There is a problem with the stage version of The Wizard of Oz, and that is the movie. There is no getting away from the fact that almost every member of the audience will have the classic film running through their heads, and will be making scene-by-scene comparisons even as they watch events unfold on stage. That is why all stage Dorothys look like clones of Judy Garland (although, alas, very few of them sound as good). It is also why productions always come across more like a live replaying of the movie than an original piece of art.
Rachel Kavanaugh's production is a very efficient copy, and one that will bring a lot of pleasure to many, although I fear she risks mutiny from the audience for the crime of assuming that we cannot spot the difference between a live Toto and a stuffed Toto. Still, this is supposed to be theatre, not Crufts, and Kavanaugh's production delivers on most scores - particularly in the visual department. Like a lot of big musicals, this is a show that has been designed rather than directed, and very nice it is too with its repeating circle-within-circle motif. Mind you, all that wandering around in circles does make you wonder whether it is Dorothy rather than the Scarecrow who lacks a brain.
Oz himself provides one of the few opportunities for directors to add an original touch, and here he is very much Big Brother (as in Orwell, not Channel Four). Suzanne Toase is a touching and sparky Dorothy; given a role where she is allowed to act rather than impersonate, she might really shine. Catherine Breeze is an enjoyably wicked Witch of the West, and I could gobble those Munchkins right up. Only the sticky final moments slide into pure treacle. Your heart's desire is always in your own backyard? Bah, humbug!
· Until January 24. Box office: 0121-236 4455.
