Hasbrouck Heights girl stars in 'Wizard of Oz' with her service dog as Toto

Wherever Erin Bischoff may go, Gauge will follow at her side, even down the Yellow Brick Road.

Bischoff, a 17-year-old student at Hasbrouck Heights High School, recently wrapped a run as Dorothy in the school production of "The Wizard of Oz." Bischoff uses a wheelchair because she has osteogenesis imperfecta, a condition that leaves her bones easily broken.

Gauge, her 6-year-old golden retriever and service dog, joined her onstage and played Toto, Dorothy's faithful companion.

"We have a really strong partnership," Bischoff said. "We kind of rely on each other."

The duo and the rest of the Hasbrouck Heights cast had their last show Thursday. It was Bischoff's seventh play since she started performing in sixth grade, but her first lead. She said she was surprised to play Dorothy but was always a fan of "The Wizard of Oz."

"It is a classic," she said. "It was one I watched probably a million times growing up."

Gauge always joined her onstage, but this was his biggest role. It took some time for him to adjust to responding to cues and stage direction, but Bischoff said the show was received positively in town.

The partnership between Bischoff and Gauge is important to both of them, and together they performed at a charity event Friday to help other people and service dogs connect. Bischoff sang "A Million Times" from "The Greatest Showman" at Il Villaggio in Carlstadt to benefit the Mickey's Kids Foundation, raising money for service dog programs.

Bischoff sang on center stage, while Gauge lay by her side and licked her hand through the song.

"It’s really important, because it gives people a good sense of freedom when they get their dogs," she said, "and overall it’s just a really important cause to contribute to."

Bischoff's mother, Michelle, recorded the whole thing and called her daughter's perseverance amazing.

Erin Bischoff has broken bones 103 times, but brushes it off and goes right back to class and her life, her mother said.

"She's kind of a can-do kid, not a can't-do," Michelle Bischoff said.

After high school, Erin Bischoff will major in health studies at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She hopes to continue her theater career at least for fun, she said.

Bischoff never considered her condition a factor in performing even after her role as Dorothy brought extra attention to it.

"I’ve always loved performing and singing and doing all that," she said. "It’s just been normal, and everyone's embraced it. No one has really made a big point of it until recently, so it never really hit me before."

Email: jongsma@northjersey.com

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