Idina was BEAUTIFUL!!!- Page 4

[BroadwayGirl107]

Posted: 11/22/03 at 7:00pm

Well, now that this post is at back up, I must correct you, BillFinn. You said...

"...no one would start singing during an epiphany, but it's a musical. Can anyone honestly tell me before WICKED, the musical, began that when they saw a witch fly during Halloween time, they said to themselves "OMG! LOOK! A WITCH IS DEFYING GRAVITY!". No, you can't. It amazes me that the Wizard had Elphaba on his side the entire time right up until she found Dr. Dillamond, and in that, what? 5 minute interval? something has changed within her. "I can't want it anymore". Once again, Winnie switches the character's motivations within a modicum of time."

First of all, to address, the defying gravity statement, my point was that what you are saying about the phrase "defying gravity" could also be said about nearly every other musical theatre song out there. Many of them do not use every day language 100% of the time, and on top of that, they rhyme. No one in conversation is going to start rhyming are they? The point here is that it makes as much sense as any other lyrics, and it's not out of place.

And the Wizard never had Elphaba truly on his side. Before she even met him, she believed in him and admired him as everyone else in Oz did. But when she met him, she realized what he was really up to. You are completely incorrect in saying he had her on her side until she saw Dr. Dillamond. When she first met him, she cast the levitation spell on the monkeys, thinking she was making them happy because they longed to fly. The Wizard slips and let's it out that they will "make great spies." This is what turns Elphaba against the Wizard, because she has such a strong belief in animal rights.

Throughout the entire show, she is opposing the wizard's beliefs up until she meets him again. During "Wonderful," the Wizard begins to win her over, and by the end of the song, she agrees to help him out if the monkeys are freed. This is when she finds Dr. Dillamond under the blanket and ultimately turns against the wizard. This completely makes sense with the story, because Wonderful shows just how menacing the wizard can be, but Elphaba is too smart to be fooled for long. This is a crucial point of characterization for the Wizard and Elphaba.