Variety reports that a full-scale production of the Broadway smash
Wicked may soon be flying to Japan.
"We now have fairly definite plans with the Shiki Theatrical Company (Japanese tours of
The Lion King and
Mamma Mia!) to undertake a full Japanese language production in 2007," said Marc Platt, one of
Wicked's producers.
The Japanese
Wicked staging would be presented before audiences who might already have had exposure to the musical's first act. A 30-minute version is currently playing Osaka's Universal Studios theme park. With the aid of composer/lyricist
Stephen Schwartz and bookwriter
Winnie Holzman,
Wicked was cut down to focus on the troubled friendship between misunderstood Elphaba and popular Glinda; it ends with "Defying Gravity," the first-act finale.
The upcoming full-length production will also be performed all in Japanese; about 30% of the abbreviated theme park version is in English.
Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked is directed by Joe Mantello, with musical staging by Wayne Cilento. It is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.
Wicked, the
highest grossing show on Broadway and across the country, currently has
three companies in North America: on Broadway; on a National Tour; and
in a separate, open-ended engagement at Chicago's Ford Center for
Performing Arts/Oriental Theatre. When the upcoming Los Angeles production
begins in February, there will be four North American companies of Wicked running concurrently. A London production begins performances at the Apollo Victoria Theatre in September.Winner
of 15 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards,
the show "is the untold story of the witches of Oz. Long before Dorothy
drops in, two other girls meet in the land of Oz. One, born with
emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is
beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked
tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely
friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good
Witch," state press notes.
Wicked features set design by Tony Award winner Eugene Lee, costume design by Tony Award winner Susan Hilferty, lighting design by Kenneth Posner and sound design by Tony Meola. The orchestrations are by William David Brohn, with dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott.Visit
www.wickedthemusical.com for more on
Wicked.
Play Broadway Games
Test and expand your Broadway knowledge with our new game - The Broadway Match-Up! How well do you know your Broadway casting trivia? |
Play the Daily Game, explore current shows, and delve into past decades like the 2000s, 80s, and the Golden Age. Challenge your friends and see where you rank! |
How well do you know your Tony Awards history? Take our never-ending quiz of nominations and winner history and challenge your friends. |
Can you beat your friends? Play today’s daily Broadway word game, featuring a new theatrically inspired word or phrase every day! |