RESERVE — Nearly 20 years ago when the St. John Theatre in Reserve staged a production of the classic “The Wizard of Oz,” Mike Brooks played the “all-knowing” man behind the curtain.

This summer, the Wizard is making its return to the local community theater stage but this time, Brooks is the director. His wizard, though, is Wayne Daigrepont, who directed Brooks all those years ago.

“It’s a pretty neat thing,” Brooks said. “He brings the same thing to the stage that I would.”

He also has brought some helpful advice.

“We’ve had a few lunches,” Brooks said.

Brooks and his cast spent the last week putting some finishing touches on the production in preparation for the July 15 opening of the beloved classic story from L. Frank Baum’s book about a young girl trying to find her way home from a magical world of witches, wizards and munchkins.

“We are following the movie script pretty closely,” Brooks said. “The movie was a classic. We’ve got a lot of technical things that we’re trying to work through right now.”

The show features Dorothy, played by Madeleine Millet, and her friends the Cowardly Lion, played by Warren Hovis; the Tin Man, played by Lance S. Ural and the Scarecrow, played by Mohammad Ahmad.

Heidi Murray portrays the dual role of the mean Miss Gulch and the Wicked Witch of the West.

Kindly Aunt Em is played by Ginger Davis with David Cooper portraying Uncle Henry. Sara Brooks is the Mayor of Munchkin Land, Karlie Wombles is the Coroner, Tiylor Johnson is the Barrister and Marie Claire Eastland is the City Father.

Then there are a whole slew of local children who will step in for the Munchkins of Munchkin Land and don’t forget, the Flying Monkeys.

Brooks said one of the biggest challenges of summer theater is trying to get the entire cast in one place at one time.

“It is volunteer,” he said. “They’re not being paid, so it is tough to get them here every night when you need them here and with baseball and swim team and stuff like that, all the other things that take up their time in the summer. That’s always a challenge.”

Millet, 15, said she loves being Dorothy.

“I love how Dorothy is so positive,” she said. “It helps me to never give up.”

Ural has been involved in the local group since 2010, both as an actor and a director. He is looking forward to playing the Tin Man — once he gets his costume.

“Then I’ll be able to see how much I can move,” he said.

This is the first St. John production for Hovis, who lives in Destrehan and is involved in the River Region Drama Guild. His two daughters are in the cast, playing a tree and a Winkie.

“I get to be somebody I’m not,” Hovis said. “There’s nothing like a good show. It’s rewarding. You get to play other people and I get to be in shows with two of my kids and I have five kids. There’s nothing like being in a show with your kids.”

The Wizard of Oz runs July 15-17 and July 20-23 at St. John Theatre, 115 W. 4th St. in Reserve. All shows begin at 7:30 p.m. except for the July 17 performance, which is a 2:30 p.m. matinee.

Tickets are $15, $10 for seniors and children and may be purchased at the door or in advance at Allied Express, 101 Carrollwood Drive in LaPlace.