The hit Broadway musical Wicked is currently playing at the Providence Performing Arts Center (220 Weybosset St #2, Providence, RI 02906) for the third time since 2007 through January 12, 2014.
Witches of Wicked Charm PPAC Audience – Reviewed By Andy Smith, ProvidenceJournal.com.
The witches of Oz still cast their spell.
The musical has a lot going for it, from the catchy tunes to Eugene Lee’s brilliant clockwork sets. But the key is the relationship between Elphaba, the wicked (and very green) witch, and her enemy-turned-friend Glinda.
Elphaba is the lead part (after all, the show is called “Wicked” ) and Alison Luff gave a strong performance as both actor and singer, belting out signature songs such as “Defying Gravity” while portraying her character’s progression from naivete to ambition, outrage and finally rebellion.
But Glinda, played by Gina Beck, had to carry much of the comedic load. Beck has a lovely voice, although not quite as strong as Luff’s, and she is a gifted comic actress.
Glinda is an insufferably shallow, perky blonde who dresses like Barbie, and is apparently beloved by all. The outcast Elphaba immediately despises her, as the two sing “What is This Feeling?” (It’s loathing, that’s what.).
But the two go on to develop a friendship — there is a very funny scene in which Glinda tries to teach Elphaba the proper way to toss her hair — before they are temporarily torn apart by both love and politics.
Wicked north american national tour is currently performing atState Theatre Cleveland (1501 Euclid Avenue, Suite 200, Cleveland, OH 44115) through January 05, 2014.
Wicked is Back Again at State Theatre – Cleveland, to Dazzle You with Big Tunes, Witchy Spells and Major Glitz – Reviewed By Christine Howey, CleveScene.com.
Wicked is about the original Wicked Witch and her counterpart Glinda the Good Witch, not the versions Hamilton and Billie Burke created in the iconic flick. But their indelible performances always seem to hover around and about this show, featuring music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman.
This show has been performed so many times in so many places, it’s as seamless and smooth as a billiard ball. But that’s how the devotees of the play, many of whom tend to be teen and pre-teen girls, want it to be.
This production doesn’t disappoint from that perspective. Indeed, it may even exceed previous touring companies in some respects.
Featuring a story with some fairly complex plot turns that chronologically straddles the arrival of Dorothy in Oz, Wicked is a polished and stunningly designed production that never fails to amaze. Even when some of the set pieces and effects are clearly extraneous, they still have to power to fascinate.
If a house landed on you when you were young and you don’t know the story, suffice to say that the mean green witch (actual name Elphaba) and Glinda (actual name Galinda) met when students at Shiz University. Pursuing their studies in sorcery, they eventually bond, but are clearly flying their brooms in different directions, career-wise.
Glinda is a ditzy Legally Blonde-ish kind of witch, a fave of everyone who meets her. But she has a good heart and shares her crowd-pleasing knowledge with the sharp-edged Elphaba in the catchy song “Popular.”
In that role, Hayley Podschun dutifully mimics the performance markers set down by the original stage Glinda, Kristin Chenoweth. (Hey, this show is a valuable corporate product and like any good corporation, they’re looking for consistency.) But Podschun nails her songs with verve and high spirits, and what more can you ask?
Of course, Elphaba is an entirely different sort of enchantress. This is cemented in the show’s sterling song, the Act 1 closer “Defying Gravity,” in which Elphaba declares her independence in a rush of beautifully scored self-help aphorisms: “Too late for second guessing/Too late to go back to sleep/It’s time to trust my instincts/Close my eyes and leap!”
Wicked north american national tour is in Des Moines, IA through November 10, 2013 and currently performing at Des Moines Civic Center (221 Walnut St., Des Moines, IA 50309).
Wicked Casts Spell Over Des Moines – Reviewed By Brooke Bridenstine, BroadWayWorld.com.
The musical that flew back to Des Moines last week needs no introduction. Wicked, The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz, cast its spell on Des Moines in two prior engagements and this time around new spectators and Wicked veterans alike will be flocking to see the gravity defying musical. Wicked is now a ten year Broadway veteran, and with a timeless story, excellent production value and top talent, Wicked will no doubt continue to thrill audiences for years to come.
Wicked takes the classic fable of The Wizard of Oz and turns it on its head by focusing on the unlikely friendship between Glinda, the Good Witch, and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West. When the two meet at school, there is instant hatred between popular Glinda and loner Elphaba. But when the two are forced to interact they learn that perhaps they have more in common than they thought.
Wicked endures because the story it tells is timeless and filled with relatable themes. Set in the fantasy world of Oz, Wicked is not bound by conventional time. Again and again, audiences are transported to the magical, green world of Oz and the story never becomes dated because it is not of our world. Oz is a land where animals talk, there are thirteen hours on the time dragon clock, and the Wonderful Wizard of Oz presides over a seemingly perfect society. Themes such as the importance of friendship, seeking personal identity and the battle of good versus evil are woven throughout the show. And while the themes are familiar, when told against the Ozian setting they are as fresh as ever.
