It’s a Sunday afternoon and everyone has on their spring Sunday best. Let’s face it; no one turns it on for a Broadway show better than the ladies and gentlemen of Dallas. And the return of the Dallas Summer Musical’s Wicked proved to be no different. Some would call it a creative spinoff, but the ultimate test of time has shown us that Wicked now stands in a league of its own. A beloved and Tony Award-winning musical, Wicked reveals the untold truth behind the life and upbringing of the Wizard of Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West, loveably named Elfaba, or Elfie for short.
As the show’s protagonist, Elfaba captures our hearts early on. The sad and often overused tale of a girl who was born different but yearns to be accepted feels fresh and invigorating with each monologue and powerhouse song. In short, the girl can bring down a house.
Though no one has bigger shoes to fill than an actress who follows in Idina Menzel’s footsteps, I was truly impressed by the talent and gumption I saw on stage yesterday. Wicked is one of the highest energy shows I know of, and each ballad comes in with higher expectations than the previous. We’ve all grown to love Wicked, what with its popularity on the hit show Glee, and the recognizable “Defying Gravity” – it’s just one show that doesn’t lend to 90 percent effort.
I have to say though, my heart goes out to any actress in the future who ever, and I repeat ever, has to follow Kristin Chenowith. She is a living, breathing, triple threat energizer bunny who can belt out elusive high notes in her sleep. It’s almost inhuman that she had a go at Glenda first, because I’m still searching for the actress who can revitalize the role of Oz’s Good Witch. The actress yesterday just felt a little, well, flat to me. It was like watching the show in 2D while secretly jealous of your friends who got tickets to the 3D IMAX version. You want to like and appreciate the movie, but you know it could be so much more.
Outside of the two main talents, everyone else pretty much held their own on stage. None of the other performers seemed like standout stars to me, but they did their jobs to charm and entertain the crowd – who unsurprisingly flew out of their seats at curtain close. A standing ovation was what they deserved, and in true Southern Hospitality form, it is exactly what we gave them. You never let me down, D-town.
