Something Wicked This Way Comes...

“For the first time in my life, I’m finally about to do something truly wicked.”

-Elphaba

For the first time in my life, I saw something truly and joyously wicked, in all senses of the word. The musical production "Wicked" was an extraordinary experience I doubt I’ll ever forget. It was an extremely magical few hours for me; I was so enamored by the musical and it was so believable that I felt not like I was watching a play, but like I was witnessing real events unfolding in front of me to make history.

I can’t even begin to imagine the amount of effort it must have taken to create and present such a spectacular production. Sitting here and typing this, I can still remember the certain emotions evoked in me. Being brought up the way I was, I learned from an early age how not to show emotions that you didn’t want seen and analyzed. This musical pushed even my limits as none other ever has and compelled me to, in turn: laugh, fume, or cry - softly as it may have been. There were moments that sent shivers running along my body, and there were moments where I was only able to stay frozen, holding my breath anxiously for the scene to finish.

There was a moment of clarity where I was sitting there, watching a scene, and I had a renewed epiphany of why I loved acting so much. Looking at the characters onstage, one would never be able to think of them as ever having different relationships behind the scenes. From the moment I sat till long after the play was finished, I could believe in a witch whose skin was green; in a land where munchkins really roamed; in a place ruled by a wizard; in a witch who came and went in a bubble: I believed in "Wicked". I didn’t need help with my willing suspension of disbelief – I sat, the curtains rose, and I simply believed.

The story shows a back story that one could never have imagined: the Wicked Witch of the West might actually have been innocent of all but several decisions and one decidedly wicked kiss; Glinda the Good Witch might actually have had ulterior motives behind her naïve and pretty act to get higher up in the world; the Wizard of Oz was not only a fake, but might also have fathered Elphaba, later known as the Wicked With of the West. "Wicked" showed a whole mass of contradictions to the characters portrayed in the original "Wizard of Oz". It showed us not to always believe in what our eyes show us, or what we might hear and think we see. You never should judge a person unless you’ve met them for yourself. People didn’t really know Elphaba, yet she was branded the Wicked Witch of the West because they chose to believe in the wrong leaders. "Wicked" takes what we know and twists it so we question our knowledge of right or wrong. Because, really, things aren’t always black and white – there are shade of gray, as well.