When you stop to think about it, we really do deserve each other. We all deserve to see a fantastic and captivating show that makes us think and feel for the characters. And a show like that really deserves to be seen. Wicked IS that show!
I think that this is a show that anyone would be really hard pressed to not enjoy. Even people who say they did not like parts of the show will still leave the theatre humming.
While this show is not recommended for children under eight years old, any kid who sees this show will be captivated. From the beginning when the Time Dragon comes to life and Galinda flies on stage in her bubble children will stare in amazement.
Kids fall in love with the characters Elphaba and Galinda. They are funny and charming. They form an unlikely friendship that makes you want to be their friend.
The songs in the show are obvious draws for kids. Songs like "What Is This Feeling?", "Dancing Through Life" and "Popular" are comical and entrancing to everyone who sees them. While telling your children not to try so they don't look stupid or that they need to be popular to succeed is not the best idea, it makes for a great theme for these characters. And when you hear Elphaba and Galinda singing about how much they hate eachother, kids can't help but laugh.
Adults also love Wicked. The friendship that draws in the children also draws in adults. We all want to have the kind of friendship that Elpahba and Galinda share. There is also a love triangle. Galinda and Fiyero fall in love. Fiyero and Elphaba fall in love. Fiyero then leads Galinda on. When Galinda becomes obsessed with Fiyero, he leaves her for Elphaba.
The wit in this show also draws in adults. "Stealing a dead womans shoes?! Must have been raised in a barn!"
And the songs are so darn catchy! We have all had those people we can't stand. "What Is This Feeling?" speaks to us. And we all want to be free. We all just want to take to the skies and fly away. Sometimes we all just need to be "Defying Gravity"!
This show also hearkens back to the 1939 movie "The Wizard of OZ".We all saw this movie as a kid. We fell in love with Dorothy and Toto and we all dreamed of going over the rainbow. Then being able to come home. Many of us also thought to ourselves, why is the witch so mean? and why does she want those shoes so much? Well, Wicked explains that and so much more!
I think that any theatre who is lucky enough to be able to produce this show and makes the decision do do so, will be well rewarded. This show really is "Wonderful"!
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
wicked good or wicked bad?
When Wicked first previewed in 2003, it opened to mixed reviews. After much tweaking, the show has become a great hit!
Richard Zoglin of Time Magazine gave Wicked a raving review. He points out that wicked has something for everyone. It is a children’s tale, but it also has a plot line adults can get into. It also plays on small details from the 1939 movie.
“If Every Musical A Brain, A Heart And The Courage Of Wicked, Broadway Really Would Be A Magical Place.”-Richard Zoglin
Elysa Gardner of USA Today says that Wicked makes you laugh and cry and think all in the right places. She calls Wicked a triumph.
“WICKED IS THE MOST COMPLETE, AND COMPLETELY SATISFYING, NEW MUSICAL I’VE COME ACROSS IN A LONG TIME.”-Elysa Gardner
Terry Teachout says that this is a show that will run for a decade or two.
“IF IT DOESN’T PLEASE YOU, YOU’RE TOO TOUGH TO PLEASE.”-Terry Teachout
“There is great fun in learning where the black hat came from, why the monkeys fly, Why the Tin Woodsman has no heart, etc., and why the so-called Wicked Witch is so determined to get those ruby slippers.”-Linda Winer, Newsday
It is almost impossible to find someone who disagrees. However, it can be done.
Peter Filichia of Theatre Mania called the opening number “No One Mourns The Wicked”, “Wicked bad, terribly unmelodious and somber-sounding.” He goes on to say that the second song, “Dear Old Shiz” was, “Wicked bad for only one reason. It's called "Dear Old Shiz," which refers to the University that both Glinda and Elphaba attends. But "Shiz" is a funny word that sounds perilously like an utterance that's not often heard in polite company.”
Elyse Sommer of CurtainUp said, “what NOT to expect, especially if you're one of the many enthusiastic fans of Maguire's remarkable feat of re-imagination: a faithful adaptation of the novel and an unswerving adherence to its tone.”
I believe that it is safe to say that this show is loved by most that see it. I would have to agree with Terry Teachout, that if you don’t like it, you are indeed to hard to please. This show seems to have everything.
When the show first opened it had some big names, Idine Menzel, Kristen Chenoweth, Joel Gray and Norbert Leo Butz to help draw in crowds. Now that the show has gotten where it is today, the big names are not necessary. People go to see Wicked because of its story and music. Wicked can stand on its own two feet.
Wickedthemusical.com-press and reviews
Would it be alright by you, if I de-greenified you?
Something to remember when you go see a show is, the characters you see on stage are just that, characters. The people don’t usually look like that. That is why you need an amazing makeup designer. Joe Delude did an amazing job creating the face of each character on stage. Joe Delude has also worked on The Wedding Singer (2006) and Grease (2007).
One of the most obvious transformations you see on stage is in Elpahba. She turns green. This is a video of Idina Menzel being “greenified”. She is also giving her thoughts on the show.
While Elphaba is the most obvious, other actors go through a transformation to make their characters believable.
This is a picture of Kristen Chenoweth in normal street makeup.
http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:GXagO6Np3ZrGvM:http://www.freewebs.com/kristenchenowethonline/kristen-chenoweth%255B1%255D.jpg
This is what Kristen Chenoweth looks like as Galinda in Wicked.
http://www.thestage.co.uk/images/pics/19409.jpg
While the actual change might seem minimal, there is more to it than that.
