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Julia Murney and Kendra Kasselbaum in "Wicked"
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"Wicked" (The Fox Theater)
The wickedly wonderful magical musical "Wicked" has arrived at the Fox Theater and will run through May 28. This Tony award winning play has sold out all seats for its entire run and deservedly so. The actors, the staging, the story, the energy are all first rate and make this trip to "Broadway" worth anyone's time and effort.
"Wicked" is based on Gregory Maguire's popular novel of the same name and tells the "true" story of Glinda the Good Witch and Elpheba the Bad Witch in the land of Oz. In this play we learn Glinda was not as good as she professed to be, and Elpheba wasn't as bad. They were both complex individuals and learning their stories is a delight from start to finish.
Kendra Kassebaum stars as Glinda and Julia Murney plays Elpheba. What could have become a duel of the divas on stage is instead a collaboration of too enormously talented women. They seem to feed off each other's talent and keep taking the songs and the story to the next level. It would be impossible to name one of them "best of the night" because their roles and performances are so tied to each other.
Kassebaum does get a chance to show more comedic skills because Glinda is a funnier role. She prances and dances around the stage drawing attention to herself as Glinda is supposed to do. She is gigglish and girly and initially repulsed by Epheba's green hue. But in the end she has become her best friend and the audience's too.
Murney dazzles the audience with a voice that is amazingly rich and powerful. When she sings "Defying Gravity" the emotion and power of her voice literally lifts the audience out of their seats. She finds the heart and heartache in Elpheba as well as a sly comic side. Some of the lines she tosses out are among the night's best, especially when they allude to the original "Wizard of Oz" story.
The supporting cast which includes Alma Cuervo as Madame Morrible, P.J. Benjamin as the Wizard, and Sebastian Arcelus as Fiero are all solid in their roles, but the night belongs to the two leads. Kassebaum and Murney know how to take control of a stage and wrap their talent around an audience.
Still credit should be given to Joe Mantello's direction, Wayne Cilento's staging, and William David Brohn's orchestrations. Everything and everyone work together to make sure that every ounce of enjoyment is prepared for those lucky enough to get tickets.
Georgians are lucky to get the chance to see these highly professional road companies of Broadway's greatest hits. "Wicked" is one of the best offerings we have had in quite some time. Here's hoping you are among the fortunate able to get a seat for this spectacular show. I could have just stayed in my seat and watched the whole thing again if that had been possible, and there are not many about which I feel that strongly. |
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©2006 Jackie K. Cooper |
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