Fall Asleep While Learning About The Musical Wicked

In this episode of the I Can't Sleep Podcast, fall asleep while learning about the musical Wicked. I listened to this album daily while working on the cleaning crew in college. There's nothing like jamming out to a good musical while vacuuming a large space that already looks pretty clean from the day before. I hope this episode has just enough almost-interesting facts to help shut your brain down tonight. Happy sleeping!

Transcript

Welcome to the I Can't Sleep Podcast,

Where I read random articles from across the web to bore you to sleep with my soothing voice.

I'm your host,

Benjamin Boster.

Today's episode is from a Wikipedia article titled,

Wicked the Musical.

Wicked is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holtzman.

It is a loose adaptation of the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel,

Wicked,

The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,

Which is in turn based on L.

Frank Baum's 1900 novel,

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,

And its 1939 film adaptation.

The musical is told from the perspective of two witches,

Elphaba and Galinda,

Before and after Dorothy's arrival in Oz.

The story explores a complex friendship between Elphaba,

Who becomes the Wicked Witch of the West,

And Galinda,

Who becomes Galinda the Good.

Their relationship is tested by their contrasting personalities,

Conflicting viewpoints,

Shared love interest,

Reactions to the corrupt rule of the Wonderful Wizard,

And ultimately Elphaba's tragic fall.

Produced by Universal Stage Productions with producers Mark Platt,

John B.

Platt,

And David Stone,

Director Joe Mantello,

And choreographer Wayne Salento,

The original production of Wicked premiered on Broadway at the Gershwin Theatre in October 2003.

After completing pre-Broadway tryouts at San Francisco's Curran Theatre in May and June of that year,

Its original stars included Idina Menzel as Elphaba,

Kristen Chenoweth as Galinda,

Norbert Leo Buds as Fiyero,

And Joel Gray as the Wizard.

The original Broadway production won three Tony Awards and seven Drama Desk Awards,

While its original cast album received a Grammy Award.

The success of the Broadway production has spawned many productions worldwide,

Including a long-running West End production.

Wicked has broken box office records around the world,

Holding weekly gross takings records in Los Angeles,

Chicago,

St.

Louis,

And London.

In the week ending January 2,

2011,

The London Broadway and both North American touring productions simultaneously broke their respective records for the highest weekly gross.

In the final week of 2013,

The Broadway production broke this record again,

Earning $3.

2 million.

In 2016,

Wicked surpassed $1 billion in total Broadway revenue,

Joining The Phantom of the Opera and The Lion King as the only Broadway shows to do so.

In 2017,

Wicked surpassed The Phantom of the Opera as Broadway's second highest-grossing musical,

Trailing only The Lion King.

A two-part film adaptation directed by John M.

Chu and starring Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba,

Ariana Grande as Galinda,

Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard,

Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible,

And Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero is in the works.

The first part is scheduled for release on November 22,

2024,

With a second part to follow on November 26,

2025.

Composer and lyricist Stephen Schwarz discovered Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked,

The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,

While on vacation,

And saw its potential for a dramatic adaptation.

However,

Maguire had released The Rides to Universal Pictures,

Which had planned to develop a live-action feature film.

In 1998,

Schwarz persuaded Maguire to release The Rides to a stage production,

While also making what Schwarz himself called an impassioned plea to Universal producer Mark Platt to realize Schwarz's own intended adaptation.

Persuaded,

Platt signed on as joint producer of the project with Universal and David Stone.

The novel,

Described as political,

Social,

And ethical commentary on the nature of good and evil,

Takes place in the land of Oz,

In the years surrounding Dorothy's arrival.

The story centers on Elphaba,

A misunderstood,

Smart,

And fiery girl with emerald green skin,

Who grows up to become the Wicked Witch of the West,

And Galinda,

The beautiful,

Blonde,

Popular girl who grows up to become Galinda the Good.

The story is divided into five scenes based on the location and presents events,

Characters,

And situations adapted from L.

Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,

1900,

And its 1939 film adaptation in new ways.

It is designed to set the readers thinking about what it really is to be wicked,

And whether good intentions with bad results are the same as bad intentions with bad results.

Schwarz considered how best to condense the novel's dense and complicated plot into a sensible script.

To this end,

He collaborated with Emmy award-winning writer Winnie Holtzman,

Who developed the outline of the plot over the course of a year,

While meeting with producer Mark Platt to refine the structural outline of the show,

Creating an original stage piece rather than a strict adaptation of McGuire's work.

