“Wicked: The Musical” made its debut on Broadway in 2003 as a prequel to The Wizard Of Oz. This show tells the previously untold story of Glinda the Good’s friendship with the Wicked Witch of the West (Elphaba Thropp), set before Dorothy’s arrival to Oz. The musical is considered “magical realist”: a genre in which fantastical elements, typically helping to represent a profound truth about society, are considered the norm. In the musical, some of these elements include magical wands, talking animals, potions and the Grimmerie (a magic spell book only translatable to Elphaba). Every component of the musical that doesn’t exist in reality, though sometimes seemingly random, is the norm in the fantastical land of Oz.
These elements of the musical were translated into a film produced by both Marc Platt and David Stone. While the original Broadway show’s cast included Idina Menzel as Elphaba and Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda, the new movie adaption cast Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba and Ariana Grande as Glinda. The film production mostly took place in the United Kingdom at Sky Studios Elstree in Hertfordshire and was filmed from December of 2022 to January of 2024. Despite Wicked on Broadway being encapsulated into one show of two acts, producers decided on a two-part movie in order to maximize time for character development and reduce deleted scenes to stay within a certain length.
Wicked: Part I came out in theaters on November 22, 2024, but left many fans in suspense due to its sudden, cliff-hanger ending. In a Polygon survey sent to the student body, Ella Schoenburg ’27 and Zoe Kim ’27 said that they both wished they did not have to wait for a second part to the film. The movie’s final scene entailed Elphaba flying away from the Wizard of Oz and his winged monkeys that continue to chase after her, leaving her friend Glinda behind in order to escape them. Thus, some of the Poly Prep audience was left with an eagerness for its true ending. The second movie is set to come out on November 21, 2025, entitled Wicked: For Good. The second part will replace the fans’ desire for a fast ending with a new understanding of the movie, what it represents, and how it leads to the characterizing of Elphaba as an evil witch in The Wizard of Oz.
In the same survey, Soleil Peña ’27 recalled that “the first part was so magical, I feel like it brought everything to life in such a cool way that [a] stage can’t do.” Many also felt that the story builds onto an understanding of “racism in a society and how some people take credit for others’ work because they’re of color,” referring to Elphaba Thropp’s unusual green skin, as Peña said. Additionally, Kim explained that “Elphaba and the Ozs’ dynamic has a ‘fight the power’ message,” providing the example of “Elphaba standing up for what is right [while] an authority figure is trying to suppress her.” Students also reported how excited they are for the new movie to finally be released in theatres after waiting nearly a year.
According to the handful of responses, the average level of excitement for the movie was an eight out of ten. “I hope that [the movie] ends with the beginning of The Wizard of Oz, when the house lands on Nessa Rose,” wrote Schoenburg in the survey. Kim added that she wants “Glinda and Elphaba to be friends again,” and a couple of other responders commented that they hope the costumes will continue to be as remarkable as they seemed in the first movie. Although the first part left some wanting more, Rose Doniger ’27 suggests that the new movie’s launch on November 21 “makes Thanksgiving so much more exciting.”