Wicked

When: Saturday 25th August

Where: Apollo Victoria

  

Why: Day tickets and to please my mum

The last (and first) time I saw Wicked I was sat in row X. Of the circle. To picture how far away that is, imagine watching a play that’s being performed on the other side of the Thames from you. It’s about that far. So to grab a day ticket in the front row was awesome and also made the show an entirely different experience. In the sense that I was able to distinguish facial expressions and people’s gender. And we only had to queue for about 90 minutes with a mad Korean woman who kept speaking to us in French and inviting us to her fabulous Paris flat for a holiday (it was a trial but worth it).

If you don’t know the story of Wicked then I’m not interested in explaining it to you (you should reassess your life) and will simply direct you to the detailed plot description on Wikipedia that I also made my mum read. All I will say is that this time I actually bought the soundtrack afterwards (off Amazon, much cheaper than getting it from the theatre – I’m not mental) and listened to it every day for about two weeks. At least. Including one full weekend of singing along to it as I zoomed down country lanes with my pal Nikki and others with similar good taste in soundtracks.

This time I could tell that it definitely was Mat Willis from Busted who was playing Fiyero, the main boy lead, and he was really, really good. Who knew? He has grown into a hottie who can genuinely act (and sing, but we knew that, kind of). His many tattoos also really worked, as the character in the book (YES, I’ve read it) is a tribal prince who is meant to be covered in multi-coloured diamonds. So that was geekily pleasing to me. Louise Dearman is also excellent as Glinda – she’s just as multi-faceted and complex a character to play as Elphaba, and although the actresses are definitely equals in terms of talent in this show, I think I’d always end up being more drawn to Elphaba as the darker character, and to Rachel Tucker who represents her so perfectly.

Tucker is just SO GOOD. We used to watch her every week on I’d Do Anything, the Nancy finding programme (“You’re ALL THE COLOURS OF NANCY”) and note that although she had the best voice, she wasn’t right for Nancy. And we were right. But she is perfect for Elphaba. Her real accent is Irish and this makes her stage English accent a bit more husky and quirky, fitting for Elphaba. Her voice is perfect and so powerful but not overwhelming, full of emotion and character. Yay for Rachel. She’s finishing soon and I may have to go and see her again before she goes. As my friend Charles is always lamenting, that’s the rubbish thing about theatre – you can see the most amazing performances on earth, but hardly ever get to see them again as they’re not recorded (or if they are, you can’t usually get your own copy). Sad times.

Anyway. Go. Enjoy. Be Wicked.

Brixpig x