Eric Williams

The show was a real disappointment after the books and movies of the original series. The characters never established their own authenticity and there was no connection between them and the audience. The storyline is unoriginal and the dialog was overburdened with adolescent angst and parents without parenting skills. There was even less portrayal of everyday use of magic than we expected. And the resolution was just a rerun of The Wizard of Oz's "there's no place like home." The magic of the fundamental premise was largely lost. That said, we enjoyed the staging, choreography, and technical production very much. The costumes were good, although a little more color would have been a welcome break from the black and dark that almost overwhelmed. The moving staircases were fun, but a bit overdone. The occasional use of magic and illusion were quite fun and we wish there had been more everyday magic used. Overall, we are glad we went, but somewhat let down from our high expectations.