As a young boy in rural Indiana, Dallas Theater Center artistic director Kevin Moriarty saved his allowance to see the 1978 movie version of the iconic Broadway play, The Wiz. He was the only one there. As the show went on, despite twisted plot lines, the music and soulful passion behind the ballads moved Moriarty. Literally. He says he got up from his seat and danced down the aisles, letting the songs carry him away.

“There’s a lot of opportunity for freedom of expression when you’re alone in a movie theater,” he says.  When Moriarty’s father came to pick him up, he acknowledged his son’s behavior by saying, “Heard you were dancing,” to which Moriarty replied with an unabashed, “Yes.”

Nostalgia aside, his memory has served as one of the inspirations for this summer’s production, a collaboration of Dallas Black Dance Theater and Dallas Theater Center. When The Wiz is done right, Moriarty says, the underlying themes of justice and freedom expressed in the music can be enough to make the audience (er, some of the audience) feel as if their seats cannot contain them. But just in case, expect to be physically moved, too. When the tornado hits, audience members will spin right along with Dorothy thanks to the Wyly’s quick-change seats. When you meet the Scarecrow, and the Lion, and the Tin Man, you might actually ease on down the road (or across the theater space) with them.

Moriarty’s version will be, for logistical reasons, short; 90 minutes, no intermission. Notable faces include Liz Mikel, fresh from her well-reviewed Lysistrata Jones in New York City, and DTC company member Hassan El-Amin as The Wiz (though he jokes about being Toto’s understudy). Broadway performer James T. Lane makes his Dallas debut, replacing Cedric Neal as the Scarecrow.

The Wiz begins performances July 8.

Behind the scenes in the costume shop. Photo by Courtney Egelston.