ICE SKATERS BREATHE NEW LIFE INTO LAND OF OZ.

Byline: Howard Breuer Daily News Staff Writer

This is not your mother's ``Wizard of Oz'' show.

``The Wizard of Oz on Ice,'' a $9 million, nearly two-hour foray of frost-tinted fantasy by the same company that puts on the Greatest Show on Earth, arrives at Los Angeles' Sports Arena on Wednesday.

Be prepared for smoke and explosions, fast-changing sets, an inflatable, 35-foot-high flying wizard head that would send the Thanksgiving Parade Snoopy running into his doghouse, and not-really-flying monkeys that charge at the kiddies in the front row, ready or not.

One thing about an ice show: There's never a dull moment.

While the Dorothy Gale of the '90s isn't astute enough to understand why she can't return to Kansas by skating around in circles all afternoon, she has a blast in this even-more-wonderful Land of Oz - where the Munchkins are tall enough to ride the Runaway Train at Disneyland, the Jitterbug scene is not left on the cutting room floor, and everyone skates pretty darn well.

And there's other stuff unfamiliar to 1900s Kansas, such as a computer-generated light pattern that forms the Yellow Brick Road, and lighting by the designer who worked for the artist formerly known as Prince.

``Everyone has their favorite moments and characters from the 1939 movie - Munchkinland, the Horse-of-a-Different-Color, the Wicked Witch of the West,'' said producer Kenneth Feld. ``All of these memorable moments will be in our production, and they'll be done in a new and exciting fashion. We wanted to break new ground and present the story in a three-dimensional way.''

The production began its two-year tour last September in Lakeland, Fla., before it moved to the Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim and the Long Beach Arena. It will be at the Sports Arena Wednesday through April 7.

The show stars professional figure skater Jeri Campbell as Dorothy, comedic skater Mark Richard Farrington as the Cowardly Lion, competitive skater Brent Frank as the Tin Woodman, and figure skater Andrei Kirov as the Scarecrow. There's even a skateless terrier who plays Toto, although it spends more than half the show on the sidelines.

As the skaters perform, a soundtrack booms the recorded voices of Laurnea Wilkerson as Dorothy (Wilkerson played the same role in ``The Wiz'' on Broadway), and 10-time Grammy Award winner Bobby McFerrin as the other 53 parts, including the nonsensical do-da-do-da-da-de-dos sung between the lines of the main characters' signature songs.

Men's figure skating gold medalist Robin Cousins has choreographed a show that evokes frequent oohs, aahs and applause as colorfully garbed athletes skate such roles as the poppies, the snow that falls on the poppy field and the Jitterbugs sent to tease and tire our stoic heroes.

The cast has breathed new life into a story written by L. Frank Baum 96 years ago and brought to life by MGM 57 years ago. Although ``Oz on Ice'' is more faithful to the movie than any other form the story has taken - the set and costumes are in black and white until Dorothy hitches her tornado ride - the ice show is a spectacle unto itself and plenty different from anything before it.

THE FACTS The show: ``The Wizard of Oz on Ice.''

Where: Los Angeles Sports Arena.

When: Afternoon and matinee performances, Wednesday through April 7.

Tickets: Call Ticketmaster, [phone].

Our rating: Three Stars.

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Photo

Photo: In ``The Wizard of Oz on Ice,'' opening Wednesday at the Sports Arena, Dorothy, in a duet with the Scarecrow, says goodbye to Oz.