Act I. The show opens on a Kansas farm from which Dorothy and her pet calf Imogene are blown to the Land of Oz by a tornado. Dorothy's farmhouse lands on a Wicked Witch, and the Munchkins proclaim Dorothy their heroine for setting them free. Dorothy wants to go home to Kansas. The Good Witch of the North gives Dorothy a Ruby Ring and tells her to go to the Emerald City to ask the Wizard of Oz to send her back to Kansas. Dorothy also gets a love interest when Sir Dashemoff Daily, the poet laureate of Oz, falls in love with her.
Now, it so happens that a Kansas streetcar conductor named Pastoria, along with Tryxie Tryfle, his waitress-girlfriend, has been blown to Oz in the same tornado. To make matters more complicated, it turns out that Pastoria is the former King of Oz, having been ousted by the Wizard. Pastoria determines to regain his throne. Another new character is an Ophelia-like lady lunatic named Cynthia Cynch. She has gone "mad" searching for her long-lost lover, Niccolo Chopper.
Dorothy and her pet calf proceed on their journey and meet the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman (who happens to be Cynthia Cynch's lover turned tin). Dorothy with her friends and Pastoria with his entourage all stumble into a deadly Poppy Field where they nearly perish from the poisonous breath of the flowers. Everyone is saved by the Witch of the North, who creates a summer snowstorm to break the spell of the poppies.
Act II. Dorothy and her friends arrive in the Emerald City where the Wizard grants brains to the Scarecrow and a heart to the Tin Woodman. To celebrate, the Wizard announces a "Ball of All Nations" in which everybody gets to sing a topical song of ethnic origin. Pastoria arrives in the Emerald City, breaks up with Tryxie Tryfle, and stages a coup in which the Wizard of Oz is arrested. Dorothy and her pals are declared enemies of the state and they run for their lives as Pastoria regains the throne of Oz.
Act III. In hiding and in disguise, Dorothy and company flee the Emerald City. They encounter Cynthia Cynch who is delighted to have found her missing tin lover. But alas, Dorothy, the Scarecrow, and Tin Woodman are eventually captured by Pastoria's henchmen and sentenced to death. Just as they are about to be executed, Dorothy calls on the Witch of the North, who magically appears and sets everyone free.
Synopsis reprinted from Vintage Recordings from the 1903 Broadway Musical The Wizard of Oz. Copyright © 2003 David Maxine. All rights reserved.