“Wicked: The Untold Stories of the Witches of Oz” (commonly referred to as “Wicked”) is a darker retelling of “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” by Lyman Frank Baum. The play itself is based off of a book of the same title by Gregory Maguire. According to “The Wrap,” Wicked is Broadway’s second highest grossing musical of all time, as well as the only performance to be Broadway’s highest grossing musical for nine consecutive years. The show has toured across four continents and is currently going on its Munchkinland Tour, with the musical being performed at the Oriental Theater from Dec. 6 to Jan. 21.

West students from the music department had the opportunity to travel to Chicago to see the traveling Broadway musical and explore the downtown shopping district on Thursday, Dec. 7. The decision to see the play was made due to the marching band performing select hits from the musical in their marching show.

“It made me feel really nostalgic seeing the show because when the music played I’d just remember all of the choreography and marching from our show,” sophomore Amber Sweeney said.

Mary Kate Morrissey and Ginna Claire Mason played the roles of the Elphaba Thropp (the Wicked Witch of the west) and Galinda “Glinda” Upland (Glinda the Good Witch). The actresses both played their respective characters very well.

Morrissey managed to portray the shy, yet gifted school girl that eventually turned into a bold freedom fighter very well, with her powerful and spine-chilling vocals being one of the highlights of the show. Mason’s performance as Galinda was also very masterfully done.

The supporting cast held their own in the performance, not letting their respective characters be outshined by the leads. Robin de Jesus’ performance as Boq, stood out to me in particular, with his vocals and acting helping him to nail his role as the friendly and genuine, yet ordinary munchkin.

What impressed me the most about the performance, were the special effects and the musicianship put into the show. The movement of the scenes was perfectly executed, with transitions between settings being smooth, quick, and not taking away from the plot. The props, makeup, and costumes all helped to convey the feelings of magic and fantasy that the source material has become famous for.

Wicked is overall a sterling production that left me wanting more in thinking about it for the rest of the night. I was quite satisfied with the performance and enjoyed it greatly. I highly recommend that you see this musical if you can while it is still in Chicago.

I’d give the performance 5 out of 5 stars.