The Man Behind the Curtain of 'Oz'

Costumer Adds Glitz to Cheverly Show

Want to know who the real wizard of Oz is? At the Cheverly Young Actors Guild, it's Doug Gowin. Over several months, this super volunteer has stitched hundreds of costumes for the troupe's production of "The Wizard of Oz," which opens tonight.

The Munchkins with their fluorescent green hair, the evil witch in her corset, the flying monkeys -- all are the creations of Gowin, who spent about 600 hours on the project.

"A lot of it's all pure imagination," he said Saturday at a costume-fitting for the actors, who range in age from 5 to 18.

Gowin's work started long before cast members began memorizing their lines.

Wings, gloves, hats, pants, skirts -- Gowin is always on the lookout for anything that might be useful. He also reads the script beforehand and asks the actors for their ideas for what the characters should look like.

Finally, piece by piece, he sews, cuts, tears and colors the costumes. He often stays up until 2 a.m. working on them. "It's for the love of the art," said Gowin, 48, an optician (eye-care professional) who has volunteered his costume-making talents at Cheverly for eight years.

Trevor Robinson, 12, has been with the group for seven years. For the "Oz" show he's a flying monkey -- the group has hired professionals to help with the special effects -- and says it's his favorite Gowin costume. He especially likes the blue, red, green and purple jewels that dangle off his shoulder.

Amanda Nell, 13, plays the Scarecrow. "I really like this costume because it's so unique," she said of her pink vest and tie, patched pants and jacket with (of course) straw hanging out of the sleeves.

Gowin tries to make each costume stand out. His Munchkins have flower pots on their heads; the Tin Man has a glowing heart; the jitterbugs have big noses; and the apple trees have branches sprouting from their heads.

"It's going to be a really good production," predicted Kayla Dixon, 13, who plays the Tin Man and hopes to perform on Broadway someday.

Some of the theater group's graduates are successful artists. James Gardiner wrote the book for the musical "Glory Days," now on Broadway, and Gabrielle Christian has appeared on "Drake & Josh" and other shows.

To be in Cheverly's annual production, actors must audition and be prepared to put in about seven hours a week for several months. About 100 actors, plus a five-piece professional orchestra, are involved in the "Oz" shows. Some kids have three or four roles.

Gowin takes his job seriously. "Costumes have to be better-made than clothes," he said. "They need to look as good [at] the last performance as [at] the first."

The kids aren't thinking about that, of course. They just want to look cool.

Rachel Bailey's wicked-witch costume of black pants, spider-web skirt and long, silky gloves passed the test. "It's really awesome," said the 14-year-old actress.

-- Moira E. McLaughlin