While the draft followed McGuire's idea of retelling the story of the 1939 film from the perspective of its main villain,

The storyline of the stage adaptation goes far afield from the novel.

Holtzman observed in an interview with Playbill that it was McGuire's brilliant idea to take this hated figure and tell things from her point of view,

And to have the two witches be roommates in college,

But the way in which their friendship develops,

And really the whole plot,

Is different on stage.

Schwarz justified the deviation,

Saying,

Primarily we were interested in the relationship between Glinda,

Who becomes Glinda,

And Elphaba.

The friendship of these two women and how their characters led them to completely different destinies.

Other major plot modifications include Fierro's appearance as the Scarecrow,

Elphaba's survival at the end,

Nessa Rose using a wheelchair instead of being born without arms,

Bach having a continuing love interest for Glinda,

And eventually becoming the tin woodman instead of Nick Chopper.

Cutting Elphaba's years in the venus,

The deletion of Lear's birth,

Fierro not having a wife and children,

Dr.

Dillamond being fired instead of being murdered,

And Madame Morrible going to prison instead of dying.

The book,

Lyrics,

And score for the musical were developed through a series of readings.

In these developmental workshops,

Kristen Chenoweth,

The Tony award-winning actress whom Schwarz had in mind while composing the music for the character,

Joined the project as Glinda.

Stephanie J.

Block played Elphaba in the workshops.

She played Elphaba in the first national tour and later as a Broadway cast replacement,

Before Idina Menzel was cast in the role in late 2002.

Earlier that year,

The creators recruited New York producer Stone,

Who began planning the Broadway production.

Joe Mantello was engaged as director and Wayne Salento as choreographer,

While designer Eugene Lee created the set and visual style for the production,

Inspired by W.

W.

Denslow's original illustrations for Baum's novels and Maguire's concept of the story being told through a giant clock.

Costume designer Susan Hilferty created a twisted Edwardian style in building more than 200 costumes,

While lighting designer Kenneth Posner used more than 800 lights to give each of the 54 distinct scenes and locations its own mood.

By April 2003,

The show was in rehearsals.

Following the out-of-town tryout in San Francisco in May and June 2003,

Which received mixed critical reception,

The creative team made extensive changes before its transfer to Broadway.

Holtzman recalled,

Stephen wisely had insisted on having three months to rewrite in between the time we closed in San Francisco and when we were to go back into rehearsals in New York.

That was crucial.

That was the thing that made the biggest difference in the life of the show.

That time is what made the show work.

Elements of the book were rewritten,

While several songs underwent minor changes.

Which Way Is the Party,

The introductory song to the character Fiyero,

Was replaced by Dancing Through Life.

Concern existed that Menzel's Elphaba got a little overshadowed by Genoweth's Glinda,

With San Francisco Chronicle critic Robert Hurwitt writing,

Menzel's brightly intense Elphaba,

The Wicked Witch,

Needs a chance of holding her own alongside Genoweth's gloriously,

Insidiously bubbly Glinda.

As a result,

The creative team set about making Elphaba more prominent.

In making the Broadway revisions,

Shorts recalled,

It was clear there was work to be done and revisions to be made in the book and the score.

The critical community was,

Frankly,

Very helpful to us.

Act One The citizens of the land of Oz are celebrating the death of the Wicked Witch of the West.

Glinda the Good then appears and tells the Wicked Witch's backstory.

Her mother had an affair with a traveling salesman,

While her husband,

The governor of Munchkinland,

Was away.

As a result of the affair,

A daughter with green skin,

Elphaba,

Is born.

Her stepfather refused to accept her,

Cursing Elphaba to have a troubled childhood.

This is where the song No One Mourns the Wicked comes in.

When a man asks Glinda if it was true that she was Elphaba's friend,

Glinda begins to reminisce about their past.

Many years earlier,

Elphaba Throb arrives at Chiz University with her younger sister,

Nessa Rose,

Who is paraplegic and uses a wheelchair.

The school's headmistress,

Madame Morrible,

Assigns shy and nerdy Elphaba to share a dorm with bubbly and popular Glinda Upland.

Worried about being separated from her sister,

Elphaba uses magic to pull back Nessa Rose's wheelchair after Madame Morrible attempts to depart with her.

Recognizing Elphaba's potential,

Madame Morrible decides to privately tutor her in sorcery.

