Shelley Steps in for Reed in Chicago Wicked, April 25-June 25

Chicago's record-breaking production of Wicked will welcome Tony Award-winner Carole Shelley, Broadway's original Madame Morrible, on April 25th. 

The actress will play the conniving Shiz headmistress through June 25th while Rondi Reed fulfills her commitment to appear with fellow Steppenwolf ensemble member, John Mahoney, in Northlight Theatre's production of The Retreat From Moscow.  Reed will return to Wicked on June 27, 2006.

Born in England,  Shelley has spent most of her career in the American theatre and is a veteran of the stage and screen.  Some of her many Broadway credits include:  Cabaret, Show Boat, The Last Night of Ballyhoo, The Odd Couple (New York Debut), The Miser, Stepping Out (Tony nomination), Noises Off, and The Elephant Man, for which she earned a Tony Award for Best Actress.  Her film credits include:  Quiz Show, The Road to Wellville, Jungle 2 Jungle, Devlin, The Super, and The Odd Couple; she was most recently Aunt Clara in Nora Ephron's Bewitched.

The Chicago company of Wicked is now playing the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre (24 W. Randolph St.). The show currently stars Kristy Cates and Stacie Morgain Lewis as Elphaba and Glinda. The show also stars  Heidi Kettenring/> as Nessarose, Gene Weygandt as The Wizard, Telly Leung/> as Boq, Steven Skybell as Doctor Dillamond, and Kristoffer Cusick/> as Fiyero.

Wicked, winner of 15 major awards including the Grammy Award and three Tony Awards, 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."

Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire/>, the show boasts music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz/> (Godspell, Pippin) and a book by Winnie Holzman/> ("My So Called Life"). The show is directed by Tony award winner Joe Mantell/>o (Assassins, Take Me Out) with musical staging by Tony Award-winner Wayne Cilento/> (Aida, The Who's Tommy). Wicked features sets by Tony Award winner Eugene Lee/> (Sweeney Todd), costumes by Tony Award-winner Susan Hilferty (Into the Woods), lighting by Kenneth Posner (Hairspray) and sound design by Tony Meola (The Lion King).

Wicked opened on Broadway (where it continues to sell out each night) on October 30th, 2003 with Tony Award-winner Idina Menzel/> and Kristin Chenoweth as the respective green and pink witches. Eden Espinosa/> and Megan Hilty currently star in the show on Broadway, while Julia Murney  and Kendra Kassebaum/> headline a national tour that is currently circling the country.

For more information on the Chicago production of Wicked and to puchase tickets, visit www.wickedthemusical.com/chicago/.