In what could be the musical equivalent of cheering in a parking lot before a game, “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” took what could have been an ordinary moment of corporate synergy, added a 37-piece orchestra, and said, “It’s time to feel emotions!”
Cynics might think the NBC special — full of “Wicked”-themed commercials selling everything from Lexus cars to soap — had too much marketing and self-congratulation to be taken seriously, but those people are just sour.
Who among us wouldn’t delight in celebrating a phenomenon like the one that has accompanied “Wicked” for almost a year? Let people enjoy it – even those in the audience who covered their faces with poorly applied green paint, as if they were dressed up as a beer-guzzling brute from an NFL game. (The audience’s fantasies really should have been an all-or-nothing decision.)
What “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” did best was, of course, the music. Many cast members from the two films directed by John M. Chu took the stage, as did the original Glinda and Elphaba, Kristen Chenoweth e Idina Menzelwho joined the stars e in a special version of the Gershwin Theater’s “For Good.”
This was both frustrating and welcome. Frustrating because we all really wanted to hear Erivo and Grande’s full song as Oz intended; welcome because, well, it was amazing.
Stephen Schwartz accompanied the quartet in an arrangement that both paid homage to the original and allowed Erivo and Grande to make the song their own.
Grande wasn’t the only one whose face contorted with emotion during the song, which prompted at least one person to text her best friends to tell them they loved them so much.
If good things come to those who wait, as some say, perhaps even better things come to those who wait longer. , consider me ready.
Fortunately, the wait is almost over. “ hits theaters in November 21st.
Last year’s” Wicked” became the film of Highest grossing film based on a Broadway musicaland received 10 Oscar nominations, including Best Film. Grande and Erivo also received acting nominations. The film won two statuettes – one for best art direction and another for costumes.
