Reviewing 'Wicked' at The Landmark

"Wicked" is a strange play to review, because in many ways a review is beside the point. Every reviewer in town could call "Wicked" every mean name there was, and people would still flock to it. Because "Wicked" is that rare Broadway musical that taps a direct vein into the cultural blood stream and spawns not fans but disciples.

And on Thursday night, these disciples, along with "Wicked" newbies, filed into the filled to capacity Landmark theatre for the equivalent of Broadway church.

Anyone with a disdain for all things mainstream would probably really want to hate "Wicked." But the thing about this show is that underneath all the hype and fandom and mentions on Glee, it’s an infuriatingly good story. Based on the Gregory Maguire novel, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winne Holzman, Wicked starts off where the Wizard of Oz leaves off. The Wicked Witch is dead, Glinda the good witch is all light and kindness, and joy rings out throughout the land of Oz.

Or so it seems. "Wicked" takes the audience in reverse, back to the school days of Glinda and the Wicked Witch, or Elphaba as she was known then. The popular, blonde Glindaand outcast, green Elphaba meet, compete for the chance to meet the all-powerful and wonderful wizard, and most surprisingly of all, become friends. The backdrop to all of this is an Oz in danger of losing all of the color and diversity (and talking animals) that make it magical in the first place.

Anyone who has seen or is tangentially familiar with "Wicked" knows that it hinges on the appeal and vocal talent of its two female leads. Broadway powerhouses Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel originated the respective roles of Glinda and Elphaba. The touring production may not be able to completely meet the heights of those two, but Tiffany Haas as Glinda and Anne Brummel as Elphaba are still very, very good. Haas has the comic timing necessary to play Glinda’s funny scenes, but she also manages to pull of the trick of making the shallow, sometimes cruel character likeable in the end. Anne Brummel makes Elphaba alternately vulnerable and powerful, and her voice, especially on the famous "Defying Gravity" is stunning.

The only misstep for me in the cast is David Nathan Perlow in the role of Fiyero, the love object of both Glinda and Elphaba. He’s charming and talented, but he felt a little lightweight and never truly worthy of both ladies’ love. Then again, in this show the male lead is far secondary to the two women.

The rest of the cast is the textbook definition of Broadway professionalism. Don Amendolia as the Wonderful Wizard of Oz and Emily Ferranti as Nessarose are also standouts. The supporting cast brings abundant energy to their scenes, enough to make anyone forget they’ve done it a million times.

I could talk about the spectacular sets and costumes or the technically complex special effects that led to a quiet chorus of "wows" around me during the climax to the first act. I could talk about all of the little Wizard of Oz related discoveries that make the show so satisfying to anyone raised on Toto and Auntie Em.

But the truth is nothing I could write about "Wicked" will make you get it if you haven’t seen it. Take advantage of its run in Richmond and see a first rate Broadway production of tremendous quality.

A lot of Broadway musicals have the lights, the sparkle, and the show-stopping numbers, but very little underneath. It’s easy to create the big, loud experience of a musical, but it’s a lot harder to create the heartbeat underneath it. "Wicked" will blow you away technically and that might be what you talk about when you leave the Landmark Theater.

But the reason you might become a fan, buy the cast album, see it again, and again, and then one more time again, is for the heart underneath the extravaganza, for the simple story of what it means for a girl to be different in a world determined to label her as wicked.