Before Dorothy, before the flying house, and before the yellow brick road, there was Elphaba and Galinda. Born with emerald-green skin, Elphaba is smart, fiery, misunderstood and possesses extraordinary talent. When circumstances force her to room with the bubbly blonde and exceptionally popular, Galinda, their initial rivalry turns into the unlikeliest of friendships. From the first electrifying note to the final breathtaking moment, Wicked tells the story of Oz that you've never heard.
It's too soon to tell whether Schwartz's score for Wicked, which opened Thursday at the Gershwin Theatre, will prove as enduring. But it's safe to say that this is the most complete, and completely satisfying, new musical I've come across in a long time. The triumph is not Schwartz's alone. Adapted from a Gregory Maguire novel, Wicked offers a post-feminist, socially conscious reinterpretation of the story of Oz's Wicked Witch of the West. Though that may sound like a recipe for pretentious pedantry, writer Winnie Holzman, whose TV credits include thirtysomething and My So-Called Life, provides a libretto that juggles winning irreverence with thoughtfulness and heart.
Described as a dense epic fantasy, 'Wicked,' based on a novel, is an intricate work. It tells the story of Elphaba, the bright but neglected young girl born with green skin who is good and kind. How she turns into the wicked witch is a long, winding road filled with bizarre characters and strange plot twists. The problem with the show's book, by Winnie Holzman, is that it has to cover so much ground in a connect-the-dots fashion that we're deprived of the necessary depth and character development to make us really care about Elphaba or her unlikely friend Galinda, who later becomes Glinda the good witch. Director Joe Mantello handles the intimate scenes well, but he's not quite as successful moving the traffic on Eugene Lee's dark, mechanical set. The ensemble numbers are indistinguishable. The special effects were impressive but a show of this caliber needed more. Stephen Schwartz, the composer behind 'Godspell' and 'Pippin,' has written some lovely music, particularly his ballads for the witches, but the score is uneven and the beautiful melodies that marked his earlier works are disappointingly absent here.
Digital Lottery
Price: $54.00
Where: https://lottery.broadwaydirect.com/show/wicked
When: For matinee performances, the lottery will open the day before at 10am and close the day before at 4PM. Winners will then be notified and will have 1 hour to purchase the tickets by credit card online. The e-ticket will then be emailed to the winner’s email address. For evening performances, the lottery will open the day before at 8PM and close the day of the performance at 11AM. Winners will then be notified and will have 1 hour to purchase the tickets by credit card online. The e-ticket will then be emailed to the winner’s email address.
Limit: 2 per customer
Information: Seats may be located in any section of the theater. While every effort will be made to seat pairs together with a full view, there is a chance that pairs may be split up and that your seat may have a partial view of the stage.
In-Person Lottery
Price: $30
How: A limited number of tickets will be sold via an in-person lottery.
Where: In the Gershwin Theatre breezeway
Limit: 2 tickets per customer
Information: 26 tickets are available for each performance. Payment must be in cash.
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