Wicked: The 20th Anniversary
Nobody in all of Oz, no Wizard that there is or was, is ever gonna bring me down.
As the SAG continues meetings with the AMPTP, I'm taking my newsletter from the movie screen to the Broadway stage for a special Wicked 20th anniversary newsletter. I've seen Wicked four times in its 20 years on stage. The first time I was in middle school, the second time was years later after Drake canceled his Summer Sixteen Tour, so I used the concert ticket money to sit in the front row at Wicked. That was a special show because the late Peter Scolari was playing the Wizard that night, and Sheryl Lee Ralph was Madame Morrible.
I saw it again about two years later when my sister got tickets from someone she worked with, but the last time I saw Wicked was the most memorable for me. 2020 was collectively one of the hardest years we all experienced, and with everything else that shut down because of the pandemic, Broadway was closed, too. Even as the world began to reopen–children went back to school, movie theaters reopened their doors, and we could eat in restaurants again–live theater remained shut down. It wasn't until September 2021 that Broadway reopened its doors, and theater fans finally reunited with their favorite shows.
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After seeing a few reopening nights on TikTok and watching how enthusiastic the crowds were, I felt compelled to go to the reopening night of Wicked because I knew it was something I couldn't miss. So, on September 14th, 2021, I revisited the Gershwin theater and experienced Wicked in a way I never had before and never will again.
For a few years, it felt like there was a dark cloud hovering over the world, and while I certainly had my fair share of good moments and memories in 2020 and 2021, there was a heaviness that lingered. However, as we reached the end of 2021, I started to feel a lightness and a new sense of freedom, and I think everyone around me felt it, too. The day I went to see Wicked for reopening night, it felt like we finally got our joy and enthusiasm back.
I will never forget hearing Kristin Chenoweth's (the original Glinda) name being announced as the petite blonde stepped out on stage before the show in her ruby-red heels to welcome us all back to Broadway, declaring in her distinguishable voice, "There's no place like home."
Even more unforgettable was the way the crowd cheered when Glinda lowered from the ceiling in her bubble and asked, "It's good to see me, isn't it?" Typically, Glinda is speaking to the citizens of Oz on stage, but that night, she was, without a doubt, speaking to the crowd of nearly 2,000 people. Every number received a standing ovation, and when a character spoke a popular line, they said it with pride and then waited longer than they typically would to say their next line because they had to wait for the crowd to stop cheering.
At the end, the cast did two curtain calls. The second one included the backstage crew members who worked tirelessly to make sure everything went smoothly during the first show back. It also included the show's composer and lyricist, Stephen Schwartz, who is Wicked royalty.
There were a lot of Broadway shows that made their comeback that night and the days before. I even ran into one of my high school teachers in Times Square as he was rushing to the Richard Rodgers Theatre for Hamilton's reopening night. However, of every show I could have seen, I would not have chosen anything other than Wicked.
Wicked remains my favorite Broadway show to this day, and it holds a very special place in my heart. For the 20th anniversary, I recently went to Wicked-themed afternoon tea with my sister at The Plaza's Palm Court. While I was there, I asked her if she thought she was more Glinda or Elphaba. She said Glinda, which makes sense because her outgoing and friendly nature fits Glinda's character more than the Wicked Witch of the West. However, I said, while I think I might seem more like Glinda on the surface, I am certainly more Elphaba at my core.
I think everyone likely resonates with one of the characters, and that's why Wicked has remained a top Broadway show. It allows people to feel seen no matter who they see themselves in. I've heard a few people say they didn't like the show, and while I know I'm supposed to respect other people's opinions, I can't help but insist the only reason they didn't like it is because they just didn't understand it.
I love so many different types of Broadway shows. I love the ones based on musicians' lives, like Jersey Boys, The Cher Show, and MJ The Musical. I've seen several Disney Broadway productions, too, like Aladdin and Mary Poppins. I've seen light-hearted things like Spongebob The Musical and Legally Blonde The Musical as well. I think all of these shows deserve a spot on Broadway, and I enjoyed every single one.
