Interview: 'It's So Rewarding': Actor Zizi Strallen on Taking on The Role of Glinda in WICKED

Wicked, the hit musical that tells the backstory of Glinda the Good and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, has been running on the West End for nearly twenty years and shows no signs of stopping! Just last year, it became the 10th-longest-running West End show, with over 6,500 performances to over 12 million audience members. Starting last month, the new cast began performances, with Emma Kingston playing Elphaba and Zizi Strallen playing Glinda. 

Recently, we had the chance to chat with Zizi about taking on the role of Glinda the Good Witch. We discussed what it has been like to join the legacy of the show, some of the challenges of playing Glinda and her favourite moment from the show.

So how did you first get started in the world of theatre?

Well, pretty much my whole family are involved in theatre. It goes all the way back to my great aunt! My grandmother had a performing arts school, my auntie is a well-known performer here called Bonnie Langford and my mum and dad were dancers. It's cliché to say it’s in our blood! We were definitely encouraged to do other things, because our family all knew how hard it was, but we've all ended up doing it anyway. So I was introduced to the world of theatre and performing straight out of the womb, basically!

And what made you want to be a part of Wicked?

I was fifteen when it came out in this country, and I just remember everyone listening to the CD and wanting to go and see it so much. It still is the show. And then as I've got older as a performer, I've found my way of singing and my way of acting, and it's lined up with Glinda! So then I started looking at Glinda as a role. It's always been on my radar, and this year, it just worked out timing wise and everything. 

And so what is it like to be taking on the role of Glinda?

It’s really a dream! It's such a fun role. It's hard, I'm not gonna lie. It's exhausting. She is high-energy, high singing, comedy - she's also quite low singing as well. So it goes all over the place, but it's so rewarding as a role. I feel so honoured and privileged with all the people that have come before me and all the people that will be after me to play this role as well. I'm loving it!

What's it like to be a part of that legacy that's been going on for so long now?

It's hard and it's amazing because you always have that thing of other people's ideas of Glinda, - who she is or what she is - and you have to, as an actress, bring yourself to it and then hope that this version of Glinda people will love and accept. So there's a certain amount of pressure with it, but in a lovely way as well.

And in case anyone is unfamiliar with the show, can you tell us a bit about it and your role as Glinda? 

It’s the untold story of how the Glinda the Good and Elphaba the Wicked Witch of the West became who they are from The Wizard of Oz, the original story. And I just think that's so beautiful, to get to know why somebody's ended up somewhere. Nobody is born evil, or are they? It's that question. How do they get there and what have they gone through? What their backstory is, who they loved and who their friends were, things like that.

It's just so beautiful for people to see that story. And so it's how these two witches came to be who they are and and their backstory. Glinda goes on quite a journey! She starts as the privileged, popular girl in the school, and then, through her friendship with Elphaba, learns how to accept people's differences and different backgrounds, and learns a lot about herself. It's a lovely journey that Glinda has.

Did you watch The Wizard of Oz or anything else in preparation for the role?

I did, actually! The Wizard of Oz is just such a classic, and I've seen it so much growing up. It's ingrained in my mind - one of those films. And so it's lovely how they figured out how Glinda and Elphaba have got to that point in Wicked - it's really lovely.

And what is it about Wicked that you think has made it such a phenomenon over the past few years?

I think it's the fact that it's a story about being “different” and what it means to be yourself. I think that that is something that will never ever change in humanity, in society. It's about accepting who you are as a person, embracing that and loving yourself for who you are, and forgiving yourself for making mistakes as you get older and figuring out who you are as a person. And that's why it relates to so many people - it relates to everyone. So I think that's why it will never, ever get old, because it's something that everyone will always have some kind of journey with as they get older.

Do you have a favourite song from the show, either to listen to or perform?

I love “One Short Day!” I just love the tune of it. I love how it is in the show, the costumes and the fact that Glinda and Elphaba are seeing the Emerald City for the first time. I love that song so much, and I love performing it every night as well, because it's just so fun! 

What do you hope audiences take away from Wicked?

Just to embrace who they are and to learn to love themselves from the inside - and also to love other people, to get to know people and never make judgments on the first impressions of them, or external features. Just to accept everybody and learn to love people for their differences. That's the moral of the story that I hope that people will take away from from the story that we're telling.

And finally, how would you describe Wicked in one word?

Wonderful!

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