Director: Jon M. Chu

Cast: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey

Synopsis:

Wicked tells the story of Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West and her relationship with Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. Their friendship struggles through their opposing personalities and viewpoints, rivalry over the same love-interest, their reactions to the Wizard's corrupt government, and, ultimately, Elphaba's public fall from grace. The plot is set mostly before Dorothy's arrival from Kansas, and includes several references to well-known scenes and dialogue in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz as a backstory.

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The anthemic song that closes out John M. Chu’s “Wicked” is titled “Defying Gravity.” An ode to finding the confidence to trust oneself, the song is a celebration of what it means to defy expectations and, in turn, fly high above those who may wish to bring you down. On stage, that show-stopping number is the moment where Elphaba, aka the Wicked Witch of the West, takes ownership of her power and of her own story.

Watching the green-skinned witch rise above the stage as she rails against those who doubted her (including her once frenemy-turned-BFF Glinda) is pure Broadway magic. The kind many worried may prove hard to recapture up on the big screen, the place where Frank L. Baum’s character had first become an iconic Hollywood villainess in 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz.” Thankfully, this movie adaptation more than delivers. Chu’s “Wicked” is a marvel, a bona fide movie musical that’s turned that beloved Broadway hit (still running after more than two decades) into one of 2024’s most thrilling theatrical experiences.

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