With Midlo’s fall musical, The Wizard of Oz, rapidly approaching, Mrs. Katherine Baugher has assembled her cast of munchkins, comprised of children from Midlo’s faculty, as well as actors from the show’s ensemble.

Why cast children in The Wizard of Oz?

The Wizard of Oz is so generational. Generations of us have watched it with our parents and grandparents. I like the idea that some of these kids will come to love theater for their lives, looking back fondly on this experience being their first theater experience. I like to see them get caught up in the magic.

The children will be playing munchkins. What exactly will this entail from them?

The munchkins rehearse once a week for the first 6 weeks of rehearsal, and then as we get closer to the show, they’ll be here for all the final run through. So essentially everything that the older actors have to do, except condensed.

What do you look for in children who want to participate?

An openness and excitement for theater.  I love to be able to sit down and talk with them to see how they respond.

What is the responsibility of the older students when the children are rehearsing?

We have older actors assigned to take care of the children. It’s important to me that we keep the children safe while they are here. I like the dynamic that the older kids look after the younger ones.

How does the rehearsal dynamic shift when the kids are around?

I love getting to see all of the students I have taught over the years graduate from high school.

Has there ever been a child who came back as a student of yours?

In The King and I, we had a kid who was tiny and grew up and came to Midlothian and ended up being Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird.