When I interviewed Jessie Davidson last month, I asked her if the two “Wicked” movies helped or hindered the stage version of the show, in which she’s playing Elphaba.
“The movie brought ‘Wicked’ to so many.” She said she meets young people at the stage door after performances who say seeing “Wicked” live was their first theater experience, and that the movies brought them there.
“Wicked” is playing now through March 22 at the Providence Performing Arts Center and the entire production is superb, start to finish.
Given the popularity of the movies, I expected we’d be treated to a lot of folks around us treating the show as a singalong. Luckily, that didn’t happen. The only moment that suggested there were many fans of the movies in attendance was when Elphaba made her first entrance to applause. That’s unusual for the stage production.
In case you don’t know “Wicked,” its story turns “The Wizard of Oz” upside down. Glinda the Good floats into Oz on a bubble as the townsfolk sing “No One Mourns the Wicked.” Glinda proclaims that the Wicked Witch is indeed dead.
Someone asks what caused the Wicked Witch to be the way she was. Glinda answers the question with a question. “Are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” That question is the show’s overarching theme.
As Glinda tries to float off, someone asks if it’s true that she and the Wicked Witch were friends. Glinda fends that question off by asking what one means by friend. It’s true, she says, that they knew each other in school.
And so begins the story of the Wicked Witch, the hideously green young woman sent to school to care for her wheelchair-bound sister Nessa. It’s here that we learn the Wicked Witch has a name: Elphaba.
[Fun note: when Gregory Maguire was writing the novel upon which the show is based, he decided to use the initials of the original creator of “The Wizard of Oz,” L. Frank Baum. He landed on “ell,” “fa,” and “buh.” Elphaba. You’re welcome.]
Because of a rooming shortage and an inadvertent moment of voluntarism, Elphaba and Glinda (Zoe Jensen) are forced to share a room. They can’t stand each other, as they express quite convincingly in “Loathing.”
Enter Fiyero (Ethan Kirschbaum), the dashing young prince who bounces from school to school. Glinda instantly falls for him and works on getting him to fall for her. They are, after all, “perfect together.”
Meanwhile, Elphaba is learning that the Wizard of Oz might not be as wonderful as everyone thinks, and she rises up to defy him.
Enough about the story. How about the show’s elements?
The costumes are stunning. The lighting is spectacular. The sets incredible. And the “Defying Gravity” sequence still gives me goosebumps.
How about the performances?
Jensen is wonderfully bubble-headed and self-centered as Glinda. She gets a chance to show off her vocal and comedic chops in “Popular.”
Kirschbaum’s signature song-and-dance is “Dancing Through Life,” which he pulls off perfectly. His duet with Davidson in “As Long As You’re Mine” is moving and sensuous.
But this show is all about Elphaba, and Davidson is great in the role. She’s different than many of the Elphabas who’ve preceded her yet stays true to the part. She earned thunderous applause with “The Wizard and I,” and was whimsical and forlorn in “I’m Not That Girl.”
“No Good Deed Goes Unpunished” let Davidson showcase her amazing range, both vocally and in her acting. And “Defying Gravity” – did I mention the goosebumps?
As we left the theater last night, the gentleman in front of me said, “I hope you’re giving this an excellent review.”
I think I just did.
“Wicked” plays at the Providence Performing Arts Center through March 22. For tickets and information, call the box office at 401.421.ARTS or visit www.ppacri.org.