London: Wicked

Tonight I went to see the musical Wicked at the Apollo Victoria.

I've never been to a musical in London, despite the fact I've been here so many times and even living here for a bit. Generally I don't get into the touristy stuff, but I decided to treat myself to the quintessential London dinner-and-a-show experience. Plus I have to catch a train to Copenhagen via Paris first thing tomorrow, so going to a show meant I wouldn't be tempted to go out all night to the secret party in Shoreditch that Insa told me about... unlike me to pass on an underground dubsteppy thing, but I can't miss that train.

Wicked is the story of the Witches of Oz. As in the Wizard of Oz. And it definitely lives up to its name.

I remember the first time Mum sat me down in front of the Wizard of Oz when I was a little kid. I was mesmerised. And watching Oz became a ritual every other day. Of course, Oz is a story about how we don't know what we've got until we don't have it anymore. But that's Dorothy's story. Wicked is a little different.

It tells the story of what happened in Oz from the Witches perspective. Poor Dorothy was so wrapped up in her own problems she had no idea of the shit storm she landed in (pardon the pun). Wicked explains the background behind the other main characters - Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West - the one who melts); Glinda (the Good Witch of the North - the one who helps Dorothy); Nessarose (the Wicked Witch of the East - the one who gets squished by the house) and other characters like the Tinman, the Lion, the Scarecrow and the Wonderful Wizard himself.

I won't spoil it anymore, other than to say it's a great show and if you get the chance to see it, check it out. The stage and lighting design is incredible, and the story is quite touching (I was laughing and crying the whole way through - I'm such a sap!).