“This is a brand-new production for us,” says Pennsylvania Youth Ballet-Ballet Guild of the Lehigh Valley Artistic Director Karen Kroninger Knerr.

The Pennsylvania Youth Ballet-Ballet Guild of the Lehigh Valley presents its spring performance, “The Wizard of Oz,” 2 p.m. May 24, 25, Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, Bethlehem.

“The music is so exciting. We were granted permission to use Matthew Pierce’s composition of the ballet. He originally composed it for Septime Webre’s professional production, which premiered in 2018 at Kansas City Ballet.”

Pierce is a composer and violinist celebrated for lush, classical scores that are commissioned and performed by American ballet companies.

When asked how Knerr choreographed the ballet without many dance number references to draw upon, she says the music was the jumping-off point that provided inspiration for the movement.

“Each character has a theme step that I built in. The lion does big hinge kicks and some fantastic turns. Tin Man is more of a jumping soul. Scarecrow, of course, is loose and wobbly.

“The music is so fun. The lion has a disco feel. The farmhands have a country feel. We even have a Yellow Brick Road theme step.”

The ballet is family-friendly.

“The different elements that we’re adding to it [make it funny], like bringing a bicycle onstage.

“When the Lion, Tin Man and Scarecrow join the Winkies [guards of the Wicked Witch] and try to sneak into the castle, we’re building it in that same way. They have Winkie coats on and you see the lion’s tail sticking out from under his coat.

“What also makes it so special are the ‘extras’ in the music. For example, you’ll hear a bicycle bell when Miss Gulch is riding across the stage.

“During the tornado scene, you’ll hear a chicken and a cow, like they’re flying through the air. When you meet the Tin Man, you’ll hear the sound of knocking on tin, and the oil can squeaking.”

Creating beautiful costumes that are true to the characters and allow a full range of motion for the dancers is an art. Knerr credits wardrobe mistress Kristin Dundon.

“That’s always a challenge,” says Knerr. “Unlike other productions where we have the costumes and know how they work, now we’re doing more rehearsals in costume to make sure that they move and work with the dancers. The flying monkeys have fantastic wings that actually open and close as they move.

“Two other things that inspired this production was the fact that we had a fantastic green tutu that we wanted to use for the Wicked Witch. The second was ‘We can make ruby slippers!’ Paint pointe shoes red and make them super sparkly. Yeah, we can do this.”

There are more than 30 pairs of colored pointe shoes to match the dancers’ costumes, including Emerald City and Poppy Field characters.

More than 80 student and pre-professional dancers from the PYB appear in the whimsical, comedic ballet.

The Munchkins are played by younger ballet students, ages 6 through 9.

“These students have been wonderful,” says Knerr. “They have a two-hour rehearsal every weekend and they are so excited. They’ve all been learning their dances these past two months.”

Student dancers and their roles include: Linnea Crouch, senior, Moravian Academy, as Dorothy; Finola Hieter, senior, Southern Lehigh High School, as Glinda; Isabel Stana, junior, Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Arts, as Wicked Witch; Marley Gidusko, freshman, Nazareth High School, as Scarecrow; Isabella Massa, senior, Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Arts, as Tin Woodsman; Ava Barakat, Cyber school, as Lion, Andy Alulis, senior, Whitehall High School, as Wizard.

Knerr, referring to author L. Frank Baum’s introduction to his novel in 1900, says, “‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ was written solely to pleasure children of today. It aspires to being a modernized fairy tale, in which the wonderment and joy are retained and the heart-aches and nightmares are left out.”

Knerr adds, “If you’re young, or young at heart, we invite everybody to come join us down the Yellow Brick Road.”

A free meet-and-greet with the cast is held after performances. The audience can pose with dancers for photos and have a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the production.

“The lead characters and the corps characters will be throughout the theater. [Audience members] can come see the costumes and the dancers up close. We invite everyone to join us after the show,” says Knerr.

“The Wizard of Oz,” Pennsylvania Youth Ballet-Ballet Guild of the Lehigh Valley, 2 p.m. May 24, 25, Baker Hall, Zoellner Arts Center, Lehigh University, 420 E. Packer Avenue. Bethlehem. Tickets: www.zoellnerartscenter.org