Wicked_Review

Wicked: starring Eden Espinosa and Kendra Kassebaum, music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz; book by Winnie Holzman; based on the novel by Gregory Maguire; directed by Joe Mantello; musical staging by Wayne Cilento, the musical's plot has its roots in prequel to classic "The Wizard of Oz." It turns over the magical tale and reveals the complicated story on the backside, providing an justification for the Wicked Witch and questioning the comfortingly simple definitions of good and evil. Wicked also supplies inventive answers to questions you never thought to ask: Why was the witch green, anyway' Where'd she get the flying monkeys' The musical begins with Glinda the Good, enters aloft, in a silver bubble, to announce the demise of the nefarious Witch of the West. The musical then unfolds as a long flashback. It seems the Wicked Witch was once a misfit teen named Elphaba, mocked and reviled for the curious hue of her skin. Galinda, soon to be Glinda, makes her acquaintance when they are both enrolled in the University of Shiz, and their contrasting personalities and priorities strike sparks. Glinda is the pert, pretty, lovably spoiled and snobbish picture of self-satisfaction. Elphaba, the outcast who wears glasses and drab clothes, takes an instant dislike to her new roommate, too. They sing a comic anthem of mutual disdain. As the musical continues with a complicated series of transactions that endow Glinda with a magic wand and Elphaba with her signature pointy hat, they are soon reconciled, for a while, at least. Although the musical’s songs does not cause you to leave the theater humming, it does have couple of great signature phrases. The musical score seemed a little generic musical sounding to me with similar cadences and chorus lines. In the end, the musical uses funny, entertaining, and poignant production with phenomenal singers and actor creates the message of accepting differences.