Wicked is the rare show that successfully combines spectacle and heart. Whether you have seen it or not, take a trip to Oz this week. Wicked continues its’ Des Moines run through November 10th. For ticket information visit Des Moines Performing Arts.
‘Wicked’ lures audience again and again – Reviewed By Michael Morain, DesMoinesRegister.com.
“Wicked” returned to Des Moines Wednesday for its third visit and brought with it another horde of ticket-buyers, drawn in like trick-or-treaters for a sugar fix.
Nobody can really explain why the show hit the sweet spot that by now has generated more than $3 billion from 38 million viewers worldwide. It could be that we identify with the two main characters, the allegedly “good” and “wicked” witches, who feel misunderstood in distinct but understandable ways. It could also be that the feel-good takeaway about being yourself and accepting others is a message that bears repeating. It’s certainly the kind of emotional ride that attracts repeat viewers, who might not return for something like “The Book of Mormon,” which loses some of its shock value the second time around.
As Glinda the Good, the Kansas native Hayley Podschun seems to have inherited DNA from both a chipmunk and Barbie. She is a chattering blonde bombshell, whose perky vanity belies a steely spine and sparkling set of pipes. Her giddy acrobatics win laughs in “Popular,” her signature song, but her voice is no less flexible or energetic. Later she brings something deeper to “Thank Goodness,” slapping on a smile to hide her character’s pain.
Jennifer DiNoia plays Elphaba, the green one, and belts out the empowering anthem “Defying Gravity” with apparent ease, adding musical heft even to its final Tarzan yell. She has an impressive range — listen to her sweet low notes in “I’m Not That Girl” — and she clearly believes what she’s singing. Still, it’s her acting that pulls us in, showing us exactly why the witch was never so wicked as we once believed.
“It’s all in which label is able to persist,” the Wizard (Walker Jones) explains, showing off the lyricist’s knack for internal rhyme. “There are precious few at ease / with moral ambiguities / so we act as if they don’t exist.”
Even without the multimillion-dollar sets and costumes, it’s a moving story with beautiful music and relatable characters. It’s embedded in our culture now, as solid as bricks in the yellow brick road.
Wicked musical will be in Des Moines IA for only 2-weeks through November 10, 2013. From here the national touring production moves to Indianapolis, IN where Wicked will be performing at Murat Theatre from November 13 to December 01, 2013.
Jennifer DiNoia, who is defying gravity as the star of Wicked at Kansas City’s Municipal Auditorium Music Hall, enjoys being green. DiNoia plays Elphaba in the blockbuster musical and has taken on the role in five different companies of the high-flying show.
Wicked behind-the-scenes look by kctv5.com – Watch the Video Below:
Wicked second national tour is currently stop in Kansas City, Missouri and performing through October 27, 2013 at Music Hall Kansas City (301 West 13th St., Kansas City, Missouri 64105).
41 Action News Meteorologist Kalee Dionne goes behind the scenes of Wicked the musical and met Kansas City native Hayley Podschun, who plays the lead role of Glinda – watch the Video below:
Podschun attended Blue Valley High School and her parents still reside in Overland Park.
Wicked second national tour is currently performing at Music Hall Kansas City (301 West 13th St., Kansas City, Missouri 64105) through October 27, 2013.
Broadway’s meticulous ‘Wicked’ electrifies its Kansas City audience – Reviewed By Robert Trussell, HispanicBusiness.com.
Big Broadway shows that tour for ever and ever are built on templates that guarantee one thing above all else — that the audience gets exactly what it wants. That was certainly the case Thursday night at the Music Hall Kansas City, where the road company of “Wicked” had the audience on its feet before the curtain call.
This touring production of “Wicked” looks and sounds like the first company that played Kansas City a few years ago. The meticulously crafted and inventively designed show works like precision machinery, providing visceral laughs and excretions of sentimentality at specific moments to tug the audience along, no matter where or when you see it. The director, Joe Mantello, has a long, lucrative history of creating hits.
As the show unfolds, it explains the creation of the Tin Woodsman and the Scarecrow, the significance of the ruby slippers and lets us see Nessarose, Elphaba’s younger sister who becomes the Wicked Witch of the East before she meets her demise beneath a falling Kansas farmhouse. We also meet the Wizard, a flimflam man who, it turns out, is stunned to discover his unknown connection to Elphaba. Much of this is inherently amusing and delivered with appreciable wit.
Of chief interest in this production to local audiences is the presence of Hayley Podschun, an experienced Broadway actress who grew up in Overland Park. I’d never seen Podschun in a principal role before and she delivers a superior comic performance, full of spontaneous moments and inventive surprises. She exhibits a sharp instinct for physical humor and possesses a stunning voice.
Her counterpart is Jennifer DiNoia, who handles the role of Elphaba with a strong stage presence and a powerful set of pipes. She makes the character’s inner sorrow and anger palpable, thus anchoring the show with a respectable degree of dramatic weight.
To nitpick is a critic’s prerogative and I still find this show too long, with a score that turns to hyper-melodrama when a memorable melody can’t be found.
That said, “Popular” is a fine musical-comedy number and the blistering “No Good Deed” is a high point of Act 2.
