WICKED Returns to the Smith Center for the Performing Arts Tonight

After breaking box office records and selling out in record time in 2012, Wicked, Broadway's biggest blockbuster, will return to Las Vegas at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, from tonight, Oct. 8 through Sunday, Nov. 9.

With music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Pippin, Godspell, Academy Award® winner for Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt) and book by Winnie Holzman ("My So Called Life," "Once And Again" and "thirtysomething"), Wicked, the untold story of the witches of Oz, is directed by two-time Tony® Award winner Joe Mantello (Take Me Out, Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Vagina Monologues) and features musical staging by Tony® Award winner Wayne Cilento (Aida, The Who's Tommy, How To Succeed...).

Based on the best-selling 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire, Wicked, winner of more than 50 major awards, including a GRAMMY® and three Tony® Awards, is the untold story of the witches of Oz. It is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.

Tickets start at $45 and are on sale at The Smith Center Box Office, located at 361 Symphony Park Avenue, by phone at 702-749-2000 or 808-326-6868 (TTY) and online at www.TheSmithCenter.com. For Preferred seating and special rates for groups of 20 or more, contact 702-749-2348. Performances run Tuesday-Sunday at 7:30 p.m. with additional matinees at 2 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays and one on Thursday, Oct. 9.

"I'm very happy that The Smith Center has secured a return of Wicked for Las Vegas" said The Smith Center president and CEO, Myron Martin. "We are proud to present the most memorable theatrical experiences for our guests andWICKED is one of those productions. It has been a favorite on Broadway for more than ten years and, in my opinion, the national tour is even better than the Broadway production, which I also loved. We can't wait to welcome back Elphaba and Glinda."

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, and how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.

Wicked currently has nine productions around the world, in New York, London, Japan (Tokyo), Australasian Tour, South Korea (Seoul), Latin America (Mexico City), a U.K. Tour (Dublin), and two concurrent North American National Tours. Since its New York premiere a decade ago, WICKED has grossed more than $3.3 billion worldwide and has been seen by more than 40 million across the globe. WICKED has been performed in more than 100 cities in 13 countries around the world (U.S., Canada, England, Ireland, Japan, Germany, Holland, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Philippines and Mexico) and has thus far has been translated into five languages: Japanese, German, Dutch, Spanish and Korean.

The Grammy Award-winning cast recording available on Decca Broadway. For more information about Wicked, log on to www.wickedthemusical.com.

The hallmark of downtown Las Vegas' 61-acre urban development known as Symphony Park, The Smith Center for the Performing Arts is a public-private partnership that opened in March 2012. Heralded as the city's Heart of the Arts®, The Smith Center is an architectural triumph and long-awaited cultural achievement that educates and entertains the citizens of Southern Nevada. The $470 million world-class performing arts center offers a blend of performances by resident companies, first-run touring attractions, lectures and internationally acclaimed performers in music, theater and dance. The five-acre campus features four performance spaces including the 2,050-seat Reynolds Hall, the 258-seat Cabaret Jazz club, the 250-seat Troesh Studio Theater and the 1.7-acre Donald W. Reynolds Symphony Park for outdoor concerts. Additionally, the campus is home to the Discovery Children's Museum that opened in March 2013. For more information about The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, please visit www.TheSmithCenter.com.

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