Review: WICKED Tour Soars Into The Saenger to Uproarious Applause

If audience appeal is any indication of a show's worth, WICKED casts a spell that has created a multimillion-dollar treasure to the musical theatre world. With memorable music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a heartwarming book by Winnie Holzman, the production is based on the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.

WICKED's current national tour flew into the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans last week to play a 3-week engagement. Not surprisingly, this production did not disappoint. The story takes us to the Land of Oz, but so much happened before Dorothy arrives in this prequel to the beloved classic Wizard of Oz. We meet Elphaba, aka, the Wicked Witch of the West, who by sheer accident, lives with and becomes best friends with Galinda, (Glinda the Good), at Shiz University. Galinda vows to make Elphaba popular, but it does not spell out complete happiness for Elphaba, as her fellow Ozians fear her magical gifts and green skin. And there's also "Something Bad" going on in Oz that puts one's ideas of good vs. evil to the test.

From the moment the show began, WICKED had the audience mesmerized. While there is plenty of astonishing glitz and glamour, there is also a great deal of heart in the show as two young women face lies and misunderstandings within their friendship and come out stronger than they ever did before. Beyond this, WICKED is sheer fun for children and adults alike. WICKED has become a phenomenon for the ages.

This was my fifth time seeing WICKED, and I can honestly say that the show has yet to grow old, and audiences agreed right along with me. As Elphaba first appeared, the audience erupted into delighted applause before she had even opened her mouth. The show also boasts a strong, varied ensemble. The members prove their singing and performance chops with the powerful opening number "No One Mourns the Wicked," in which the jubilant, bloodthirsty citizens of Oz relish over Elphaba's death.

WICKED's choreographer Wayne Cilento's stylistic choreography is delightful to watch, echoing back to the Golden Age of Broadway with large chorus numbers that one has not seen since the heydays of Fosse. Like Cilento's choreography, Susan Hilferty's Tony-Award winning costume design transported the audience into Oz with every hue, shade and tint of green, with added subtle eccentricities commonplace in the magical land, like double top hats, or suits with zig-zag stripes and plenty of intricate beading embellishments for Glinda.

Eugene Lee's Tony Award-winning scenic design dazzles through its sheer size and artistic intricacy, best embodied by the steampunk clock gears of every size which made up the majority of the set. And of course, when Elphaba rises into the air during the showstopper "Defying Gravity," the audience collectively uttered audible reactions of amazement, followed by wild applause at the end of the song.

All lead performers demonstrated superb vocals and individual attention to their characters. Emily Koch is delightful as she first stumbles on the stage as Elphaba, and won the audience over with her deadpan, sardonic delivery of her lines that makes Elphaba such a delightful character. The highlight of the evening was when she delivered the closing number of Act I "Defying Gravity," as she commanded the stage with some mad pipes.

Amanda Jane Cooper's Glinda was a welcome treat, delivering lines in ways that have not been explored before. While it would be easy to become lost in the shadow of the enigmatic character of Elphaba, Cooper's Glinda garnered many laughs, and her adorable nature was quite endearing. She's at her best in "Popular," and all her duets with Koch are pure gold, especially "For Good." They worked wonderfully together on stage.

Jake Boyd delivers a solid Fiyero, starting out as the carefree playboy then growing more earnest and genuine as his experiences with Elphaba start to change him.

Special props go to Megan Masako Haley for her rendition of Nessarose as she brought a vulnerability to the character that had not been seen by this critic before. It made her transition into the Wicked Witch of the East much more heart-breaking.

WICKED continues at The Saenger Theatre in New Orleans through June 19.

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