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Allie Kunesh (left) and McKenna DeChant rehearse for their roles as munchkins at A Step Above in Monona. - Michelle Stocker/The Capital Times

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McKenna DeChant always loved the munchkins in "The Wizard of Oz," but she never thought she'd get to be one.

The 12-year-old dancer, a student at Edgewood Middle School, said she's excited and "a little bit nervous" to perform in a professional touring production of "The Wizard of Oz," playing at Overture Hall this weekend, Dec. 12-14.

"When I got the opportunity to be a munchkin, I thought, 'This is really cool,' " DeChant said. "I'm one of the Lullaby League. It's really fun on the big stage."

DeChant is one of a dozen children from A Step Above Dance and Music Academy in Monona who will have nearly 20 minutes of stage time in the "Wizard" tour. The classic musical about Dorothy's strange visit to the Land of Oz recruits a new group of local singers and dancers in each city it visits. Ages are usually 8 to 12, and all dancers must be shorter than 5 feet tall and less than 100 pounds for costume reasons.

Tami Bisbee, owner of A Step Above, said she chose eight dancers from the academy's competition team and several others whom she knew to be quick studies. She only had three weeks to prepare the group with the tour's choreography, provided on a DVD.

"I got the kids together easily," Bisbee said. "They learned it all very quickly."

The group rehearsed on Saturdays and Sundays, where they worked on the chasses, skips and marching steps. Bisbee said the choreography has elements of jazz and ballet but is "truly musical theater."

Tour manager Joel Herbst, a Watertown native, said having local children perform as munchkins with the professional troupe reinvigorates the play as it tours.

"To us, opening night is just another show," Herbst said. "But for the kids, the opening is their big debut on the stage. It brings in that excitement every opening night."

One munchkin, 11-year-old Isabel Smith, said she was "so happy, I was freaking out" when she found out about the show. She's been dancing since kindergarten, and while she's been in community theater productions like Monona Grove High School's "Seussical" last spring, this will be her first time on the Overture Hall stage.

"I am really excited," Smith said. Her part, Lollipop Number One, has "a lot of parts to remember, but it's a lot of fun. I practiced at least once a day every week."

The munchkin roles will be played by a combination of children and short adults from the professional company, Herbst said. It was a decision made early on following a London production of the show.

"We thought it would be good community outreach to include the children," Herbst said. "It's nice because these actors get to work hand in hand with the kids.

"A lot of times they'll congregate outside my door, and I'll hear them making up songs and games. They have special handshakes with the actors. You go into each city and every group is completely different."

In addition to the munchkins, this is a show that "has everything," Herbst said: a cast of 40, two dogs (they share the role of Toto), pyrotechnics and flying.

"There's always something going on onstage," Herbst said.

He is especially excited for the tour to come to Madison, where he spent several summers working as a lifeguard at Olbrich Beach.

"I always tell my tours that (Madison) is the best touring city in the country," Herbst said. "There's so much to do around the theater, and that theater is gorgeous. You can't get a much better space to play this fantastic show."

IF YOU GO

The national tour of "The Wizard of Oz" comes to Overture Hall on Friday, Dec. 12, and runs through Sunday, Dec. 14. Show times are 8 p.m. Friday, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 1:30 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Ticket prices range from $29 to $69. For more information, call 258-4141 or visit overturecenter.com.