The Superb Wicked “Defying Gravity”.

Wicked is a Broadway and West End musical. The story is based on the best-selling novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. The musical includes songs and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz.

Wicked tells the story of Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West and her relationship with Galinda, later Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. Their friendship has problems through their opposing personalities and viewpoints, rivalry over the same love-interest, their responses to the Wizard’s tainted government, and, eventually, Elphaba’s public fall from grace.

Wicked the musical premiered at San Francisco’s Curran Theatre in May 2003. In October, 2003, the show moved to Broadway’s Gershwin Theatre. It was produced by Universal Pictures and directed by Joe Mantello. In the first Wicked cast the original stars were Idina Menzel as Elphaba, Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda, and Joel Grey as the Wizard.

Although the production was given mixed reviews and was slated by The New York Times, it has proven to be a favorite among patrons. The Broadway production’s success spawned shows in Chicago, Los Angeles, London’s West End, Tokyo, Melbourne, Sydney, Stuttgart, and San Francisco. There were also two North American tours that have been to over 30 cities in Canada and the United States.

Record Breaking Wicked

Wicked has smashed box office records around the world, sustaining weekly-gross-takings records in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, St. Louis, and London, and the record for the biggest opening in the West End. Both the West End production and the North American tour have been seen by over two million people.The show was nominated for ten 2004 Tony Awards, winning those for Best Actress (Menzel), Scenic Design and Costume Design.

Defying Gravity

The song most associated with Wicked is the exceptional “Defying Gravity”. In Wicked “Defying Gravity” is the finale song for the show’s first act, when Elphaba finds out that The Wizard of Oz is not the heroic figure she had originally thought him to be. Knowing this, and despite Glinda’s attempts to deter her, Elphaba decides to do in her power to battle the Wizard and his menacing plans against the Animals of Oz. She sings of how she wants to live without any limits, contrary to the rules that others have set for her. During the song, Elphaba enchants a broomstick to levitate and, pursued by the Wizard’s guards, rises from the stage above the angry citizens of Oz, who try in vain to bring her down.

The staging of the Wicked “Defying Gravity” climax features several special effects. The actress playing Elphaba is lifted up into the air by a hydraulic launch system. The sequence includes lots of moving lights, smoke, and wind effects. You must see Wicked “Defying Gravity” !

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