After years of waiting, Wicked (Part One) finally hit theaters this past Friday, November 22 – all two hours and 40 minutes of it.
If you’re unfamiliar with the musical, it tells the story of The Wizard of Oz’s Wicked Witch of the West, or Elphaba Thropp. Based on the novel by Gregory Macguire, it begins with her death and the celebrations from the townspeople, before Glinda the Good Witch launches into describing Elphaba’s past and how their paths crossed long before Dorothy found herself in Oz.
The film features a star-studded cast, with Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande playing Elphaba and Glinda, respectively. Other big names are Jeff Goldblum (The Wizard of Oz), Michelle Yeoh (Madame Morrible), Jonathan Bailey (Fiyero), Peter Dinklage (Dr. Dillamond), and Ethan Slater (Boq).
Other than the well-known cast and characters, the movie also pays homage to the original musical with some exciting cameos that Broadway fans will love. No spoilers here! (But my jaw did drop.)
For anyone wondering why the movie is so long, and split into two parts, the answer is quite simple. Adapting a story from stage to screen isn’t easy; musical theater has its own set of rules and expectations that don’t always translate well to cinema. For this reason, changes need to be made and conventions need to be broken to give the film the same feel as the musical while also sticking to reasonable cinematic norms.
Part One ends where Act One of the musical ends, and when there would normally be an intermission and audience members would be permitted to take a break before the second half. The show-stopping number of “Defying Gravity” is performed right before this intermission, energizing the audience for what is to come later. In a similar way, the film ends after this song.
The difference between the show and the movie is that fans will have to wait a year before the latter part of the story, rather than 10-20 minutes. However, with the amount of advertising and roll-out procedures involved in releasing a movie, this isn’t so unreasonable.
All in all, the film is a beautiful and powerful adaptation of the story that fans know and love, and seeing your favorite characters and songs brought to life in a new way is an experience I highly recommend. The film version is able to have more special effects that amaze audiences and immerse them in the world of the screen, resulting in a cinematic experience that can only be achieved in this format.
And for people who didn’t know the musical before – get ready for your mind to be blown!
Emily Myers is a sophomore and a staff writer. She can be reached at emyers3@fandm.edu.