Based on the best-selling 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire, WICKED, winner of 35 major awards, including a Grammy® and three Tony® Awards, is the untold story of the witches of Oz long before Dorothy drops in. One – born with emerald-green skin – is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, and how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good.
WICKED has “cast quite a spell” (Washington Post) throughout North America, breaking box office records in every city that it has played, including Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, DC, Philadelphia and Boston to name a few. Called “a cultural phenomenon” by Variety, WICKED continues to thrill audiences around the world. There are currently seven productions of WICKED worldwide, including two North American tours, a Broadway production, a London production, a Japanese-language production, a German-language production and an Australian production. A Dutch-language production of WICKED will open in November 2011.
The MOVEMENT crew was invited to join the WICKED crew during one of the many days it takes to set up of the massive staging and publisher Max Michaels spoke with company manager Erica Norgaard about the show.
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So Erica, one thing I was always quite curious about, with these type of productions. Because the setup can take days, when you're ready to go to your next city, Do you have multiple trucks that are traveling leapfrogging a set like this to the next city? Basically, how many productions are going on at the same time?
"Yes, we have thirteen semi-trucks worth of stuff. Three of them are duplicates. So, we have two dragons, and art displays that go on stage. And some electrical equipment. And those three trucks get to the city on Sunday, they start loading everything in on Monday. And the Rest of the trucks arrive on Tuesday Morning. It takes us two and a half days to set it up. And at the end of the run, it takes us about 6 hours to tear it all down, put it in the trucks, and then drive it to the next stage."
So there is basically three separate sets, but there is only one traveling cast?
"No, One set, but three trucks that have those pieces. One set of costumes, one set of props get trucked from city to city."
That is pretty Amazing. And what is with the awesome dragon? (laugh)
"Its sort of the thing that sets the tone for the whole show. You walk in and its the first thing you see, The dragon hovering over the stage with Emerald city sparkling in the background. Kind of, sets the tone for the evening of … you know … magic."
What do you think the most challenging parts of all those details, as far as a production of this magnitude.
"Well, its my first time in Jacksonville, so its always different to come to a city that I've never been to. I’ve been touring for a long time. So when you go to somewhere, like say Chicago, well I've been here like five times so I already know where everything is. Here I get here and they're like, 'Where do I park?' And I'm like, 'I don't know I haven't been here yet.” (Laughter)
How many in the cast, when you're on a tour like this, how many total [with understudies] would you say there are?
"We always have two understudies that can go on for them, so they are in the ensemble of the show. So, everyone has a back-up plan."
How many in this show are from the actual Broadway show, if any?
"Our Standby just came to us from Broadway, and there is a couple of others that are out with us right now. This group is ever-changing, its been changing out for about three years now. So a lot of the cast members had changeovers. Some of them have been with us for three years now, and some for only a couple of months. So it truly is ever-evolving."
So how long have you been with this show?
"I've been here with it for two years."
Wow, so you haven't really been home much.
(Laughter) "Nope!"
How did you become involved with ‘Wicked’?
"I went to school in New York and got hired by the company that manages the show. Then about seven years ago they sent me to Chicago to work on the show, so I've been working with ‘Wicked’ for about seven years now."
I have to say, the only off Broadway show I have ever seen was Evil Dead the musical. (laughter)
(Laughter) "Well maybe you should come see Wicked."
But are there flying monkeys?
(laughter) "Yes."
Then I'm in!
See more backstage and set shots on our Facebook page HERE.
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WICKED returns to Jacksonville at the Times-Union Center’s Moran Theater from January 4-22, 2012 for a massive 24 performances. Tickets begin at $38.00 and are available at The Artist Series Box Office at (904)-632-3373 or online at www.artistseriesjax.org. VIP seats are also available for select performances. Performance schedule, prices and cast are subject to change without notice. For more information, please visit www.artistseriesjax.org