She also says that Elphaba has a chance to work with the wonderful Wizard of Oz,

Something which she has dreamed of her whole life.

The song The Wizard and I enters.

Glinda is disdainful towards Elphaba,

And Elphaba grows to loathe her just as much.

They clash with each other constantly.

Enter the song What Is This Feeling?

In a history class taught by Dr.

Dillamond,

The only animal professor at Chiz,

He begins to suffer from discrimination,

Even from the students.

Dillamond informs Elphaba of a conspiracy to stop all animals from speaking.

Elphaba vows that if she ever meets the Wizard,

She will inform him of the conspiracy and help him stop it.

The song Something Bad Meanwhile,

A roguish prince,

Fiyero,

Begins attending Chiz.

Glinda is charmed by Fiyero's good looks and shallow philosophy.

Fiyero arranges a party for his fellow students.

Bach,

A munchkin who has a crush on Glinda,

Tries to invite her as his date,

Who in turn convinces him to instead invite Nessa Rose out of pity.

Leaving her free to go with Fiyero.

Nessa becomes enamored with Bach and tells Elphaba to thank Glinda for her help.

At the party,

Madame Morrible stops by to tell Glinda that Elphaba had asked her to admit Glinda into her sorcery class.

Elphaba arrives,

Wearing a hat that Glinda gave her as a practical joke.

The other students laugh at her.

Glinda has a change of heart and decides to dance with Elphaba.

And soon everyone joins them,

Finally allowing the girls to bond.

The song Dancing Through Life Back in their dormitory,

Glinda decides to give Elphaba a makeover,

The song Popular.

The next day,

Dr.

Dillamond tells the class that he is leaving Chiz,

As he is no longer permitted to teach.

Elphaba is the only student who objects.

A human professor then introduces them to the technical advantages of the cage,

Which is designed to prevent any animal from speaking.

Elphaba again refuses to contain her anger,

And in the ensuing chaos,

She escapes alongside Fiyero,

Taking with them the lion cub that was imprisoned within the cage.

Elphaba and Fiyero share a private moment.

He then leaves.

Elphaba laments that Fiyero could never love her.

The song I'm Not That Girl Madame Morrible arrives and tells Elphaba that the wizard wants to meet her.

Bach,

Nessa,

Fiyero,

And Glinda say goodbye to Elphaba at the train station.

Glinda tries to impress Fiyero by changing her name to Dr.

Dillamond's pronunciation of it,

Glinda,

But he barely notices.

Elphaba invites Glinda to go with her to the Emerald City.

The song One Short Day Elphaba and Glinda meet the Wizard of Oz,

Who is not as scary as they expected.

A sentimental man,

Is the song.

He promises to grant Elphaba's request if she proves herself.

Madame Morrible appears and explains she is the wizard's new press secretary.

She gives Elphaba a grimmery,

A book of spells only the magically gifted can read.

Elphaba is then asked to perform a levitation spell on the wizard's monkey servant,

Chistry.

Her attempt allows him to fly,

But only by making him sprout wings painfully.

Elphaba discovers that the wizard is behind the suppression of the animals,

And that he is a fraudster who uses simple parlor tricks and lies to stay in power.

Shocked,

She flees his chamber.

Madame Morrible begins to spread a message throughout Oz that Elphaba is a wicked witch.

Glinda finds Elphaba and begs her to go back and apologize.

Elphaba refuses and declares she must do what is right.

She offers to take Glinda with her.

Glinda declines,

But decides to secretly support Elphaba,

Who repeats the levitation spell on a broom,

And flies away from the Emerald City,

Leaving Glinda behind.

The song defying gravity.

Act Two Elphaba's opposition of the wizard's regime and the public's fear of her has earned her the title the Wicked Witch of the West.

Meanwhile,

Glinda has become the lead spokesperson for the wizard,

Given the title Glinda the Good,

And publicly positioned by Madame Morrible as the nation's defender against the Wicked Witch.

A press conference to celebrate Glinda's victory is held in the West.

A press conference to celebrate Fiyero's appointment as Captain of the Guard,

A position he has accepted in the hopes of finding Elphaba,

Is hijacked by the public's panicked rumors about her,

One of them claiming that she can be melted by water.

Fiyero is furious at the absurdity of the rumors,

And Glinda unsuccessfully tries calming him by insisting that Elphaba does not want to be found.