However, I believe Wicked is a lot more complex than the shows I listed. I'm not claiming that anyone who didn't love Wicked isn't intellectual enough to understand its themes. However, I do believe some people are not open to accepting Wicked's message.
Those of us who are vulnerable enough to see ourselves in Glinda or Elphaba, or even Boq, Fiyero, or the other characters, are the ones who have let the power of Wicked change us for the better and for good the last 20 years. On the surface, the show is the untold story of The Wizard Of Oz. It's the truth about the wicked Witch of the West and her unlikely friendship with Glinda long before Dorothy's house landed in Munchkin land.
It's about a woman who is neglected and cast out by her whole family and later society because of the color of her skin. Later, she'd become even more of a threat because of her immense power. Wicked is a play on the society we live in. This is evident in so many lines, like when Elphaba questions what kind of world it would be if animals were forced to live in cages. However, the biggest truth about our society lies in Elphaba–we do not like people who are different than us, and we dislike it even more when those people stand in their power instead of allowing the opinions of the world to take them down.
Wicked also has a lot of powerful musical numbers, and it's impossible to choose a favorite. Though, I assume a lot of Wicked fans would agree that "Defying Gravity" is pretty magical. At this point in the show, Elphaba feels betrayed by the Wizard whom she once idolized. She's tired of everyone treating her like she's evil because of her powers and her skin color, and she's ready to prove what she's capable of. Right before the show's intermission, Elphaba performs "Defying Gravity" and levitates above the stage before holding one of the most challenging high notes on Broadway.
"I'm through accepting limits 'cause someone says they're so. Some things I cannot change, but 'til I try, I'll never know."-Elphaba, "Defying Gravity."
However, another top song from the musical, which everyone teared up during at the September 14th, 2021 show, is "For Good." This is one of the last numbers in the show, and it's the last time Glinda and Elphaba see each other. In The Wizard Of Oz, Dorothy throws a bucket of water on the Wicked Witch, and she melts. However, in Wicked, Elphaba fakes her death to escape those in Oz who want her dead. As soon as Dorothy's gone, she rises back up and runs away with Fiyero. Before she goes, she sings one last line from "For Good," wishing she could tell her friend that she's okay, but she knows it's safer that Glinda doesn't know.
"Who can say if I've been changed for the better, but because I knew you, I have been changed for good."-Elphaba & Glinda, "For Good."
While "Defying Gravity" and "For Good" have been my favorite songs since the first time I saw the show, I recently realized how underrated "Dancing Through Life" is. The song is performed mainly by Fiyero when he arrives at the show's college, Shiz University. However, later on, other characters join in, like Elphaba's younger sister Nessa, as they prepare for a dance at The Ozdust Ballroom. As a popular and attractive prince, Fiyero sings about how nothing really matters in life, and so everyone should just dance through without caring so much. While it might seem easy for him to say, he actually makes some good points.
Most of us spend way too much time worrying and stressing about things that don't really matter, but in "Dancing Through Life," Fiyero advises us all to just stop caring so much. There are a few funny lines like, "life's more painless for the brainless,"–which is actually foreshadowing that Fiyero will later be turned into the scarecrow–but there are also a lot of powerful lyrics like the song's ending "and the strange thing, your life could end up changing while you're dancing through."
"Nothing matters, but knowing nothing matters. It's just life, so keep dancing through."-Fiyero "Dancing Through Life."
Broadway has bonded and connected me to so many people throughout my life, and Wicked has been one of the shows that means the most to me and my friends. It's something I will return to see over and over again, even if it's been years since the last time I went to see it. I know every time I leave the Gershwin Theater, I am going to be back again, and even though I didn't get to attend one of the 20th anniversary Wicked performances, I can't wait to experience the show 20 years after its opening, the next time I visit Oz.