Everybody knows about Dorothy’s journey down the Yellow Brick Road to the Emerald City – or do they, wonders arts editor HELEN MUSA.

WHO is the star of “The Wizard of Oz”? – Dorothy or Toto? 

Theoretically, it should be the plucky little girl blown away to the Land of Oz in a tornado and best-known to most of us for Judy Garland’s portrayal in the 1939 film version of Frank Baum’s 1900 novel.

But, bearing in mind the old stage proscription against performing with children and dogs, it’s an even bet that the cute Cairn terrier, Toto, will get just as much applause when Ickle Pickle Productions revive the musical version of the show at Belconnen Theatre in early January. 

Director Justin Watson couldn’t be more pleased. He’s done the show before in 2007, and given the need for a bit of post-covid optimism, he reckons it’s just about the perfect family show.

Ickle Pickle has been around since late 2005 and has done more than 40 productions of shows such as “The Little Mermaid”, “Seussical the Musical” and “Beauty and the Beast” involving more than 2000 performers, although the pandemic forced a brief hiatus.

Watson was alarmed to find out that when his five-year-old daughter Jasmine, who’ll play a Munchkin in the show, turned up to her school dress-up day as Dorothy, classmates were confused because she didn’t look like Dorothy the Dinosaur. He’s determined to set this right and introduce a beloved show to a new generation.

Although busy with his day job at the National Gallery, he’s found time to assemble a large, cross-sectional cast. 

He’s got some star power – Meaghan Stewart, who just won a Canberra Critics Circle award for playing Eliza Doolittle in “Pygmalion”, for instance, is playing the Cowardly Lion. She initially auditioned for the Wicked Witch of the West, but was disappointed to find that she had no songs – Lion gets two. Experienced Canberra actor Debra Byrne will play the Wicked Witch and that’s a plum role, too. 

Watson is particularly proud that he’s got several young Ickle Pickle performers who are now stepping into lead roles. 

One such is Dorothy herself, played by Kellee-Rose Hand. She’s been with them for five years and, although she sang in Philo’s “Jersey Boys”, this is her first lead role.

Another one is Jack Morton playing Watson’s favourite character, Scarecrow, who thinks he doesn’t have a brain. Morton’s been with the company since 2015. 

Aleesha Boye, who plays the good witch Glinda, is a 12-year veteran of the company. 

Samuel Dietz, who plays Tin Man, the one who thinks he doesn’t have a heart (as in the song) has a beautiful singing voice, Watson says, and has played leads.

Kristofer Patston-Gill, who plays the Wizard is a first timer with Ickle Pickle but, with a background in film work, “should bring gravitas to what is a very curious character”.

Making it all happen are choreographer Jodi Hammond, a professional dancer who has been with them since 2017, Jen Hinton of Queanbeyan Players fame, joining them as musical director for the first time, and theatre identity Ian Croker who is busy concocting a suitably magical set.

Watson is using the adaptation by the Royal Shakespeare Company, known to be the closest stage version to the film, with all the songs you’ll know, such as “Follow the Yellow Brick Road/You’re Off to See the Wizard”, “If I Only Had a Heart” and, of course, “Over the Rainbow”.

“It’s very true to the original, but it’s a 2022 version,” Watson says, so in order to create a positive role model, we’ve updated the text to take out sexist or racist remarks.”

And what about the little star, Toto? 

There’s every chance that she (yes, and the original film one was a she, too) will steal the show, and Livvy, a little Cairn terrier like the original film star, is already hard at work three days a week learning to respond to Kellee-Rose Hand as Dorothy. Toto has to run across the stage into her arms and it wouldn’t do if she ran to the wrong person, so Watson has consulted dog-trainers and the rest is practice. 

And where does Livvy come from? She’s been loaned to Ickle Pickle by the Emerald City Cairn Terriers breeders in Queanbeyan.

In 2007 they also loaned a little dog and it tickles Ickle Pickle that they’ve been able to do it again.

“The Wizard of Oz”, Belconnen Theatre, January 6 to 21