WICKED

The Mayflower, Southampton

I AM probably the last person in the world to watch the smash west-end hit Wicked, which has received rave reviews over the last ten years.

The brilliance of the show sees it take the Wizard of Oz and transform the audience’s perspective of it by portraying the relationship between the good witch Glinda and the wicked witch Elphaba.

It gently mocks the film throughout, casting Elphaba as the hero and the Wizard of Oz as the villain. The show is partly prequel and partly run in parallel to the film and as you would expect from any show coming on tour from the West End it was highly polished.

Glinda (Emily Tierney) and Elphaba (Ashleigh Gray) have an excellent chemistry and can hit all of the right musical notes.

Most fans of musicals will probably already have seen this show but even if a musical isn’t normally your cup of tea just the storyline is enough keep anyone captivated.

Aside from the acting, the crew at the Mayflower had done a wonderful job with the set and props.

From Glinda being flown around the stage to the fluorescent green Elphaba it was great – even if you have seen the show ten times or you want to see it for the first time Wicked is a must-see.