Wicked Revisited

So we went to see Wicked again. The last time we went our seats weren't exactly what one calls good. Sure the Oriental theater isn't quite the monster that is the Auditorium theater, one doesn't feel a football field away from the last few rows (I think we had something like row "YY") but with my mothers vision troubles we might as well have been. Our first time she could make out a bit of color and movement, but for the most part it was an auditory experience. This time we were in the eleventh row in one of the two center sections. Throughout the entire show my mother kept asking me "Did they do this last time?" because she had no idea. She didn't even realize there was a mechanical dragon mounted over the head of the stage.

So the first time I went to see Wicked, Ana Gasteyer of Saturday Night Live fame was in the role of Elphaba. The woman can sing. There are now words to describe her talent. She is good. That is all. Coming into this Thursday's performance I was prepared to be a little disappointed. I didn't think anyone could do as good a job.

I was pleasantly surprised.

An incredibly talented woman by the name of Kristy Cates was in the role of Elphaba and it may be just me but it seemed she had a much more natural camaraderie with the actress in the role of Galinda / Glinda (one Stacie Morgain Lewis). One walked out of the show feeling this two women genuinely care for each other (and while Gasteyer has an incredible voice it seemed to overwhelm when she would sing the duets).

One of the bests parts of the show, of course< is the fact that they have flying monkeys. Everything is better with flying monkeys. These guys climb all over the place. They come down ropes from the top of the stage. They hang off the laticed seenery. They must have incredible arm strength. And then they spend the remainder of the time in a sort of perpetual crouch walk. My knees and thighs hurt just thinking about it.

People watching is always good at an event like this. There were a number of people dressed in their very best. On many woman I saw the type of evening gown one might see a photograph of on the "society" page in the paper. Shawls were abundant. The men were also dressed in their best, but for some of the men it seemed as if they were wearing the same suit they've had for twenty years and wear to every formal occasion. It put me in mind of a used car salesman convention.

What suprised me most about the audience was the numebr of young girls there. I can understand why they love it. The main characters are all women. The costumes are extravagent. The dancing is thrilling to watch. The content might be a little bit adult, but the show is never vulgar. The thing is it's not like it's a cheap night out. I saw what looked like a mother, a grandmother and four young girls sitting a few rows in front of us. That had to be like a six hundred plus bill. Kids dont usually understand the kind of crunch an expenditure like that can put on a parents budget. I hope the memory stays with em a while and they aren't demanding anything even moderately costly for a good long time.

So Wicked has been here for over a year and even with a change in cast it is an outstanding night out. The place appeared to be sold out and that was a thursday night. It makes me hopeful that soon there will be more full time shows here in Chicago.

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