Over the past decade-plus, theatre audiences have seen her in such area productions as A Streetcar Named Desire, Oedipus Rex, The Gift of the Magi, and this past June's Hate Mail. They've heard her sing in such musicals as Thoroughly Modern Millie, Monty Python's Spamalot, The Drowsy Chaperone, and Assassins. But until now – or rather, until its September 16 through 18 run at Davenport venue The Mockingbird on Main – stage fans haven't spent a full 75 minutes in her solo (albeit piano-accompanied) theatrical company until the debut of her one-act cabaret Wishes: An Evening with Wendy Czekalski.

The professional talents of Ballet Quad Cities are off to see the Wizard – the wonderful Wizard of Oz – in the company's latest presentations at Davenport's Outing Club: Ballet on the Lawn Take Two: Dorothy Goes to Oz!, a pair of September 12 performances boasting an completely new take on beloved characters made unforgettable through L. Frank Baum's children's-book series and the 1939 film classic starring Judy Garland.

I wish I could say that writer/director Lisa Joy's futuristic noir gave Hugh Jackman opportunities to access the performer's lighthearted, effortlessly winning side that we rarely get to see outside of him playing The Greatest Showman on-screen or at awards shows. Alas, it doesn't. But at least this intricately plotted, visually arresting crime thriller gives its audiences a few legitimate reasons to grin.

While no one wants a repeat of 2020, the year actually did yield some good things – such as Ballet Quad Cities' partnership with Davenport's Outing Club, which will again host outdoor performances of the dance company's Ballet on the Lawn.