By Phil Buatti

Little Hawk Opinion Editor

A wicked witch utters a shrill cackle as a swarm of flying monkeys swirls away from a dark and terrible castle. For the cast and crew of the spring musical, Opstad Auditorium The classic musical, The Wizard of Oz will be performed at City High April 22 through the 24.
With a huge cast of children and high schoolers alike, this may be one of the biggest productions ever put on by the City High drama department. Custom set pieces have been ordered, including Glinda’s bubble and a the Wizard’s hot air balloon basket.
“I’m hoping they can program a robot costume that will do my dance moves for me,” said Tareq Abuissa, ‘10, who will be playing the Tin Man.
One of the most memorable elements of The Wizard of Oz is the Wicked Witch’s hoard of flying monkeys. And what would flying monkeys be if they couldn’t fly?
For the first time in City High history, students will actually fly on stage. Flying by Foy, the company that created stage-flying, is scheduled to rig up the flight mechanisms in early April.
“They will use weights and some very advanced physics to essentially get our students to fly,” said Doug Lestina, director.
Their current plan is to get approximately 8 kids flying at once. Flying by Foy will train the backstage crew on how to use the flight mechanism.
“Technically, it’s going to be a challenge with all the set pieces and lighting,” said Troy Peters, director. “Its going to be wild getting the whole thing to come together. The backstage crew’s going to have to really be on their toes.”