“The Wizard of Oz” is about dreams: of hope, home, friendship, love, artificiality, and authenticity. The story of Dorothy and her companions, the witch and the wizard, is also classic with the capacity to be adapted, so it can address different questions for different times–questions such as technology, identity, social norms, and artistic performance, among others.

The movie marked the transformation from standard black and white film to a wonderful world of vibrant colors, singing munchkins, beautiful witches who make an entrance with a glittering baby pink bubble and matching gown, a yellow brick road, and an enchanting Emerald city. The movie reinvented Frank L. Baum’s original beloved novel through music and song, and forever altered the medium of film.

To remake “The Wizard of Oz” is to retouch and fine tune a masterpiece. “The Wiz,” famous for its all black cast, and songs such as “Ease on Down the Road” and “What Would I Do If I Could Feel”–not to mention Michael Jackson, in the film version–similarly marked a transformation in the American consciousness.  It did its part to make black voices heard. The gravity of what “The Wiz” was able to express with a full black cast was emulated by “Hamilton,” a show comprised of a cast–other than King George–made up entirely of people of color. It holds a similar gravity.

Although Parker’s rendition was not able to convey the social issues so linked with “The Wiz,” it was able to find a connection between Baum’s original “Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” which first came out in the early 1900s, and the spectacular and moving songs of “The Wiz” made popular in the 1978 movie.

The Parker production paid homage to “The Wiz” through a great performance of the musical score, dramatic directorial emphasis on the old favorite story, and a brilliant green-light show that overlaid the audience, as Dorothy and her cast of characters entered the Emerald city. So it embodied the temper of a story held dear to so many. This was a theatrical touch worthy of “Wicked!” Parker’s “Wiz” also featured fabulous costuming and the entire cast’s infectious enthusiasm.

Dorothy, Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Cowardly Lion all did a great job. The Scarecrow, as played by Parker junior Kaden Florsheim, was a crowd favorite. Florsheim exhibited great comic timing, a wonderful, ever-present smile, and great stage presence. Similarly, David Rothman had a standout performance as the Tin Man. His phenomenal solo of “What Would I Do If I Could Feel” rivaled that of the original. A certain thoughtfulness and sincerity (large enough to be perceptible by the entire audience) was conveyed by the Cowardly Lion as performed by none other than high school senior Ricardo Rodriguez.

One of the great performances of the show was that of Jalen Benjamin, someone obviously comfortable on stage. In an entirely emerald green ensemble (the most perfect green shoes picked to create the full look), Jalen was able to convince an audience to believe that he was indeed the most wonderful wizard while also the pathetic fraud the Wiz turns out to be.

These performances made Parker’s “The Wiz” a great tribute to a much-loved classic. With any tribute, unlike with a reinterpretation, it is never as great as the original. Some of the acting and singing was less than sensational. Nonetheless, for a high school musical, this enthusiastic and close-knit cast was able to entrance an audience for an evening and remind us why any rendition of “The Wizard of Oz” a must-see.