Fiyero is further shocked when,

Without his consent or knowledge,

Madame Morrible announces that he and Glinda are engaged.

He abruptly leaves,

Angry with Glinda for not informing him of the announcement.

She attempts to act cheerful,

But knows her dream life did not come as expected.

The song,

Thank goodness.

Elphaba visits Nessa-Rose,

Who is now the governor of Munchkinland,

Following the death of their father.

It is revealed that Nessa-Rose has taken away the Munchkins' few rights to prevent Bok from leaving her.

Elphaba tries to convince Nessa-Rose to join the rebellion against the Wizard,

But Nessa-Rose refuses.

She is bitter and resentful that Elphaba never tried to use her powers to help her.

Feeling guilty,

Elphaba enchants Nessa-Rose's silver shoes,

Giving her the ability to walk.

Nessa-Rose is thrilled and now believes Bok will truly love her.

To Nessa-Rose's shock,

However,

Bok sees this as proof that she no longer needs him and declares he intends to tell Glinda of his love for her before she marries Fiyero.

Furious and unwilling to let him go,

Nessa-Rose takes the grimmery in order to cast a love spell on Bok to make him fall in love with her.

She pronounces the incantation wrong and accidentally shrinks his heart.

She cries for Elphaba to save him and prevent her from having to live a life of loneliness.

The song,

The Wicked Witch of the East,

Is sung by Nessa-Rose.

Elphaba casts another spell to save Bok's life,

Transforming him into a tin man who does not need a heart to live.

Bok is horrified by his new body and flees in shock.

Yelling after him,

Nessa-Rose claims that Elphaba was responsible.

Elphaba returns to the Emerald City to free the wizard's monkey servants and is caught by him.

The wizard tries once again to convince her to work with him,

Explaining that he is simply a mediocre man who came into this position by chance and was led to stay by the citizens of Oz,

Who revered him.

The song,

Wonderful.

Elphaba is almost won over until she discovers Dr.

Dillamond,

Who has lost his ability to speak.

She vows to fight the wizard to the end.

Firo and the guards then enter,

Followed by Glinda.

Firo helps Elphaba escape and decides to go with her,

Leaving Glinda behind.

Heartbroken,

She tells the wizard and Madame Bok that she is not alone.

Heartbroken,

She tells the wizard and Madame Morrible a way they can capture Elphaba,

Spreading a rumor that Nessa-Rose is in trouble,

So she will be forced to show herself to save her.

Spreading a rumor that Nessa-Rose is in trouble,

So she will be forced to show herself to save her.

Upset by Firo's betrayal,

Glinda leaves the room.

Morrible and the wizard decide a mere rumor would not fool Elphaba,

And Morrible proposes a change in the weather.

Alone,

Glinda laments that Firo always loved Elphaba,

And it is unlikely he ever loved her.

I'm not that girl,

Reprised.

Hidden away in the forest,

Elphaba and Firo confess their love for each other,

The song,

As Long As You're Mine.

Their happiness is interrupted when Elphaba senses Nessa-Rose is in danger.

She is correct,

A house has fallen out of the sky and crushed Nessa-Rose.

Elphaba arrives at the scene and finds Glinda has given Nessa-Rose's shoes to the house's occupant,

Dorothy Gale.

After a fight between the two,

The wizard's guards arrive.

Firo arrives and holds Glinda hostage to allow Elphaba to flee.

Glinda pleads for the guards not to harm him,

But they do not listen.

At Kayamako Castle,

Elphaba casts a spell to make Firo invincible to any weapon.

However,

He presumably died,

And Elphaba accepts that every good thing she did was always seen as evil,

And that she is a wicked witch.

The song,

No Good Deed.

Meanwhile,

The citizens of Oz,

Led by Madame Morrible and Bog,

Set off to capture Elphaba.

While talking with her,

Glinda realizes Madame Morrible summoned the tornado that caused the house to crush Nessa-Rose.

Morrible threatens her,

Alleging that she is not as virtuous as she pretends to be.

Glinda flees in horror as the crowd calls for the wicked witch's death.

The song,

March of the Witch Hunters.

Meanwhile,

Elphaba has captured Dorothy,

Refusing to release her until she relinquishes Nessa-Rose's shoes.

Glinda arrives to warn Elphaba of the danger she is in,

And tries to convince her to let Dorothy go.

Although Elphaba refuses,

The two forgive each other.

