And, Ms Wicks did – in many ways – do just that with her performance. All around me, I became aware, were people who were previous fans of Ms. Wicks – TWickes [their term] who had seen Ms. Wicks on the opposite coast during her runs in either Los Angeles or San Francisco. The energy for Ms. Wicks was high, the TWickes giving their Elphaba their love and support, something truly endearing to feel around you. When Ms. Wicks made her entrance, the TWickes cheered and thus ushered in the newest green girl to the Broadway production club.
Surely the question on most people’s mind would be – How were her vocals? Did she strain? Did she sound like she’d give out any moment? Is it curtains for Teal? Alas, no, Ms. Wick’s vocals were not thin or strained – they were strong and well executed. Ms. Wick’s ‘Defying Gravity’ and ‘No Good Deed’ vocally very strong and performed wonderfully, while her lower tone (which is one of the most gorgeous lower tones I’ve heard of an Elphaba) shined brightly on “I’m Not That Girl.” Despite some wonderful vocals on the numbers, I still feel she’s trying to find her footing in places – which is understandable given this, is the first time she’s performed the score in public in quite some time. If Teal can properly take care of herself vocally and find the footing she wants to go vocally, the sky’s the limit on what her versatile voice can do. Do I believe she can do it? Yes, I do. I think she just needs to be precautious and know her limits, but I believe she learned from her past and will be just fine.
Vocals are only just one dimension of Elphaba – the acting is just as important as the vocals. Unlike some Elphabas, Ms. Wicks took the basis of Elphaba – a character that can sometimes can be played too safely or blandly for people’s liking and played her with energy, heart, and emotion that really showed. Whatever Teal’s Elphaba was feeling – you felt it. Every emotion she went through was tangible to the touch, because she made choices that came from the heart and you could tell. Her transformation from optimistic schoolgirl at the beginning of Act I to the defiant and confident woman at the end of Act II was one of the best acting arcs I’ve seen from an Elphaba in quite some time. No smoke, no mirrors were used with her acting – it all came from the heart and it was very beautiful to watch.
I have seen Katie Rose Clarke play off three previous Elphabas – Mandy, Jenny, and Dee. Each had their own chemistry with Katie, but the chemistry between Teal and Katie was perfect – to the point where it was almost unbelievable that they had never played off one another before. Looking at their journey on stage - you believe them at each stage of the journey. The connection between Jenny Fellner and Teal was also wonderful – you felt Teal’s devotion to her sister and how she would do just about anything for her. The heat that came off Kyle Dean and Teal’s As Long As You’re Mine could literally have started a fire – because they were all over each other making for one of the hottest As Long As You’re Mines I’d seen in quite some time.
To not make this all about Ms. Wicks, Kyle Dean’s Fiyero is one of the best Fiyeros I’ve seen – he can dance circles around some Fiyeros I’ve seen and his vocals are as good as they were in next to normal – especially his upswing on the phrase “it’s up that I fell.”
I continue my love affair with Kathy’s Morrible, Etai’s Boq, and Fellner’s Nessarose. PJ’s Wizard is fine, nothing to write home about, but just that – fine.
By night’s end, Ms. Wicks had risen to my challenge of bringing it, and truly impressed me in many ways. Like I said before, there are aspects of her performance that I feel she still needs to find her footing in, but with one pretty good performance under her belt, I feel like she’ll just continue to improve and I’m rooting for her.
EDIT - I'm well aware I misspelled February, but I can't fix it.
I was a little concerned, as others have been considering prior vocal issues, though at the same time, I was thrilled to hear she was cast being on my 