#1
Posted: 3/18/05 at 12:20am
I just got back from seeing WICKED in Toronto. This tour is in fine hands; the changes from the New York production are minor and unnoticeable, and the talent onstage is top-notch -- perhaps even more impressive than on Broadway.
I'm still not a huge fan of the show, but I will admit I enjoyed it more this time around. My first time seeing WICKED was last May in New York, but after revelling in heavier, craftier shows like THE NORMAL HEART, AVENUE Q and BARE on my trip, I found WICKED to be rather fluffy and dorky. It seemed too overbloated for its own good.
This second visit was more enjoyable. I still think the book is weak, the score bland and the lyrics cringingly banal, but nevertheless the whole production is enjoyable and pretty to look at. Maybe it was the cast's thrill of opening a new, hyped show, but there just seemed to be a lot more enthusiasm in the theatre tonight. There was a certain passion on that stage that you couldn't help but celebrate with the performers.
Despite the criticisms I've heard from others, I find Joe Mantello's direction rather fun. He uses not only the full depth and width of the stage, but the height as well. It's a colourful, sparkling show despite some major plot holes and some honorable-but-faulty stabs at having a message. But for a night of flashy entertainment, why not? Despite the many flaws, I still left the theatre smiling.
I must apologize for expressing any reservations I previously had with Kristy Cates, because she delivered a fine, memorable Elphaba. I'm still curious about what Stephanie Block will bring to the role, but Cates' trained and controlled voice was a welcome change to the wailing vocals of a certain other Elphaba (you know which one), and she gives an otherwise-banal score a certain sheen. Her "Defying Gravity" brought down the house, and although I wish she were beltier in that number, she hit those high notes just fine.
I felt the weakest lead performer in the show was Kendra Kasselbaum. She doesn't quite have the charm required for the character, and her lack of charisma reveals how poorly written the role really is. I found her Glinda excrutiatingly annoying. Her "Popular" is still good, but she was noticeably breathless and having trouble with the number.
It was so lovely to see Jenna Leigh Green onstage again, beaming so beautifully. I was lucky enough to catch her in BARE, and seeing her in a big show like WICKED warms the heart. The Nessarose role is too small for her, but she's awfully good in it. It's her Elphaba I'd like to see most, because this girl has got some lungs on her.
Carol Kane and David Garrison are likewise perfect in their respective roles. Kane's voice cannot be mistaken, and her Madame Morrible is always a delight onstage. I daresay David Garrison's Wizard is much better than Joel Grey's rendition; Garrison just seems so natural in the role. It's quite a treat to have these two veterans on this tour.
It occurred to me, watching the somewhat mundane love triangle unfold in the second act, that WICKED reminds me a bit of AIDA --and not just in some of the similarities in the romantic subplot (1 ditz + 1 general + 1 righteous crusading heroine). I found that both shows have potential of being great, but they instead bow to the expectations of the megamusical. (Both also contain some pretty embarrassing dancing from the same choreographer.) Why not retain the poetic spirit of their dark source material? Why give in to every demand of the family crowd, and forfeit some truly daring and truly moving possibilities?
MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER
My companion, who enjoyed the show very much, was nevertheless disappointed with the ending, and felt that it would have been more poignant had Elphaba really died. As it is, she thought the conclusion was "hokey."
END SPOILER
I agree; somewhere in there is a great show. If they'd only remove such terrible numbers as "What Is This Feeling" and "Dancing Through Life," if they hired a new choreographer and excised the cheesiness and predictability, if they focused on the drama and not on the sentimentality, WICKED would be a great show. But as it stands, at least it's entertaining.
Oh yes, and they've gone back (for now) to using the stage trap -- probably to avoid the malfunction that befell Stephanie Block.
I'm still not a huge fan of the show, but I will admit I enjoyed it more this time around. My first time seeing WICKED was last May in New York, but after revelling in heavier, craftier shows like THE NORMAL HEART, AVENUE Q and BARE on my trip, I found WICKED to be rather fluffy and dorky. It seemed too overbloated for its own good.
This second visit was more enjoyable. I still think the book is weak, the score bland and the lyrics cringingly banal, but nevertheless the whole production is enjoyable and pretty to look at. Maybe it was the cast's thrill of opening a new, hyped show, but there just seemed to be a lot more enthusiasm in the theatre tonight. There was a certain passion on that stage that you couldn't help but celebrate with the performers.
Despite the criticisms I've heard from others, I find Joe Mantello's direction rather fun. He uses not only the full depth and width of the stage, but the height as well. It's a colourful, sparkling show despite some major plot holes and some honorable-but-faulty stabs at having a message. But for a night of flashy entertainment, why not? Despite the many flaws, I still left the theatre smiling.
I must apologize for expressing any reservations I previously had with Kristy Cates, because she delivered a fine, memorable Elphaba. I'm still curious about what Stephanie Block will bring to the role, but Cates' trained and controlled voice was a welcome change to the wailing vocals of a certain other Elphaba (you know which one), and she gives an otherwise-banal score a certain sheen. Her "Defying Gravity" brought down the house, and although I wish she were beltier in that number, she hit those high notes just fine.
I felt the weakest lead performer in the show was Kendra Kasselbaum. She doesn't quite have the charm required for the character, and her lack of charisma reveals how poorly written the role really is. I found her Glinda excrutiatingly annoying. Her "Popular" is still good, but she was noticeably breathless and having trouble with the number.
It was so lovely to see Jenna Leigh Green onstage again, beaming so beautifully. I was lucky enough to catch her in BARE, and seeing her in a big show like WICKED warms the heart. The Nessarose role is too small for her, but she's awfully good in it. It's her Elphaba I'd like to see most, because this girl has got some lungs on her.
Carol Kane and David Garrison are likewise perfect in their respective roles. Kane's voice cannot be mistaken, and her Madame Morrible is always a delight onstage. I daresay David Garrison's Wizard is much better than Joel Grey's rendition; Garrison just seems so natural in the role. It's quite a treat to have these two veterans on this tour.
It occurred to me, watching the somewhat mundane love triangle unfold in the second act, that WICKED reminds me a bit of AIDA --and not just in some of the similarities in the romantic subplot (1 ditz + 1 general + 1 righteous crusading heroine). I found that both shows have potential of being great, but they instead bow to the expectations of the megamusical. (Both also contain some pretty embarrassing dancing from the same choreographer.) Why not retain the poetic spirit of their dark source material? Why give in to every demand of the family crowd, and forfeit some truly daring and truly moving possibilities?
MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER MAJOR SPOILER
My companion, who enjoyed the show very much, was nevertheless disappointed with the ending, and felt that it would have been more poignant had Elphaba really died. As it is, she thought the conclusion was "hokey."
END SPOILER
I agree; somewhere in there is a great show. If they'd only remove such terrible numbers as "What Is This Feeling" and "Dancing Through Life," if they hired a new choreographer and excised the cheesiness and predictability, if they focused on the drama and not on the sentimentality, WICKED would be a great show. But as it stands, at least it's entertaining.
Oh yes, and they've gone back (for now) to using the stage trap -- probably to avoid the malfunction that befell Stephanie Block.
BlueWizard's blog: The Rambling Corner
HEDWIG: "The road is my home. In reflecting upon the people whom I have come upon in my travels, I cannot help but think of the people who have come upon me."
Updated On: 3/19/05 at 12:20 AM
