My review of WICKED in D.C.

[morgan79]

Posted: 1/12/06 at 8:55pm

I saw Wicked for the third time last night. We sat in the center orchestra, in row K which is about row 6 or 7. This was the first time I saw the tour, and I was VERY impressed! I guess the best way to describe this show is simply magical, and quite clever! I went with about ten people who had never seen the show before, and they LOVED it. Stephanie was AWESOME! I had heard great things about her, and was really looking forward to seeing her. Her voice is wonderful, her acting terrific too. I really liked hearing how she interpreted the songs, and although I LOVE the OBC recording, her version was really different, but really good. Like others, I'm shocked she wasn't offered the NY job. She was so incredible. Kendra was HILARIOUS. I think her comedy was one of her strengths. I felt like she had a good voice, but it wasn't powerful, she didn't hold notes or sing very loudly. The audience fell in love with her and all of her one liners. She played the role of Galinda well, and I was surprised at how well she made it her own. Aside from things already in the script, she did a lot of her own things to make her different from other Galinda's I've seen. When Stephanie and Kendra sang together, I don't think they sounded as good as when Idina and Megan or Idina and Kristen sang together. I almost felt as if Stephanie was holding back when they sang together. Anyways...the rest of the cast was really good too! Sebastian Arcelus played Fiyero well. He's got a great voice! It seemed to take a little while for him to get comfortable on stage and come into full character, but by As Long as Your Mine, the chemistry was steamy. :) Jenna Leigh Green played Nessarose. I thought her voice and acting were wonderful! Especially her voice. She really shined in the Wicked Witch of the East. Logan Lipton played Boq. He was perfect for the role of Boq acting wise. I wasn't in love with his voice though. The wizard was David Garrison. He was fine, danced more than the other wizards I've seen.
One of the funniest parts of the play happened when Galinda was explaining her name change to Fiyero and Elphaba. Something made Stephanie laugh and she couldn't stop laughing. She was hiding her face behind the flowers Fiyero gave her and even had to turn around to pull it together. I thought it was hilarious.
A few things I didn't like about the D.C. version: I thought the citizens of Oz and guards (basically the company) were weak voice wise. I don't know if this is a sound issue, but I really couldn't hear them well. I had heard that sound was a problem, and what I noticed was that it was hard to hear the ensemble and that the voices of the leads when singing the ensemble were harder to hear over the orchestra. I didn't really have a problem hearing any of the dialouge.
Another thing that I realized after talking to a friend after the show, is that there was an understudy in for the witche's mother and father. The understudy for the mother looked REALLY young and the understudy for the father looked REALLY old and it "confusified" a few of my friends. I knew who they were because I knew the show, but to someone who hadn't seen it before, they didn't realize who they were. My favorite things about the D.C. show were: Stephanie's voice (incredible in all songs but especially Wizard and I, Defying Gravity and As Long as Your mine and No Good Deed). I loved Kendra's comedy as well. She was really a cute Galinda, and like I said before, made it her own.
A celebrity sighting at Wednesday's show was Senator Chuck Robb and his wife (who is Ladybird Johnson's daughter I think). Not really my kind of celeb's, but still famous and getting LOTS of attention. Anyways...Overall, I was VERY VERY impressed with the tour. I've seen other tours (RENT, GREASE, etc.) where there is a definate difference in talent and staging. I really felt like this is good tour, with an amazing cast, and you get the full Wicked experience without the trip to New York. I hope this review helps. If you have any questions, let me know.

[Steve2]

Posted: 1/12/06 at 11:02pm

Thanks for taking the time to write a review.
I am glad you and your friends enjoyed yourselves!

Posted: 1/12/06 at 11:16pm

I also saw this show on Teusday and it was a very delightful night at the theatre. I really wanted to see Derrick Williams as Fiyero, but Sebastian did a respectable job in such an underwritten role. I am in love with Stephanie and Jenna. I love how Stephanie showed her witchiness in her voice, ecspecially in Act II.

I, too, felt that sometimes the belt moments were a little quiet, as in they turned down Steph's microphone to make it not-obnoxious loud, but ended up making it really less powerful.

[Popular]

Posted: 1/12/06 at 11:20pm

Thanks for your review! I'm glad you and your friends enjoyed it as well.

[BlueBell]

Posted: 1/13/06 at 1:04pm

Morgan, thanks for your review. I just found out a few minutes ago that I get to see Wicked tomorrow night! It's been sold out since pretty much before tickets went public, but my friend's coworker was giving away this one lonely little ticket...my friend immediately grabbed it and called me. Friends are fabulous. :) Anyways, it's great to hear that the cast is enjoyable...this will be my first time seeing Wicked, so I'm pretty excited.