Awhile ago, I set a goal to try and save money with regards to my theater addiction.
The good news? The tour of The Color Purple is coming to Durham, and I bought a $25 seat. It’s in the (gasp!) balcony. This is a big step for me.
The bad news? I bought a last-minute $70 seat to see Wicked a second time, plus a $55 really awesome Wicked zip-up jacket. One step forward, twelve steps back.
Also, Wicked is in Charlotte right now, which is about 3 hours away, and I spent a good deal of time yesterday figuring out if I can go, factoring in that the only remaining seats are $95. I know I can’t afford it, but it’s taking everything I’ve got to stop myself from buying those tickets!
Lastly, I REALLY want to go to New York City sometime this summer to see some real Broadway. I’m trying to save up for it, but it’s so expensive to travel there and tickets are pricey. I’ve got enough saved up to buy 2 discounted balcony seats. I guess if I do go, I’m going to have to go knowing that premium seats are not to be had. I’ll survive. I’d so much rather see a show from the back row than see no show at all.
I tried to win the Wicked lottery four times. Now, I know other people hold the record at like half a zillion show lottery entries, but Durham is half an hour away (when there’s no traffic), and I work full time and go to school full time, so I’m pretty impressed with my efforts. Nonetheless, I did not win.
At my fourth and final failed attempt, my friend and I decided to just buy seats if any were available for the matinee instead of trying the lottery again at the evening performance. It turns out there were a few tickets left, and we got a pair of “limited view” balcony box seats for 70 bucks each. We even had to sign a waiver saying that we understood that these seats had a limited view. The seats were up in the balcony far stage right. The seats themselves were just regular chairs, so we moved them around until we found the best spot. It so happens that they were great seats and I could see more than I could when I sat in the front row because there weren’t actors blocking my view of, say, Elphaba’s birth this time. Although I still have no idea of anything that happened upstage on stage rights. Oh, well.
Anyway, the show was, of course, fabulous. When I saw it the first time, the phenomenal standby was on for Elphaba, so this time I got to see the everyday actress perform the role. She was just as brilliant. I enjoy seeing different actors’ portrayals of the same role, and I’m super glad that I got to see two Elphabas.
I figured out why I can’t stand this Wizard in “Wonderful”: he was just doing all the motions and not acting any of them. Emote, sir!
Another revelation my friend and I had was during “As Long as You’re Mine,” in which we both commented that Elphaba and Fiyero are singing so close to each others’ faces! It must be so strange to be belting out a song less than an inch from someone else. And I bet they spit on each other a lot. So they spit on each other while singing very loudly at each other, and then they make out. So romantic. It was funny because this had never occurred to me before, and we had a laugh about it.
All in all, I’m glad to have seen Wicked again. And, my friend and I went to the stage door after the show. I realize that it was a matinee, but only three or four actors came out. I did get the autograph of the actor who played Fiyero, so that was cool. I guess my expectations were high because the entire cast of the Spring Awakening tour came to the stage door after a matinee on a gross, rainy day. Oh, well. It was cool to meet some of the Wicked cast anyway.
Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness. I saw [title of show] this past weekend at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia and it was amazing! There are no words to describe how brilliant and hilarious the show is. I love everything about it, and I’ve been quoting it to the friends with whom I saw the show ever since curtain call (I would just like to say that me going out of my way not to end my clause in a preposition is just for Hunter Bell).
As a huge fan of the broadway.com web series Side by Side by Susan Blackwell, I really enjoyed the “classic Susan” moments throughout the show. My friend and I kept saying things like “that’s so Susan!” and “Susan would totally do that!” It’s so interesting to see a show in which the creators created characters which were themselves. I know that was a confusing statement, but let me put it this way: when Sondheim wrote the brilliant Sweeney Todd, he was not creating a character which was Steven Sondheim. You know what I mean? Hunter, Jeff, Heidi, and Susan were literally putting themselves into the show. And that’s kinda what makes it brilliant. I, personally, think a show about me would either flop majorly or be a surprise hit – but I don’t think I would ever have the confidence to play me night after night and then believe in it so much to make it a Broadway hit. I mean, it’s hard to say “this is really me on stage, and it’s worthy of Broadway.” Mega kudos to the original [title of show] four for having that confidence in themselves.
