This weekend only, Kilbourn Avenue turns into the yellow brick road, as the Miller High Life Theatre plays host to the touring production of "The Wizard of Oz."

It’s a plot that hardly needs summarizing, but in case you’ve been spending too much time in a field of poppies, here’s a quick synopsis of this beloved tale: A tornado literally turns a Kansas girl’s world upside down as one minute, she’s singing on a haystack on her family’s farm, and the next, she enters a land filled with munchkins, talking trees, witches and horses of a different color. But despite her incredible adventure and the friends she meets along the way, with each step she takes, she better understands that there’s no place like home.

"The Wizard of Oz" is debatably the most beloved film of all time. It was a box office smash back in 1939, made the incomparable Judy Garland a household name and is a universally liked film … well, universally liked with a few exceptions. 

I’m just going to get something out there right away, and I know it’s going to be a controversial opinion: I don’t really care for the movie "The Wizard of Oz." I can almost hear your judgment and disbelief as I type this. Don’t get me wrong – it’s not that I HATE the movie. I recognize it as an incredible cinematic achievement (especially considering the time it was made in), few people love Judy Garland more than I do and the story is certainly charming. It’s just one of those movies that never struck a personal chord.

So you may be asking yourself, why would I be reviewing this? Wouldn’t I immediately walk into the Miller High Life Theatre with a negative opinion? But it’s actually my ambivalence to the story that made me want to see the national touring production in the first place. It was important for me to get a fresh take on a very familiar musical, to maybe see something that I had been missing all this time. If I’ve been seeing in black and white, I wanted to see in color, just like Dorothy. And, for good measure, I brought a friend along that loves the film, just so I could be as measured as possible with my critique.

Well, this version of "The Wizard of Oz" did not change my opinion on the film. In fact, even a scarecrow in search of a brain might want to skip this production.

I tried to like it, I really did. And I really did try to avoid comparing it to the movie – although sometimes, I found those comparisons inevitable. For example, Kalie Kaimann’s portrayal of Dorothy Gale was less of an interpretation of the character and more of an imitation of her counterpart in the film. There were several moments where her speaking voice was eerily similar to Judy Garland’s. Another unoriginal performance came in the form of Chris Duir’s Scarecrow. These actors didn’t attempt to give new inflections on the words the entire audience practically knew by heart; they could have easily been lip-syncing the dialogue from the 1939 classic.

There are two major aspects of this show that I wouldn’t dare to compare to the beloved movie. Emily Perzan’s Ms. Gulch/Wicked Witch of the West, for instance, stands on its own – and not in a good way. This is a character that has evoked fear in children and adults alike for nearly 80 years, but unfortunately, the last word I would use to describe her shrill voice is intimidating.

Another disappointment came in the form of the number "If I Only Had a Heart." Considering my lukewarm feelings on the film, even I have to admit that, in the movie, I find this song especially charming and sweet. This is not the case in the national touring production of "The Wizard of Oz." After the never-ending explanation of how the Tin Man came to be (trust me, it’s much longer than the movie), what follows is a tacky song filled with an unnecessary female trio of singing trees. 

Just so you don’t see me as a total wicked witch, even I have to admit the national touring production of "The Wizard of Oz" got a few things right. Despite Kaimann’s lack of originality in her line readings, there is no denying she has a beautiful and effortless soprano singing voice. Evan Adamson’s set design is also particularly striking; his clever usage of video screen backdrops immediately places you into the dreary world of Kansas and the bright surroundings of Oz. And don’t get me started on the famous tornado – those five minutes could only be described as thrilling.

I know I just made it sound like watching "The Wizard of Oz" was like a house fell on my head. However, I do have some hope that my fellow audience members got more out of it than me. Though most numbers were met with polite applause rather than explosive cheers, I am confident that fans of the film will certainly enjoy this performance. When I wasn’t watching the action onstage, I was observing the many children in the crowd, captivated and intrigued.

So did it make an Oz fan of me? No. But will Oz fans be satisfied? Likely, but considering it is literally zero degrees outside, my advice would be to stay inside and watch the movie. After all, it’s true what they say: There’s no place like home.

You still have one more chance to travel over the rainbow and catch the national tour of "The Wizard of Oz." The final performance takes place at the Miller High Life Theatre, located at 500 W. Kilbourn Ave., Sunday at 1 p.m.