Defy gravity

I chased it around for two years. New York City. Miami. Orlando. Finally I found it in Atlanta. The gods aligned and I was able to buy tickets one week before they were available to the general public. And when I realized in my haste I forgot to check the Atlanta Thrashers (NHL) schedule before buying tickets for Friday night, the only night the team had a home game that weekend…I was able to sell my tickets on Craigslist and buy another pair for a little more money but closer to stage on eBay.

Tickets for what? Wicked the Broadway musical. The story intrigued me from the moment I read about the three-year running play. It’s the backstory of the childhood classic, The Wizard of Oz. It’s the life of the witches, before a Kansas tornado dropped [pun intended] Dorothy and Toto in Munchkinland.

The play is a must-see. From a technical writing standpoint, it is extremely well-done. The story is complete and brings together all the loose ends. Humorous and timeless dialogue keeps it moving along, and assures it will be relevant for a long time. (Oh, if only I could write one piece half as well!)

The good witch’s, Glinda, character is reminiscent of Legally Blonde’s Elle. Very funny, very blonde. “Toss, toss” takes you right back to Elle in the salon.

Elphie, the so-called bad witch, reminded me a bit of Elaine in TV’s Seinfeld, and another character I haven’t yet pinned down. It’s hard to believe you can come to embrace a green character…who is not Kermit. Her coming-out song of sorts is about defying gravity, something we all need to regularly remind ourselves to do.

Most movies, plays, etc. I only need to see once. Quite often I think once is too much. But Wicked is right up there with Cats. I would go again (and again) in a heartbeat given the opportunity.

And now, I’m off to chase another clever, original play.