Wicked musical will be in Kansas City MO for only 3-weeks through October 27, 2013. From here the second national touring production will be moving to Des Moines, IA where Wicked will be performing at Des Moines Civic Center from October 30 to November 10, 2013.
Wicked touring musical is currently stop in Minneapolis MN and performing at Orpheum Theatre Minneapolis (910 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55403 ) through October 27, 2013.
There’s more to “Wicked” than what meets the eye at the Orpheum Theatre. In terms of a production, Wicked is astonishing – Reviewed By Morgan Halaska, TCDailyPlanet.com.
There’s something to be said about the vast popularity of Wicked, being that The Wizard of Oz is one of the most parodied stories of our time. Oz the Great and Powerful (2013) starring James Franco is a recent example of a failed attempt to reap the benefits of a story with established success. Wicked has taken on a life of its own, though, and has dominated that sect of the “what really happened in The Wizard of Oz” take. Opening night on Thursday, September 19 at the Orpheum Theatre proved that team Elphaba has the potential to go as strong as its team-Dorothy counterpart (although the two aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive).
Wicked the musical (2003) rips its genius straight from the pages of Gregory McGuire’s novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (1995), a revised look at the classic 1939 film. We learn the other side of the story, in which we see The Wicked Witch of the West as Elphaba (Alison Luff), the “beautifully tragic” student who stands up for her beliefs even if it’s not the popular one. Because of her green-colored skin, she’s automatically outcasted both by her father and her fellow classmates, who instead favor the “tragically beautiful” sister Nessarose (Jaime Rosenstein) and the blonde-haired winsome Galinda (that’s right, Galinda with a “guh”) (Jenn Gambatese) respectively. Elphaba and Galinda are paired as roommates—a travesty of justice of course, for Galinda, who’s used to getting her way.
In terms of a production, Wicked is astonishing. The set design, choreography and of course the music is nothing short of impressive.
Wicked is a standing production in London, United Kingdom and Coming into it’s 8th year at the Apollo Victoria Theatre the show continues to be a fun and huge musical that pays homage to, and poke fun at, the classic Oz tale – Reviewed by RuddleMatthew at TQSMagazine.co.uk.
Wicked is boldly epic in both plot and presentation: beginning at the end with the Wicked Witch of the West’s death, we flashback to her (Elphaba) birth, school days, and first meeting with Glinda as the musical tracks her rise and fall, revealing the ‘truth’ behind her wicked ways (no prizes for guessing all is not as we’ve been lead to believe).
Louise Dearman (Elphaba) and Gina Beck (Glinda) are the musicals true MVPs and they shine brightest whenever together on stage (‘What is this Feeling?’ showing off both their talents). While Dearman’s vocals are powerful and soaring, and her Elphaba passionate and defiant, Beck’s vocals (and portrayal of Glinda) are light and fun. Dearman inhabits Elphaba so thoroughly, while Beck’s Glinda is so charmingly air-headed, that the strength of the characters carries the musical alone.
The songs in the first half are universally excellent, giving insight into characters’ personality and emotions while working to the story’s emotional beats, from fist-pumping solos to fun duets. However the songs in the second half do suffer compared to the first, never finding one as fun as ‘Popular’ or with the playful harmonies of ‘What is this Feeling?’ or as strong as ‘Defying Gravity’ (although ‘No Good Deed’ comes close).
But by this point the characters’ actions have come to a head and the plot itself catches up with the Wizard of Oz; seeing the reinterpretations and ‘behind-the-scenes’ moments is thrilling and the less memorable music doesn’t detract from the anticipation in seeing Elphaba and Glinda will resolve their differences.
Wicked wowed a full audience with magical music and visual effects – Reviewed via HispanicBusiness.com.
Wicked wowed a full audience with magical music and visual effects at the Stranahan Theater on Thursday night. As the play opens, Glinda (Hayley Podschun) confirms the Wicked Witch of the West’s death and the production unfolds as a flashback about how the two came to know each other.
The Good and Green met when they arrived at Shiz University. The daughter of the Munchkin governor, green-skinned Elphaba (Jennifer DiNoia), was sent to school to keep an eye on her fair-skinned younger sister Nessarose (Jenny Fellner) who uses a wheelchair.
There is friction between the two at first, then a competition of sorts as they share an interest in the popular prince Fiyero (David Nathan Perlow), who turns out to be much deeper than his deep pockets and good looks. From there, the musical twists and turns, surprising the audience.
The cast dazzled in beautiful costumes and stunning sets and special effects. Even with a sound system that rendered some lyrics incomprehensible, the vocal performances soared, entertaining an audience that applauded thunderously after each scene.
The production is based on Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel, Since its Broadway opening in 2003, it has been wildly successful, bringing in more than $3 billion in ticket sales and viewed by more than 35 million people worldwide. Seven productions of Wicked are being staged worldwide, including two national tours and more than 4,000 Broadway performances.
In the year 2010, Most of the Wicked shows were sold out or near capacity at the Stranahan. For the current engagement also Wicked Stranahan Theater Tickets are selling fast online. Click here for the Wicked Toledo OH Tickets Availability and Buy before they go on sale completely.
