Chicago Wicked Review

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 12:25pm

Oh, I SO agree with Michael Phillips of the Trib's assessment of the Wicked material and its "Shameless Emotional Appeal to Teenage Girls of All Ages and Either Gender."


Review

[Thenardier]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 1:26pm

Shouldn't that read teenagers of either gender?

[apdarcey]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 1:30pm

that's what i thought... it says "teenage girls... and either gender." i don't understand. transexual teenage girls?

[Parks]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 1:36pm

perhaps

[MLE]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 5:35pm

That's what I wondered as well. I haven't seen any of those fans at the stage door.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 6:05pm

Teenage girls of all genders unite. Used to be a litmast test moment when you encountered a shy boy who not-so-secretly knew the words to "Don't Rain on My Parade;" now it's "Defying, Gravity." Both are first act closers sung by outsiders (who later find personal power and identity), an affection for which defines a sensibility.

All we need to unite generations of show queens is for Liza to one day do Madame Morrible. Can you effing IMAGINE? As soon as she mentions her contact with the Wizard, the audience will have to be scraped off the roof of the Gershwin.

Updated On: 7/16/05 at 06:05 PM

[Unknown User]

Posted: 7/16/05 at 8:21pm

I thought Phillips did a good job of putting across the fact that he didn't care for the show (But saw it three times) but that audiences love it. I'm of the mind set that critics ae basically consumer advocates, warning people away from turkeys. Wicked has the problem that the critical class can't say enough bad about it (Usually) and yet, audiences can't get enough. How do you write a review saying a show sucks where night after night, full houses cheer?

[MLE]

Posted: 7/17/05 at 12:20am

Joe-

I was just thinking the same thing. I'm certainly no qualified critic myself, I'm just a humble theatre lover and beginning performer, but do you think it's possible that some of these critics get so caught up on the negative that they can fail to see a lot of the positive? They often times seem so distant and non affected by the emotion in the show, which I guess can be a good, to a degree, but isn't the emotional connection with the audience what live theatre's all about?

No disrespect to them, but it was just something I was thinking about.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 7/17/05 at 1:34pm

I think it's a real critic's job to be able to assess the material AND the performances. I think Philips did this. I think it's very important for a critic to talk about the emotional impact, as well as to talk about whether or not the show comes about this impact honestly, which, in my opinion, Wicked does not.

It pushes buttons, as he said, and elicits the response that having those buttons pushed elicits. But it cheats, it doesn't earn it.

Separate from that is the question of whether or not the performers are able to try to make something out of what they have to work with.

[WickedGeek28]

Posted: 7/17/05 at 4:14pm

The word is "blonde."