Musical Review: Wicked - A Double Perspective

Something Wicked this way comes, indeed. The smash-hit, multi award-winning musical is back. On a UK tour that will last until January 2025, Wicked is currently playing at the Birmingham Hippodrome until the 7th of April. Here’s what we thought of this impressive new production.

Perspective One: Ilina Jha

We all know (or at least, most of us do) the story of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz – Dorothy, the dog, ruby slippers, etcetera, etcetera. But Wicked tells us another side of the story. Written by Winne Holzman and Stephen Schwartz (based on the book Wicked – The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire), Wicked tells the story of the witches of Oz – Elphaba (Laura Pick) and Glinda (Sarah O’Connor) – from their university days to their transformations into the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch, respectively. At first glance, these budding witches could not be more different. Elphaba has spent her whole life as an outsider, ostracised for having green skin, while Glinda is popular, conventionally beautiful, and used to having her own way. However, the two form an unlikely friendship, and dream of meeting the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Simeon Truby) and developing their magical powers. But things are not what they seem, Elphaba and Glinda will find their friendship, and themselves, tested in ways they never thought possible.

Elphaba and Glinda have some notoriously difficult songs in the show, but Pick and O’Connor rise to the challenge

I first saw Wicked many years ago as a Year 8 student, and I loved it instantly. I replayed the iconic songs on YouTube, and (thanks to GCSE Music) learnt ‘Defying Gravity’ off by heart. But I never had an opportunity to see the musical for a second time – until now.

Pick and O’Connor truly are the stars of the show. Elphaba and Glinda have some notoriously difficult songs in the show, but Pick and O’Connor rise to the challenge. Pick’s renditions of ‘Defying Gravity’ and ‘No Good Deed’ are particular standouts for me – you can feel the character’s magic and emotion charging the whole theatre with such power. Pick and O’Connor are versatile singers who are adept at the show’s softer numbers, such as ‘I’m Not That Girl.’ While a successful musical requires many elements to come together, Wicked relies particularly heavily on its lead actresses to make the show a success. There is a lot of responsibility on the shoulders of those who play Elphaba and Glinda – Pick and O’Connor do them justice.

Like all good fantasy stories, this one is also about the real world

I could go on and on about everything that makes this musical great – the brilliant and catchy musical numbers, the creative costumes, the stellar special effects – but I do want to touch upon the more serious elements of the show. Wicked may be a story set in the fantasy world, but, like all good fantasy stories, this one is also about the real world. People who are bullied for being different, oppressive regimes that blame disadvantaged groups to build power, the difference between appearing to be good and actually being good – we can all recognise these problems in our own world. As Glinda naively discerns in ‘Popular,’ many of our high-ranking politicians and ‘heads of state’ make their way to the top not through ‘brains or knowledge,’ but popularity. In Oz, the ‘popular’ but untalented Wizard of Oz manages the problems caused by the Great Drought by pointing the finger at the Animals, who are consequently discriminated against, disenfranchised, and imprisoned. Governments picking on a marginalised group to blame for society’s problems – why does that sound so familiar…

Wicked may be a 20-year-old musical set in a fantasy world, but its themes and messages are still relevant today.

Rating: 4.5/5

Perspective Two: Megan Hughes

I am humbled to admit that this was my first time seeing Wicked, despite its popularity, long theatre run, and classic power ballads. This only meant that I was genuinely surprised by the way in which the story progresses. Even if you have not seen Wicked before, we all know that it follows the wicked witch Elphaba, whose death is celebrated throughout Oz. Because of this, I went into the musical expecting to see Elphaba’s villain arc. Instead, the narrative covers what it truly means to be villainous, and asks the audience to question who the real villain of Oz is. Powerful women have long been demonised in media forms; portraying women as susceptible to the corrupting influence of power and responsibility is a misogynistic tradition that traces back to Euripides’ Medea (and before). Instead, Wicked gives its audience a woman who, in any other world, would be an archetype heroine if she were not so (you’ve guessed it) green. In an important message about the current state of politics and social tensions, Wicked demonstrates the need for independent thinking, reminding us that scapegoats are often created in order to turn our attention away from the real villains of society. I dare you to sit through this musical without it resonating with you, whatever your age or gender, because we have all been the victim of stereotyping at some point in our lives.

I dare you to sit through this musical without it resonating with you, whatever your age or gender

As for the technical elements of the show, the lighting and sound effects are especially enthralling. The show does a particularly good job at portraying Oz the wizard (an important difference from Oz the man, as we find out), whose voice is so powerful that you can feel its vibrations running through both the theatre floor and your heart. Another element of note is the animatronic dragon who surveys its domain from above the stage, beady eyes turning into a furnace of ruby red when there is a particularly tense denouement on stage. It truly is a marvel of engineering and adds a fairytale element to the already picture-perfect scenery.

A tour de force of theatre that excels at portraying female friendship in its reality: complex but beautiful

I could wax lyrical about the incredible performance of Daniel Hope, who steps up in his role as injury cover to deliver us a camp (but entirely relatable) depiction of the Munchkin Boq. I could also point out the vocal excellence of our two leads, Pick and O’Connor, who deliver not only strength and perfect pitch, but also maintain a clarity of pronunciation which is so hard to do when projecting. However, I will settle on summing up this incredible musical as a tour de force of theatre that excels at portraying female friendship in its reality: complex but beautiful, just like the show itself.