This is one of those shows that makes you feel good," said director Dena McKell, describing "The Wizard of Oz." "Everybody loves this show and how it brings that aspect of family and home together."

"The Wizard of Oz" will be performed by Encore Home School Productions at The Junction Center, 1875 Junction Road, Manheim, at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 14, through Saturday, March 16, and at 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 17.

Although the musical is based on the iconic movie, the directors encouraged the students to make their characters their own.

"We're not imitating the movie," said assistant director Jill Panyard. "We wanted to shape the characters a little differently than the movie. We are shaping Dorothy a bit more like a tomboy, like a hardworking farm girl."

The cast features about 40 students, ranging in age from 5 to 18. Students represent 12 school districts, including Elizabethtown, Donegal and Columbia.

Rehearsals for "The Wizard of Oz" began in November with character sessions, offering students an opportunity to delve into their characters' back story to help create in-depth characters on stage.

"Those nuances of the characters are what take good shows and make them great shows," Panyard said.

Grace Miller, a freshman from Hershey who portrays the Wicked Witch of the West, said audiences can expect to see a polished, elaborate performance.

"They will be blown away by the dance numbers. They are amazing," she stated. She added that learning to perform the show to recorded music has been challenging, but the cast members are up to the task.

"We have to work with the music, and we have a very limited amount of time to get lines in before the music switches to something else," she explained. "With a live orchestra, they can slow it down if they need to, but we have to be sure we're on pace."

Josiah Evans, a senior from Elizabethtown who plays The Cowardly Lion, said he challenged himself not to be influenced by the movie or the well-known character he's portraying.

"I had to tell myself that every depiction of this role is going to be unique," he said. "I wanted to create my own part."

He encourages audiences to see the show, adding, "It's centered on friendship and the values of having good friends and the values of appreciating all you have in your life and being grateful. People should come see the show because it's going to be very heartwarming."

Grace emphasized that it takes a team of parents and students to pull together a show full of elaborate props, costumes and sets.

"When you see this show, you're only seeing the tip of the iceberg. The parents and the kids have spent countless hours on behind-the-scenes work, and you only see the end product," she said. "To know the full extent of what has gone into creating this show, it's really amazing to think about that."

To purchase tickets for "The Wizard of Oz," visit https://itickets.com/events/477267 or call 717-459-3701.