Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz

Book by Winnie Holzman, Based on the Novel by Gregory Maguire

Directed by Joe Mantello

Tickets from £30.00

For a show that debuted twenty years ago, the passage of time has been nothing but kind to Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman’s Wicked. The Ozian prequel forged from Gregory Maguire’s novel offers an insight into the magical land of Oz long before Dorothy and Toto dropped that house on the Wicked Witch of the East and pinched those slippers.

But as mystical and fantastical as this land is, it shares many of the cruel and narcissistic cuts of our own. Where the allegories of prejudice and scapegoating scar even more profoundly than when the musical debuted. In ways, Wicked is a remarkably straightforward story of acceptance: of a young woman whose appearance pushes them to the outskirts and finds an affinity with those society leaves at the doorstep. And as the establishment seeks to form a tighter grasp on these ‘others’, this young woman finds herself incapable of standing by and watching it unfold, unchallenged. 

There’s no need to visit some hokey wizard for some heart this festive season – get yourself down to the Edinburgh Playhouse where there’s something far more magical behind the curtain. Last seen flying into Playhouse in 2017, the UK Wicked Tour dons its wings once more to bring the musical that pushed the genre back into being a commercial juggernaut to the masses. This faultless production, with fizzing energy and lashings of fantastical storytelling, will draw many lovers of the musical back and introduce a few more to the real tale of Elphaba, the one we now know as the Wicked Witch of the West.

But all ‘bad’ things have a beginning. And all ‘good’ things aren’t as perfect as they appear. Loosely adapting the novel, and transitioning into a re-telling of the events of L. Frank Baum’s original Wizard of Oz. It principally focuses on the friendship and relationship between Glinda the good witch, and Elphaba as the pair meet one another and are forced to interact as fate continuously entwines them together from their studies, romances, and the eventual world which tears them apart as each witch lands on either side of the Ozian propaganda trail: Glina the Good, Elphaba the Wicked.

To carry a lineage musical like Wicked commands a level of skill and nuanced authenticity to push beyond the character and speak to the audience. Holding the entire city in their green pals, Laura Pick’s leading Elphaba strikes a precise performance as Elphaba which channels a spectrum of emotions faultlessly. They’re comedic, light-hearted, confrontational, relatable, with powerful vocals and when necessary, relish emulating the infamous cackle of Margaret Hamilton’s Wicked Witch. Sarah O’Connor hits every comedic note of Glinda’s preppy days with a showstopping Popular, but just as effortlessly holds their neck high as a strong-willed and competent ‘good witch’ with the weight of the people of Oz behind them. And when the pair are together? Mesmeric. A genuine demonstration of authentic chemistry which expands upon the already stellar story with simple looks, touches, and complimentary energies.

The entire score translates well to the Playhouse, exceptionally demonstrated, not only in the crowd favourite Defying Gravity, but in Pick’s take on No Good Deed where their performance feeds through the To lift the entire moment into new and fresh dynamics. Vocally perfect, it brings an understanding of the drama, trauma and desperation the character turns to, delivering a number which rightfully earns as equally a positive reception as any of the other staring moments. And it’s all held together with musical director and conductor Matthew J Loughran’s fourteen-strong pit orchestra which continues to herald the clear distinction of having live musicians over a recording.

In touring, the spectacle and grandeur of the production remain as proud and awe-inspiring as ever, as the tricks and stage sorcery continue to enchant all these years after their initial debut. Eugene Lee’s design works translate to the tour fluently, offering those outside of the West End the same experience: the Wizard’s steam-punk mechanical trickery to live metamorphosis as the flying monkeys earn their moniker. As profoundly touching and musical as Wicked may be, Lee, Kenneth Posner’s lighting, and Susan Hilferty’s gorgeous costumes ensure this a truly visual extravaganza of theatre.

Wicked benefits from strengths across the casting and creatives, all working in tandem to produce this piece of excellence. Carl Man’s Fiyero, initially the everyman’s preppy college boy with too fast a mouth and too little going on upstairs, portrays the role with a gradual evolution and plenty of zeal. While Donna Berlin’s Madame Morrible fulfils the unexpectant role of being the true villain in a story with one of the cinema’s greatest – a position they deliver with pizzaz and a cruel elegance. Balancing out two differing roles Simeon Truby’s Doctor Dillamond, a goat teacher at the school whose passion and presence ignite Elphaba’s sense of justice demonstrates their range when taking on the egotistical and blind-sighted Wizard of Oz. And more local, a tremendous Megan Gardiner makes for an engaging Nessarose, striking a balance between sympathy and antagonism, and delivering a callous yet still empathetic Wicked Witch of the East with Pick and Jed Berry’s Boq. 

Crossing the boundaries between the fantastical, the binary, and the political, Wicked is everything musical theatre is about with a glorious sense of spectacle and magic. Its cast gives everything to the crowd and receives nothing short of universal adoration and praise. This newest tour loses none of the magic and grandeur as it gifts the country with a festive chance to return to Oz in a new light: perfect in every shining emerald way.

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