This is Joel Gray in “real life”.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghQ_dHSmVKRkg5neiRJBeXqvfnSs4mm1lCWSudi_JUgRtrXLY8v9wZLtoF8nGUBBALO0OLW_48Y7Yj4A-w7NNHHbfVC5E6QR8ia1l-vRFw2Lcn1TN6q-LOXrLQf7vOoWQMVCSa_2sbXcA/s400/Joel_Grey+pic.jpg
And this is what he looks like as The Wizard of Oz.
http://z.hubpages.com/u/128100_f260.jpg
For this show he got a wig and eyebrows along with his other makeup.
Others have latex masks they wear. This is one of the masks worn by a flying monkey.
http://www.shnsf.com/dynamic/news/nav_image_3_528.jpg
This is a video from broadway.com. Carol Shelly is giving a backstage tour of Wicked. This video talks about several different aspects of the show; however, it does talk about the makeup and has a small part with Joe Dulude himself. Plus, you get another look at the costumes!
Any makeup artist’s design would not be complete without the proper hair. In Wicked they use more than ninety different wigs. Tom Watson, the hair and wig designer for wicked has been designing hair and wigs for the theatre since the late 1980s. He has worked on shows such as, Mastergate (1989), Into the Woods (2002), Les Misérables (2006), South Pacific (2008), Crybaby (2008), and Waiting for Godot (2009). Mr. Watson is an incredible talent. Most of the wigs are made by hand with two or three hairs at a time.
About two minutes into this video you will see Joe Dulude talking about the makeup in the show. Then it goes into Tom Watson talking about the hair and wigs. It is amazing!
Wickedthemusical.com
Internet Broadway Database-Tom Watson
Internet Broadway Database- Joe Delude
One of the most obvious transformations you see on stage is in Elpahba. She turns green. This is a video of Idina Menzel being “greenified”. She is also giving her thoughts on the show.
While Elphaba is the most obvious, other actors go through a transformation to make their characters believable.
This is a picture of Kristen Chenoweth in normal street makeup.
http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:GXagO6Np3ZrGvM:http://www.freewebs.com/kristenchenowethonline/kristen-chenoweth%255B1%255D.jpg
This is what Kristen Chenoweth looks like as Galinda in Wicked.
http://www.thestage.co.uk/images/pics/19409.jpg
While the actual change might seem minimal, there is more to it than that.
This is Joel Gray in “real life”.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghQ_dHSmVKRkg5neiRJBeXqvfnSs4mm1lCWSudi_JUgRtrXLY8v9wZLtoF8nGUBBALO0OLW_48Y7Yj4A-w7NNHHbfVC5E6QR8ia1l-vRFw2Lcn1TN6q-LOXrLQf7vOoWQMVCSa_2sbXcA/s400/Joel_Grey+pic.jpg
And this is what he looks like as The Wizard of Oz.
http://z.hubpages.com/u/128100_f260.jpg
For this show he got a wig and eyebrows along with his other makeup.
Others have latex masks they wear. This is one of the masks worn by a flying monkey.
http://www.shnsf.com/dynamic/news/nav_image_3_528.jpg
This is a video from broadway.com. Carol Shelly is giving a backstage tour of Wicked. This video talks about several different aspects of the show; however, it does talk about the makeup and has a small part with Joe Dulude himself. Plus, you get another look at the costumes!
Any makeup artist’s design would not be complete without the proper hair. In Wicked they use more than ninety different wigs. Tom Watson, the hair and wig designer for wicked has been designing hair and wigs for the theatre since the late 1980s. He has worked on shows such as, Mastergate (1989), Into the Woods (2002), Les Misérables (2006), South Pacific (2008), Crybaby (2008), and Waiting for Godot (2009). Mr. Watson is an incredible talent. Most of the wigs are made by hand with two or three hairs at a time.
About two minutes into this video you will see Joe Dulude talking about the makeup in the show. Then it goes into Tom Watson talking about the hair and wigs. It is amazing!
Wickedthemusical.com
Internet Broadway Database-Tom Watson
Internet Broadway Database- Joe Delude
Monday, June 8, 2009
I will now transform your simple frock into a beautiful ballgown!
The last thing you want to see when you go to a Broadway show is a bunch of ragamuffins in mismatched outfits, unless that is part of the show. None the less, you need a costume designer to make the world of the show work. And Wicked has award winning costume designer Susan Hilferty. Ms. Hilferty has been in the theatre for more than twenty years. She has designed costumes for shows like, A Lesson From Aloes (1980), The Comedy of Errors (1987), Into the Woods (2002), Master Harold and the Boys (2003), and Assassins (2004). Ms. Hilferty won the Tony Award for best costuming in 2004 for her costumes in Wicked.
When creating costumes, Ms. Hilferty weaves together a cloth of characters. She likes to create her own world. She has surely succeeded in Wicked. Many of these costumes are asymmetrical. They are also in distinct color pallets. For example, “One Short Day” is a very green oriented set of costumes. “No One Mourns The Wicked” is done various hues of brown. “Dancing Through Life” has much of the ensemble in black and white. This helps keep everyone cohesive and also distinguish scenes.
This is a video from a show called Threadbangers. It is an interview with Susan Hilferty herself. She talks about her process and some of the costumes in the show.
One thing to keep in mind is that Wicked is an international show. People all over the world are interested in this show. So they had a costume exhibit in Melbourne, Australia. This exhibit has costumes and original sketches from Ms. Hilferty in NYC.
The thing to really pay attention to is the detail. So much time and effort go into these costumes. It is a shame that more people don’t get a chance to look at them up close and appreciate them.
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