The cast recording of the 1998 Mickey Rooney/Eartha Kitt touring Wizard of Oz will be released on TVT Soundtrax Oct. 12.

The 90-minute version of the show includes the entire Harold Arlen/E.Y. "Yip" Harburg score from the 1939 MGM film version, plus intros to many of the famous numbers and one song, "The Jitterbug," that was written for the film, but cut. The CD was originally supposed to be released Sept. 8.

Performers include Rooney as The Wizard, Kitt as The Wicked Witch, and Jessica Grove as Dorothy. The show's first incarnation, in 1997, starred Roseanne [sic] as the wicked witch.

The production, which played at the Theatre at Madison Square in May 1998, had been in the midst of a North American tour when tour dates were suddenly cancelled through mid-December. The production ended, Sept. 27, at the Tampa Performing Arts Center, Tampa, FL, and is expected to resume Dec. 19 in Philadelphia, PA.

The tour had been set to travel through:
Sept. 28-Oct. 10: Orlando, FL
Oct. 12-25: Camden, NJ
Oct. 26-Nov. 8: Atlanta, GA
Nov. 9-29: Tempe, AZ MSG spokespersons said (Oct. 1) there was no information on rescheduling at this time.

According to the official Wizard of Oz website at www.ozontour.com, tickets may be purchased for upcoming dates beginning Dec. 19 at the Forrest Theatre in Philadelphia. That engagment ends Jan. 10, 1999.

Other future dates follow:

Jan. 12-24, 1999: The Orpheum Theatre, Minneapolis, MN
Jan. 28-Feb. 7, 1999: The Wang Theatre, Boston, MA
Feb. 17-28, 1999: Allen Theatre, Cleveland, OH
Mar. 3-14, 1999: Oakdale Theatre, Wallingford, CT
Mar. 18-28, 1999: Rosemont Theatre, Chicago, IL
Mar. 31-Apr. 11, 1999: Fox Theatre, Detroit, MI
Next stop: Aug. 6-16 at Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary, Canada.

-- By Christine Ehren and David Lefkowitz