Review - Wicked Tour - 3/3/07

Wicked Tour

Tampa Bay Performing Art Center

Yes , I live 25 minutes from NYC and I went to Tampa, FL to see Wicked. I got see the show with my Step Mother who had seen the tour the last time it was there also. We had wonderful seats (Orch Row M). I believe what others said about sitting a bit back from the stage is much better. I had listened to the cast recording and seen promotional clips of the show previously. I had also read the book, so I was pretty prepared going in.

To start, the theater was just beautiful. Much different from most of the theaters I had been in lately, more grand instead of historic and rustic. Although with the amount of souvenirs being sold I thought I was at a rock concert or something. The store outside the theater had some very interesting old tour promotional materials and such.

Sets

I have never actually seen the broadway production yet but I would believe it was along the same scale. I think it was well done and really helped set the mood of the show. Same with the costumes.

Cast:

Christina DeCicco – Glinda – Very bubbly, very giddy, very energetic, perfect for the role of Glinda. She had a beautiful voice. Personally, I loved this role beforehand because I loved Cheno’s vocal range ability to go from regular to operatic sounding so gracefully (please remember I have no vocal/singing knowledge so I don’t know technical terms). I think Christina did a wonderful job with it and threw in little things that made it her own. She was also the spitting image of what I think of when I think of Glinda. Her “Popular” was very funny but a bit rushed and just a tad over the top. My favorite Glinda song going in was “Thank Goodness” and she made me proud. She and Victoria had very good chemistry so it helped the story flow tremendously. I can not imagine seeing and enjoying this show if the Glinda/Elphie pair do not have a good repore.

Victoria Matlock – Elphaba – I would imagine it must be very hard to play this role knowing that most “first timers” are comparing you to Idina and her style. I like Idina, don’t get me wrong, but I believe all the belting/screaming wasn’t as mesmerizing as some do. Victoria took a few lines to come out of her shell in “The Wizard & I” but once she did, she was on. Very different in a broad comparison, as Victoria “sang” mostly everything and I really enjoyed it. She seemed more angry than I would’ve thought necessary in the beginning, but it eventually gave way to superb acting. Of course I was looking forward to “Defying Gravity” and she nailed it. I didn’t gasp and cry like others did at the end of the song, but it had nice effects and good singing. She really shined in the second act, and her “No Good Deed” was phenomenal. Very well sung and not over acted. Luckily, “For Good” was sang and acted at the right level of emotion (I have seen clips where there was just too much damn sap and emotion portrayed and ruined the scene), that it was very enjoyable. I hope she gets to play the role on broadway one day, I will definitely go see it.

Cliffton Hall – Fiyero - I was a little skeptical of this role going in. Even though Fiyero is not the main main character, without the correct level of suave charming appeal in the character portrayal the story lacks something important. Cliffton did not disappoint. While they didn’t look a like, he reminded me a lot of Norbert, who I adore, so it really helped my attention span! His ‘Dancing Through Life” was very enjoyable thanks to his charisma and charming voice. He was also a good dancer, so it didn’t seem forced like some. He grabbed heartstrings in “I’m Not That Girl” scenes and was very sexy in “As Long As You Are Mine”. I noticed in the playbill that he is married to the actress who played Nessarose, so is this a role requirement or new trend (reference – Norbert & Michele)? =)

All the other roles were all well acted and sung but no one “popped” out for me. Is it me or does a lot of the chorus song parts have way too loud shrieking? I always noticed it at the very end of the show with the final “Wicked” notes, which are VERY high pitched and borderline annoying. But it seemed to translate over to most of the chorus parts. Maybe it was always there and I just never noticed it, but I did during the show and I kind of winced a few times. No big deal, just wondering.

Overall, I really enjoyed the show. It was really nice to finally have some closure to open issues in my mind of how some songs were acted out, etc. I didn’t get out all of the emotional impact I expected to, but that could just be from my prior exposure to the show and its music, who knows. I still am very happy I saw it. I’m not going to rush and see it this month, but I do hope to catch it on the Broadway stage sometime this year and see if I have