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The tale is that of the Wicked Witch before Dorothy and Toto landed in the Land of Oz. Stephen Schwartz wrote the songs and lyrics of Wicked. Winnie Holzman wrote the book. The main idea of the book comes from a novel entitled Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, although the two stories have surprisingly little in common. The story is that of Elphaba, the green Wicked Witch of the West from L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. In an amazing point of view twist, Elphaba is shown as the heroine in the story. She is a sweet, kind, and misunderstood person who just happens to have green skin. She goes to school, where she is ridiculed for her skin color. There she meets Glinda, who will eventually become the Good Witch of the North in the L. Frank Baum version of the tale. The two girls are complete opposites. The popular Glinda is interested in being beautiful and wearing the best fashions. Elphaba is a bookworm who wants to get good grades and take care of her handicapped sister. They end up being roommates, where an unlikely friendship develops. In spite of the fact that they both fall in love with the same man, in the end they become best of friends. At one point in the musical, Elphaba is summoned to see the Wizard of Oz. When she arrives, she realizes that his government is corrupt, taking advantage of innocent talking animals and robbing them of their ability to speak. She speaks out against the Wizard, who tells her that she will be ruined if she does not help him. He is the one who labels her "Wicked," and Elphaba and Glinda are forced to go separate ways in spite of their friendship. The score is brilliant, and the storyline is pure genius. These facts, combined with the fact that Wicked is family friendly enough for children, yet appealing to adults, makes this one of Broadway's best new shows. The critics agree, apparently, since Wicked was nominated for 10 Tony Awards in 2004 and won three of them. Best Costume Design and Best Scenic Design were two of the awards the show won. Wicked is currently touring throughout the U.S., enjoying an open-end run at Chicago's Ford Center for the Performing Arts Oriental Theater, and also playing in London's West End at the Apollo Victoria Theatre. Author is great fan of Wicked show and loves to write about the show at Wicked theatre tickets website.
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