christmas morning and the top of the tree is over there and I feel like the shiny angel on top of the Christmas tree,” explained Peskin, who is as vivid a personality as her choice of words. She succinctly summarizes the production to its essential story beats: “It’s kind of like a magical land, where she meets all these nice characters, then she goes and sees the wizard and clicks her heels three times and says ‘There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.’”
Peskin’s home, of course, is a residential facility that serves a community with developmental disabilities. What is germane is that this home has provided her the dignity and space to flourish as an individual and an artist. In this context, there is indeed no place like home.
“I just be myself that’s all that happens. When you’re an actress like I am you just need to be yourself and have confidence in what you do. I have lots of confidence,” said Peskin. “Confidence comes from my heart, it comes from within.”
Accompanying Dorothy on her quest to see the Wizard are Isaiah Wicker as the Cowardly Lion, though it’s evident that the personable actor, a Katrina-survivor, is himself anything but cowardly.
“I like saying ‘Arrrrgh!’” said Wicker, who prefers to think of his interpretation of the lion as decidedly non-cowardly. Paul Stahan reveals a big heart onstage as the Tin Woodsman that he otherwise often cloaks in shyness, and James Hansel’s sage and crinkly eyes made him the perfect choice for the Scarecrow. Other principle cast members include Gwen Sanford as Glynda the Good Witch and Susan Novotny as the Wicked Witch of the West. The effervescent Jimmy White appears as the Wizard, who explained proudly, “I’m behind the curtain. It’s a lot of work, but I can do it. I like being in the play because it’s fun and something to do.”
“It’s extremely rewarding just to see the happiness of the actors with their sense of involvement, sense of accomplishment, self-pride and all the things that go along with doing a performance,” said Karen Litzenberg, assistant to the executive director.
Having seen a recent rehearsal, one would be hard-pressed to disagree. The spirit of the Sonoma Developmental Center’s production is best summed up by a lyric from the show’s opening number: “If happy little bluebirds fly, beyond the rainbow, why, oh why, can’t I?”
The Sonoma Developmental Center’s Performing Arts Company presents “The Wizard of Oz.” The show plays at 7 p.m., Sept. 24 and 25, and Oct. 1 and 2, in the SDC gymnasium, 15000 Arnold Dr., Eldridge. For more information call 707.938.6703.
