Liberty High School will stage Frank Baum’s classic, “The Wizard of Oz” this weekend and next at the school’s Performing Arts Center.

The production runs at 7:30 p.m. on April 26 and 27 and May 2 and 3. Performances will also be on May 4 at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. The school’s new arts center is located at 16655 S.E 136th St., Renton.

“The Wizard of Oz” is the first play on Liberty’s new main stage and the biggest show ever produced by the Patriot Players, the school’s drama department.

The show features many “well-loved songs,” according to a release from the school. The musical follows the tale of Dorothy’s adventure “Over the Rainbow” from Great Plains Kansas to the Land of Oz. On her journey down the “Yellow Brick Road” she meets the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion.

On their way to meet the Wizard of Oz, they encounter the Wicked Witch of the West.

Last year the Liberty drama department won the 5th Avenue High School Musical Award for “Best Overall Musical” for the school’s production of “Little Shop of Horrors.”

With “The Wizard of Oz,” the creative team of directors and designers were challenged to make the production fit in their new space.

According to designers Pat Leo and Susan Canaga, both parents of LHS alumni, the cast will sing and dance its way through over a dozen scenic locations and one thousand costume pieces, which will be created in part by the large volunteer community of students, parents, and alumni.

The story has regained popularity in recent years because of the reinterpretations of the story in the 2003 Tony-award-winning musical “Wicked” and Disney’s 2013 movie “Oz: The Great and Powerful.”

“Dorothy sees Kansas as colorless, joyless, and boring,” said Katherine Klekas, director of the show. “As she travels through Oz, Dorothy encounters vivid representations of all of the colors of the rainbow.” Marcus Milyko, who plays the Wizard, explains that the panoply of colors helps Dorothy and the audience to see that “there really is ‘no place like home!’”