Over the usual Rotary lunch last Friday, the Rotarians feasted their senses and mind on the unusually spectacular performance of scenes from the Wizard of Oz by the players of the Shakespeare League of Pasadena. Ten charming and vivacious players—eight female and two male—vivified the entire ballroom. Dressed in lovely costumes, they sang “Ding Dong the Witch Is Dead;” “Merry Old Land of Oz” and “If Only I Had a Brain.” They danced to the music “Off to See the Wizard.”

The Shakespeare League of Pasadena was established in 1929 as a Junior Division of the Shakespeare Club, said Candy Campbell, one of the lead players. The Shakespeare Club is the oldest women’s club in southern California with a history of 120 years. Both the Club and the League are non-profit with strong philanthropic commitment to community service mirroring the developments, lifestyle and events of the San Gabriel Valley over the years.

The League produces an annual benefit including a Gala, Silent Auction and a full-scale musical production to support local charities, according to Mary Ellen, another lead player. This year the benefit will benefit the Susan B. Komen Foundation and the Pasadena Ronald McDonald House because of the former’s mission to find a cure for breast cancer and the latter’s endeavor to create “a home away from home” for families of seriously ill children being treated at nearby hospitals. This year the musical production is the Wizard of Oz because “this beautiful classic transcends generations and gives us all a message—Small or big, brainless or not, together we can make dreams come true.” So says Mary.

The Wizard is coming to town. The Wizard of Oz will be performed at the Ambassador Auditorium on March 6^th and 7^th, 2009.