Elphaba gives the Grim Reign to Glinda,

And they embrace for the last time before sharing a tearful goodbye.

The song,

For Good.

As the citizens of Oz arrive to kill Elphaba,

She tells Glinda to hide.

Before she leaves,

Elphaba convinces Glinda not to try to clear her name,

For fear that the people would turn against her too.

Glinda watches from the shadows as Dorothy throws a bucket of water on Elphaba,

Melting her.

The only remains of her are her pointy hat and the bottle of green elixir that belonged to her mother.

Back in the Emerald City,

Glinda confronts the wizard with the elixir,

Which he recognizes as his own.

He was the man Elphaba's mother had an affair with,

Therefore her biological father,

And the elixir was the cause of her green skin.

As the wizard agonizes,

Madame Morrible laments that this was why Elphaba was so powerful,

As she was a child of both worlds.

Glinda then banishes the wizard from Oz and has Madame Morrible arrested for murdering Nessarose.

Meanwhile,

Fiyero,

Revealed to be alive and having become a scarecrow due to Elphaba's spell,

Arrives at the spot where she supposedly melted.

He knocks on the floor,

And Elphaba steps out from a trapdoor,

Having faked her death.

They embrace,

And Elphaba laments that she will never be able to see Glinda again.

Meanwhile,

Glinda informs everyone that the Wicked Witch is dead,

And that she would like to earn her title as Glinda the Good.

As Oz celebrates,

And Glinda mourns her friend quietly,

Elphaba and Fiyero leave Oz together.

The Finale Song A cast recording of the original Broadway production was released on December 16,

2003 by Universal Music.

All of the songs featured on stage are present on the recording,

With the exception of the Wizard and I reprise,

The Sentimental Man reprise,

And the Wicked Witch of the East.

The short reprise of No One Mourns the Wicked that opens Act II is attached to the beginning of Thank Goodness.

The music was arranged by Stephen Orimus,

Who was also the conductor and musical director,

And James Lynn Abbott,

With orchestrations by William David Braun.

The recording received the Grammy Award for Best Musical Show Album in 2005,

And was certified Platinum by the RIAA on November 30,

2006.

The album was certified Double Platinum on November 8,

2010.

A fifth anniversary special edition of the original Broadway cast recording was released on October 28,

2008,

With a bonus CD,

Including tracks from the Japanese and German cast recordings Making Good,

A song later replaced by The Wizard and I,

Sung by Stephanie J.

Bloch,

With Schwartz at the piano,

I'm Not That Girl by Carrie Ellis,

Featuring Brian May on guitar,

Menzel's dance mix of Defying Gravity,

And For Good,

Sung by Leanne Rimes and Delta Goodrem.

A German recording of the Stuttgart production was released on December 7,

2007,

Featuring a track listing and arrangements identical to those of the Broadway recording.

The Japanese cast recording was released on July 23,

2008,

Featuring the original Tokyo cast.

It is notable for being the first,

And so far the only,

Cast album of the show that includes Glinda's final dialogue.

Wicked officially opened on June 10,

2003 at the Curran Theater in San Francisco,

After previews began on May 28,

In a pre-Broadway tryout presented by SHN.

The cast included Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda,

Idina Menzel as Elphaba,

Robert Morse as The Wizard,

Norbert Leobatz as Fiyero,

Michelle Federer as Nessa Rose,

Carol Shelley as Madame Morrible,

John Horden as Dr.

Dillamond,

And Kirk MacDonald as Bach.

Stephanie J.

Bloch,

Who originally read the role of Elphaba in workshop development,

Was Menzel's standby during tryouts,

But left before the show moved to Broadway to take a role in The Boy from Oz,

But she would then lead the first national tour opposite Kendra Kaspbaum as Glinda.

The tryout closed on June 29,

2003,

And after extensive retooling,

A musical began previews on Broadway at the Gershwin Theater on October 8,

2003,

And made its official premiere on October 30.

Most of the original production team and cast members remained with the show.

Principal casting changes included Joel Gray as The Wizard,

William Eumanns as Dr.

Dillamond,

And Christopher Fitzgerald as Bach.

Reviews

That was actually SO interesting! I’m looking forward to seeing the movie even if I have to go alone. Thank you! ☺️

Coincidentally my friend and I are going to go see the movie Wicked today! I read the book, seen the musical twice and sang a medley of the songs 18 years ago in a college ensemble! Needless to say, I loved this reading, Benjamin!!