WICKED's 'Yellow Brick Road Not Taken' Benefit Takes Flight Tonight, 10/27

Grammy Award-winner and actress Ashanti, The View's Joy Behar, Sex and the City's Mario Cantone, Academy Award-nominated actor/writer/director Buck Henry, Ugly Betty's Mark Indelicato, Jersey Boys' Daniel Reichard, Gossip Girl's Matthew Settle, and Cheers' George Wendt will be among the cast of THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD NOT TAKEN, a one-night-only benefit performance celebrating the 5th Anniversary of the Broadway smash WICKED.  Also scheduled to perform are former cast members of the hit musical, including Shoshana Bean and Stephanie J. Block, both of whom played Elphaba; Kate Reinders and Jennifer Laura Thompson who both played the role of Glinda; Michelle Federer, who originated the role of Nessarose; and current cast members P.J. Benjamin, Cristy Candler, Ben Liebert, and Timothy Britten Parker.  

Additional performers for the evening include current cast members Sonshine Allen, Jerad Bortz, Adam Fleming, Anthony Galde, Kristen Leigh Gorski, Reed Kelly, Kenway Hon Wai K. Kua, Kyle Dean Massey, Lindsay K. Northen, Robert Pendilla, Amanda Rose, Heather Spore, CJ Tyson, Brian Wanee, Jonathan Warren, Katie Webber, Robin Wilner, and Samantha Zack.

 THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD NOT TAKEN, directed by Matt Lenz with musical direction by Ben Cohn,  takes place tonight, Monday, October 27 at 7:30pm at the Gershwin Theatre (222 West 51st Street).  The evening's proceeds will be donated to Bette Midler's New York Restoration Project.  Tickets are available through www.ticketmaster.com/wicked.  All casting is subject to change.

In THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD NOT TAKEN, WICKED composer/lyricist Stephen Schwartz and book writer Winnie Holzman will share scenes and songs from early drafts of the hit show.  Featuring never-before-seen material, as well as songs cut during the show's development and pre-Broadway engagement, this one-night-only event will tell the story of WICKED the way it's never been told before and will illuminate the various paths the writers took in creating what has become one of the most popular Broadway musicals.

Prime Benefit tickets are $1000 (includes Premium Seats, post show VIP party and special WICKED gift bag); Premium Benefit Tickets are $500 (Prime Orchestra Seats and special WICKED gift bag), and Super Orchestra Tickets $350 (Orchestra Seats and special WICKED gift bag).  Tickets for the performance only are also available from $250 - $50.

Winner of 20 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards, WICKED 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.

Declared "A Cultural Phenomenon" by Variety, WICKED currently has productions in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Tokyo, Stuttgart, Melbourne and on a North American tour.  Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, WICKED has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by Winnie Holzman.  The production is directed by Joe Mantello with musical staging by Wayne Cilento.  WICKED is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

ABOUT NEW YORK RESTORATION PROJECT

Renowned entertainer Bette Midler founded the nonprofit New York Restoration Project (NYRP) in 1995 with the belief that clean and green neighborhoods are fundamental to the quality of life and that every community in New York City deserves an oasis of natural beauty. Modeled on the Central Park Conservancy and other successful public-private partnerships, NYRP partners with individuals, community-based groups, and public agencies to reclaim, restore, and develop under-resourced parks, community gardens, and open space in New York City, primarily in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

NYRP strives to ensure that parks and open spaces in less privileged neighborhoods are the "Central Park" of those communities, where recreational, educational, and environmental programs become part of the fabric of the neighborhood. We bring these spaces back to life and give them back to the public, promoting a sense of ownership and civic pride in forgotten communities. NYRP is now one of the leading partners of the City of New York Department of Parks & Recreation.

For more information on WICKED, please visit www.wickedthemusical.com.