KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Under the watchful eye of a dragon with fire-red eyes looking down on the historic Music Hall, crews worked hard to get the stage together for a four-week run of the hit musical "Wicked."

The Tony-award winning musical is making its second visit to Kansas City, and the production still is a popular draw for theatergoers throughout the country. The company in Kansas City just came from a run in Wichita.

The story is the prequel to Wizard of Oz and tells the story of Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West and her relationship with Glinda, the Good Witch of the North.

Bryan Landrine is the stage manager for the tour and said there's a reason "Wicked" is so popular.

"It speaks to hope," Landrine said. "Elphaba is hope. She is battered down, and she keeps rising to the occasion ... Those that are an optimist at heart really connect and it empowers them."

While Landrine sits in a chair in the front of the house, Justin Klynsma, head carpenter for the production, works feverishly with a crew made up of traveling members and around 50 local workers. Kylnsma said one of the keys in the success of prepping each theater is how his crew works with the local crew.

There are four Wicked productions currently in the U.S. and four international productions. Landrine said there is a group that constantly travels to ensure the productions stay close to the original.

Landrine said the company that will perform in Kansas City originally was part of the fixed Chicago production of "Wicked." The show started traveling in January. He said that the actors and dancers are used to the rigors of being on a traveling tour.

"The first thing I tell them is to drink the same brand of national bottled water," Landrine said. "Each city has chemicals in their water that take seven to 10 days acclimate to the body. I also tell them to avoid fast food at all costs."

Landrine said that the actors also work out every day, and there is a physical therapist on staff to keep the company healthy.

The reason that it's important for the cast to stay healthy is the expectations of fans for the musical. The musical has a number of devoted fans, according to Landrine.

"A woman in Wichita told us she had seen it 26 times, and that was our first stop in Wichita," Landrine said.

Landrine, who said he has seen the production hundreds, if not thousands, of times, said that he marvels most at the reaction of audiences their first time seeing the musical.