Ruckus Bros.
Dark Side of Oz
November 29, 2014
Photos and review by Randy Jarosz
A dvd/vcr combo sat front center stage with a keyboard on top and a projector near by. Just like trying to sync up The Wizard of Oz and Dark Side of the Moon at home, there was a bit of suspense to see if everything was going to line up from the start. After a mishap and quick rewind all was back on point.
If you were expecting the exact duplication of movie and album, you did not get that. With time constraints of the album, the movie was cut in to snippets to show a beginning middle and end. Along with a large projection of the movie overhead, 3 smaller screens lined either side of the stage.
Each member of the 14 piece super group, The Ruckus Bros., portrayed a charachter or symbol from the timeless classic, Wizard of Oz. Diego Byrnes, director and lead vocalist throughout the 48 minute set wore facepaint to symbolize a rainbow. His command of the stage was inspiring, and his leadership was like that of a symphony conductor, as the other members took cue from his direction.
Arianna Powell dressed as the Wicked Witch of the East complete with red converse sneakers, lit up the stage with her guitar playing prowess. Nathan Zoob dressed as a spotted “Toto,” could be seen laying down some of his signature guitar moves. Giuseppe Capolupo portrayed the Tin Man perfectly, while playing the drums. Nathan Frink was a wizard on his saxophone during “Us and Them,” and fittingly was dressed as the Wizard. Accompanying Frink on stage was a dancer from Continuum Dance Theater, playing a flying monkey.
A definite highlight of the evening was “The Great Gig in the Sky,” where Bronwyn Wyatt dressed as Glinda, Liz Berlin as the Wicked Witch of the West and Jessica Zamiska as Dorothy, each showed off their vocal abilities while taking turns on the voice instrumental.
It didn’t matter if the synchronization was spot on or not because the band was firing on all cylinders. The group was having a lot of fun and nailed the classic album. Not an easy task. Nathan Zoob may have been right when he made the early prediction of “best show of the year.”
Ruckus Bros. performing Dark Side of Oz
The Ruckus Bros.
Diego Byrnes: Lead Vocalist & Director “Rainbow”
Giuseppe Capolupo: Drums “Tin Man”
Anton DeFade: Bass “Scarecrow”
Arianna Powell: Guitar “Wicked Witch of the East”
Nathan Zoob: Guitar “Toto”
Rick Sadlier: Electric Keys and Hammond Organ “Munchkin”
Levi Graft: Synthesizer “Munchkin”
Nathan Frink: Saxophone “Wizard”
Liz Berlin: Vocals “Wicked Witch of the West”
Jessica Zamiska: Vocals “Dorothy”
Bronwyn Wyatt: Vocals “Glinda”
Tony Tortella: Vocals “Cowardly Lion”
Joe Kennedy: DJ “Witch’s Soldier”
Jordan Taylor: DJ “Witch’s Soldier”
