Wicked

WICKED, the West End and Broadway musical phenomenon, is already the 9th longest running musical in London theatre history. Winner of over 100 major awards, including three Tony Awards®, two Olivier Awards and ten theatregoer-voted WhatsOnStage Awards (winning ‘Best West End Show’ on three separate occasions), the classic musical has recently welcomed its 10 millionth visitor.

WICKED imagines an ingenious backstory and future possibilities to the lives of L. Frank Baum’s beloved characters from ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’ and reveals the decisions and events that shape the destinies of two unlikely University friends on their journey to becoming Glinda The Good and the Wicked Witch of The West.

2hrs 45min (incl. interval)

Wicked is in London, and Wicked tickets are available now.

In a magical land, years before Dorothy and her house unexpectedly dropped in, a promising young witch with emerald green skin, Elphaba, was learning about her powers at school with her roommate, Glinda. She’s popular with all of their classmates and the handsome new student, Fiyero, who is a perfect match for Glinda but is also drawn to introverted Elphaba.

Despite clashing personalities, the two girls find a way to put their differences aside to become lifelong friends. But Elphaba discovers a threat to the citizens of Oz, she makes it her mission to protect others, no matter what the cost. Will Glinda stand by her side as she becomes the Wicked Witch of the West?

The show has become a phenomenon and the songs, such as “One Short Day” and “Popular” have become iconic. Stephen Schwartz’s musical has fans all over the world flocking to the Apollo Victoria to get a taste of magic, witches, wizards and even flying monkeys!

What to watch for

• The Wicked musical is based on the 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire, ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’. The character Elphaba's name is even inspired by literary influences too, created from LFB, the initials of L. Frank Baum.
• In 2010, working with the National Literacy Trust, the Wicked Young Writer Awards was launched. The program encourages young people to write their own stories. Its annual award show was spearheaded by Michael Morpurgo and Patron HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.
• To wake up astronauts on a mission, NASA once played them the song "Defying Gravity".
• To make up Glinda’s bubble dress that she wears at the start of the show, 36 petals are featured, as well as 20 types of sequin. Nearly 100,000 sequins actually appear on the dress! In order to maintain the dress, it takes one person four hours, for four days a week to care for it.
• In the history of Wicked in London, there is only one person to have played both the roles of Elphaba and Glinda - Louise Dearman, in 2012.