Gee Wiz

New York City Center should see a spectacular journey into the land of Oz this month with The Wiz (June 12-July 5), the all-black adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L Frank Baum. R&B superstar Ashanti will star as Dorothy with Thomas Kail at the helm and choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, two of the talents behind the Broadway hit In the Heights. The cast will also feature Orlando Jones as The Wiz, LaChanze as Glinda, Tichina Arnold as Evillene, Dawnn Lewis as Addaperle, Joshua Henry as the Tinman, James Monroe Iglehart as the Lion, Christian White as the Scarecrow, and Nigel will play the role of Toto.

For another helping of musical magic, Theater Ten Ten will present Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (June 10-21), the Andrew Lloyd Webber-Tim Rice adaptation of the story of Joseph from the Bible. For a different kind of fantasy, MCC Theater will dive into Neil Gaiman’s novella, recently remade into a stop-motion film, Coraline (Lucille Lortel Theatre, through June 20). Gaiman’s novella is about a neglected little girl who dreams of a better life and is greeted by that opposite reality when she steps through an old oak doorway in their Victorian home. At first it’s exactly what she wants, but as the saying goes, “be careful what you wish for.”

For those who’d rather have the magic without the fantasy, The Snapple Theater Center will host Magic and Zone (beginning June 6), featuring Rich Marotta and Twila Zone, whose kid-friendly amalgam of comedic timing and mysterious magic is sophisticated enough for adults. Theater for the New City will go the kid-created route this month with Out Of Whack: The All-Kids Rock Musical Workshop (June 14-17), an original show created and performed by ten kids and teens, ages 9-19. Writer Rachel Fleiss, a high-school senior, worked with the performers to develop themes, characters, songs, and the script under the guidance of writer/director/songwriter Matt Okin, and vocal director/arranger Jonathan Kaplan. Snoopy will make a melodic appearance near the end of the month at the West End Theatre in Snoopy!!! The Musical (June 23-27).

Boomerang Theater might have just the thing to engage a hungry young mind on a warm summer night with The Comedy of Errors (June 20-July 19), presented in Central Park where the admission is free with no tickets or reservations. Simply show up with the family, a blanket, and possibly a picnic for an evening of Shakespeare. There’s always a story to tell, especially when it comes to the Story Pirates, and this month they will present another family friendly episode of Story Pirates Kids Theater! (June 20) at Comix, a night of improvised theater sourced from stories written by elementary students, complete with songs, props, music videos, and puppets. John Jay college will host a menagerie of stories this month in Barnes & Noble Storytelling Hour (June 9-23), where costumed characters will join the staff of the Barnes & Noble at John Jay college for the reading of several popular books.