The musical was scheduled to be performed two weeks ago, but was postponed due to several COVID-19 exposures and positive tests among the cast. Now, Musical Director Drew Benware said the cast is “100%” back.

“They handled this little hiccup remarkably well,” Director Bonnie Brewer said. “I’ve seen professionals not be able to come back.”

Benware said he gave the students a one-week break when they learned about the delay.

“They came back, in many cases, more polished,” he said. “I remember doing the vocal warmups at that first night back, and when people go to their solo moments, the class just erupted into spontaneous applause.”

Morgan Olsen as Dorothy, with Emma Wood puppeteering Toto rehearse Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Benware said the show will be a “celebration of theater,” their first live performance in two years, and students are “jazzed” about it.

“We’re just so happy to be back in Oz together,” he said.

SLHS’s last play in 2020, “Little Shop of Horrors,” was cut short because of the pandemic. Last year, the students put on a radio play version of “Oklahoma!”

Two weeks ago, at a rehearsal mere days before the curtain was supposed to lift on the show, the actors were energetically chatting with nervous anticipation.

Eleanor Crowley, a senior who plays Miss Gulch and the Wicked Witch of the West, said the cast is excited to share their hard work in front of a live audience.

Owen Casler as the Cowardly Lion sings about wishing he had the “nerve” as he rehearses Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

“What I really like about Saranac Lake is that a lot of people, not even just from our town, but from other towns, really like the Saranac Lake musicals,” Crowley said.

She’s most excited to bring theater back to the elderly people who show up every year. She said they’ve been sad without it.

A lot of the high school cast are in their senior year, and many have been acting for a long time. They’ve grown close over the years and especially during this return to the stage.

“I think the most fun thing for everybody is the whole community,” Crowley said.

She compared the cast’s closeness to that of a sports team. They’re all putting everything they have into working toward same goal.

Eleanor Crowley as the Wicked Witch of the West puts on an evil show as she rehearses Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Owen Casler, a senior who plays the Cowardly Lion, also plays high school sports. He said that’s a great comparison. He said the teams have to stay focused and if there’s a screw-up, keep the show rolling.

“You can’t be down on each other,” he said. “You’ve got to pick each other up.”

Morgan Olsen, a senior, has the lead role of Dorothy. Olsen is a seasoned actor. She’s been acting since she was young.

“It’s only her billionth lead ever,” Crowley said.

“It’s my favorite thing. I love it,” Olsen said. “It’s like, you get to become this persona.”

Sam Madden as the Scarecrow stumbles around stage as he rehearses Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday.

She said she keeps coming back for time with her friends.

“The sense of community is just amazing,” Olsen said. “The family that you have during and after. You’re just so proud of everyone by the end of it.”

Some of the students previously performed the Oz-Wonderland mashup “Dorothy in Wonderland” at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts in 2016. Olsen played Dorothy then, too.

“Judy Garland, obviously, she’s amazing,” Olsen said.

She said she “can’t live up” to Garland’s performance, but she’s channeling her as much as possible to play the sweet, friendly Dorothy who enters a strange world, but one kinder than the worlds she comes from.

From left, Sam Madden as the Scarecrow, Morgan Olsen as Dorothy, Clyde Waters as the Tinman and Owen Casler as the Cowardly Lion rehearse Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage tonight through Sunday. (Enterprise photos — Aaron Cerbone)

Crowley wasn’t surprised to be cast as the wicked witch. When she performed in “Dorothy in Wonderland” years ago, she was the Queen of Hearts.

“It’s what I expected to get. It’s what everybody was telling me I was going to get,” Crowley said. “I’ve always been typecast as like the evil people. Even if not in real life, I guess on stage I’m really good at being loud and angry and evil.”

She gives her character an evil, snarling voice, different than the one in the movie, but just as vindictive.

Crowley also said Sam Madden was perfectly cast as the Scarecrow.

“He just IS the Scarecrow,” Crowley said.

He’s got a mop of straw-like blonde hair atop his head and he’s always got a smile on his face, Crowley said.

“I like the physicality,” Madden said.

He says this as he tugs on his suspenders. Onstage, he throws his whole body into his performance — literally. Tumbling, stumbling and crashing around the set, he slams into the stage with seemingly little regard for his physical well-being.

But he said it’s the nuance of the Scarecrow he likes most — the small facial expressions he gets to show.

It’s been a few years since he was in a production. Madden said he returned to theater to socialize more.

“I was really nervous when I auditioned because I haven’t done it in so long,” Madden said.

Benware said the school picked “The Wizard of Oz” because they wanted a familiar story that let the young actors play around with their roles.

“I think the plot is timeless,” he said. “While I think all of the students are familiar with the movie, what the audience is not going to see is a caricature of that.”

He said they’re not just imitating the movie, they’re putting their own spin on these iconic roles.

“Now that we feel comfortable doing it, we can sort of make it our own,” Madden said.

He said now, they’re playing around with line deliveries and comical timing. Casler is looking forward seeing an audience’s reaction to see if their tinkering worked.

Emma Wood plays Toto, Dorothy’s puppy puppet. Wood got her start in puppeteering Audrey II during “Little Shop,” and fell in love with the craft. Benware approached her this year, to ask her to pull Toto’s marionette strings. The tiny terrier puppet was designed by Matt Sorensen from Pendragon Theatre.

“It looks like a real dog,” Crowley said. “(Wood) is really good at it.”

Wood makes Toto’s feet run and tail wag. She’s also the voice of the dog.

“Rufff!” she said before rehearsal two weeks ago.

Students will be able to perform without being required to wear masks. Some students said this made a big difference. It takes a lot more energy to be loud through a mask.

Benware said for students on “mask-watch,” the school is offering to give them PCR tests the day of performances to see if they can take off the masks.

For Casler, he said the masks never hindered him — he’s a loud person. He can roar, but his character whimpers just as often.

“He’s probably the funnest character,” Casler said of the lion, a comical mixture of bravado and timidness.

Friday and Saturday shows at the High School Auditorium are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. and the Sunday show is scheduled for 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 at the door. Masks are recommended.

Clyde Waters as the Tinman sings about wanting a heart as he rehearses Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Morgan Olsen as Dorothy, left, and Sage Kite-Whidden as Professor Marvel rehearse Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Owen Casler as the Cowardly Lion sings about wishing he had the “nerve” as he rehearses Saranac Lake High School’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)

Saranac Lake High School Musical Director Drew Benware plays the piano as cast members in SLHS’s performance of “The Wizard of Oz” rehearse last month. The musical hits the stage this Friday through Sunday. (Enterprise photo — Aaron Cerbone)