Saturday, April 18: "Adventures In Oz"

Temple Theater Ballroom

By Ron Swarner on April 8, 2015

Pasties, butt cheeks and hip-hop Toto return to Tacoma as the Gritty City Sirens' Adventures in Oz, a Wizard of Oz-inspired burlesque production, returns to the Temple Theater Ballroom. This Tacoma makeover of L. Frank Baum's classic may be campy, but it still follows the famous Dorothy down the Yellow Brick Road where she hooks up with the tie-wearing Scarecrow, sexy Tin Man and the fur-donning Cowardly Lion and gains enough confidence as a showgirl to defeat the Wicked Witch of the West. Along the way, there are some eye-popping burlesque, pole dancing, dance numbers and zaniness. Toto, in this scenario, takes the form of a hip-hop bboy. The production is necessarily short on suspense, since you know it so well, but delivers with a strong theatrical impact, inventive soundtrack, remarkable performances and hilarious moments. Bonus: Last year's flying monkey Mr. Joel moves into the role as the Tin Man, which means more pirouette a la seconde.

ADVENTURES IN OZ, 6 p.m., Temple Theater Ballroom, 47 Saint Helens Ave., Tacoma, $25-$50, brownpapertickets.com