My favorite numbers in the show were “Monkeys and Playbills” and “Part of it All.” They are amazing and hilarious and wonderful. I think the most phenomenal thing about [title of show] is how often it is funny and poignant at the same time. If you get the chance, go see it! I’m definitely going to try to see it again before it closes at the Signature.
I did it. I’m no longer a Wicked virgin. Hooray! I’m so glad that I finally got to see the show! So, my seat was in row A, way stage right. Some of the views were limited, but that’s okay because the show was still fabulous. When she sat down, the lady next to me said “did you realize you were going to be this close?” I said “of course!” and I continue to be shocked that she didn’t realize as much. With how fast the tickets sold for the show, I don’t understand how you could get front-row seats not on purpose. She also mispronounced “Elphaba” before the show, so that helped shed some light on the situation. Clearly not someone who follows musical theater or has ever seen the Tonys. The theater is for everyone, don’t get me wrong, but her seats were slightly closer to center stage than mine, and I’m jealous.
Okay, so my reaction: I loved it! It was phenomenal and amazing and everything it’s ever been cracked up to be. Afterward, I immediately texted a friend that I wanted to see it 67 more times. The only beef I had with the show was the Wizard. To put it as nicely as I can, he sucked. His choreography isn’t even actual dancing, and he looked like an awkward robot attempting to mimic human behavior. Oh my gosh, it was terrible. Luckily, for his sake, Elphaba (who, by the way, was played by the phenomenal standby) and Glinda were so good that I didn’t have a whole lot of time during the show to focus on how awkward the Wizard was. I mean, this is a role which was originated by Joel Grey. The bar is set high – let’s rise to the occasion, shall we? It’s not that he was a bad singer or even a particularly terrible actor, it was his movements during the songs. Gah! He was such a robot and it was so distracting! If I’m able to win tickets through the lottery and see the show again before it leaves North Carolina, I’m hoping it’s his understudy who goes on for the Wizard.
Other than that, I thought the cast was AMAZING. Glinda was spot-on perfect and made me laugh out loud so many times (and I’m a loud laugher), and the standby for Elphaba rocked it from beginning to end. She was so amazing with a voice that rivals Idina herself. I was totally in awe the whole time. The sets! The costumes! The dancing! The singing! Although I was confused by the number of men in skirts. Oh, well, I guess that’s just how they roll at Shiz.
Lastly, I would like to say that I think that this musical was a beautiful adaptation from the novel. Like I stated previously, I was really hoping that the show kept the soul of the novel, and I really feel like it did. Sure, a bunch of major plot points were different, but the general ambiance and feel were there, perfectly intact. At the show, as always, I purchased a poster and a souvenir program – and inside the front cover of the program is a note written by Gregory Maguire about his feelings on the musical and how it was adapted from his amazing novel. I really appreciated the things he said, and after the show, I must say that I agree with him wholeheartedly, and the musical is something he can be proud of as an extension of his work as an author. And it’s something that I, as a die-hard Broadway fan, can be proud to have as a decade-long shining example of the most popular thing on the Great White Way.
Note: I wrote this before I saw Wicked, I was just too busy to post it.
I have a confession to make: I’ve never seen Wicked. I just haven’t had the chance yet. But all that is about to change. On April 19th, I will be seeing the national tour of Wicked at the Durham Performing Arts Center in Durham, NC. My seat is in row A. I am so excited. Just like an actor prepares for a role, I have been preparing to see the show. Okay, so maybe it isn’t just like an actor preparing for a role, but I have been getting ready.
I just finished reading Gregory Maguire’s novel Wicked, which (obviously) is the source material for the musical. For some reason, I was under the impression that the book would be appropriate for younger readers as well, but that’s so not the case. The book is intense, it’s graphic, it’s explicit at times, and it’s gritty. I really enjoyed it.
I’ve been told that the musical is quite different from the novel, but I’m always interested in seeing how things are adapted from their source material. Besides, I realize that, outside of Oz, there’s not actually a way to pronounce animal and Animal differently. I respect differences, but my hope for Wicked (and any adaptation) is that the musical has the same feel as the source material, that the essence is still there.
I’ve listened to the Original Broadway Cast album, and of course I’ve seen Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth’s performance of “Defying Gravity” from the Tony Awards. What I haven’t done is read a synopsis of the show. I want some things to be a surprise.
