Be Charmed by Wicked!

Three hours later, I knew.

The West End production of Wicked has been running at the Apollo since 2006 - making it one of only five current musicals to have been running in a London theatre for ten years! Why does it deserve its success?

The musical is a retelling of the 1939 film adaptation of Frank L Baum’s 1900 children’s novel titled 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz', considered to be one of the greatest films in cinematic history – the title of the play is a reference to the title given to the primary antagonist within the book and film – The Wicked Witch of the West – Elphaba - who conversely is the lead character in the production. This unusual but stimulating twist is the first of many within this enticing play.

Set in the Land of Oz, the play appears to be a story-within-a-story told by Glinda (the Good Witch of the South), providing intertwined origin stories for the more mysterious characters whilst narrating the life of Elphaba from an endearing perspective – making it a refreshing adaptation with an unexpected plot, presented on a grand stage.

Having recently had the pleasure of watching the musical, I would recommend that anybody who has watched the film would be thrilled by the play, due to its memorable music, brilliant acting and sound plot; due to these attributes, it would even serve to be a fascinating introduction to the Land of Oz, resulting in my recommendation extending to anybody! Although its length of two hours and forty-five minutes may seem daunting for children, the two Acts are separated by a twenty-minute interval. Therefore, I would class Wicked to be an extremely charming experience.