Jackie Burns' Last Performance as Elphaba

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Jackie Burns will play her final performance as the green witch today. On Tuesday, Willemjin Verkaik will start in a 15-week limited engagement. Will anyone be there today for her final show?

[Amalia Balash]

I won't be there, but I wish her all the best. Met her backstage and thought she was sweet as well as talented.

[TheGingerBreadMan]

I saw the show once during her run and sadly her understudy, Donna Vivino, was on. Donna was wonderful but I still regret never seeing Jackie.

[WhatIWasBorn2Do]

Won the lotto and sat dead center for Jackie's Elphaba. She was unbelievable. I have seen both touring productions and the Broadway, and she was by far the best. Her "No Good Deed" (one of my personal favorite songs) was breathtaking. Hope she has/had a great last show!

[Younger Brother]

Jackie is out of tonights show. From her facebook:

"Hi everyone its Jackie, I want to thank you all again for being so wonderful to me over the years at wicked! I have had an amazing time. Sadly I will not be able to do my last show. I cant tell you how devastated I am over this, but you cant help getting sick, bc if you could I would! Im really sorry to those who bought tixs for my last show, if I could do it I would! Again I thank you all for making me apart of your lives and for touching mine! I will carry it with me always."

[supersam1026]

Have to put in the obligatory joke: did she come out to thank her fans in a red track suit?

[TheGingerBreadMan]

^
LOL.

[Visceral_Fella]

Any color but red. Shame.

[DEClarke]

I wish her all the best. I was working front of house for her fist night as Elphaba when she joined the tour in Houston (after Hair closed). She was fantastic.

[beautywickedlover]

I did not realize that she could not perform at her last contracted show nor did she make appearance at a curtain call like Idina Menzel did on Broadway and Teal Wicks in San Francisco. The two of them did actually have full final performances in the West End and on Broadway respectively. Hopefully, she will return to the show one day and get some closure.

[TheGingerBreadMan]

^^
I doubt that she will ever return, because she has been with the show for over 2 years.

[PositivelyEmerald]

^^ Never say never. Look at Dee Roscioli, Eden Espinosa, or Marcie Dodd. They all were in multiple productions before they left. Dee is still going actually, and shes been with the show since 2006.

[TheGingerBreadMan]

^ That's true.
I just highly doubt it.

[eatlasagna]

so is Elphaba basically the Phantom of the Opera for actresses???

have there been more Phantoms or more Elphabas? (as in different portrayals on Broadway)

[PositivelyEmerald]

If my math is right...there have been 80 Elphabas up to today who have actually BEEN ON. No idea how many phantoms

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Eat Lasagna -
My guess would be more Phantoms, seeing as though Phantom has been running for 25 years and Wicked has only been 9.

[eatlasagna]

Well I feel like in the 25 years that Phantom has been playing they have only had like 6 or 7 actors play the role... And I'm not counting understudies... I mean main actors... And I feel that Wicked had about 5 or six not counting standbys

[ElphabaGoodman]

For those of you who were wondering the actual numbers, there have been 14 lead Elphabas on Broadway and 15 lead Phantoms. Of course, Phantom has been running a lot longer and some of those guys have played the roles for years. People always complain about Wicked's recycling, but actually not a single actress has ever returned to the Broadway company as Elphaba. I suspect that it will happen in the future, though.

[PositivelyEmerald]

I misread your question eatlasagna...80 is the number of Elphabas around the world, including standbys. and understudies.