WICKED - THEATRE REVIEW

WICKED AT THE BIRMINGHAM HIPPODROME

Theatre Run: Wednesday 09 July - Saturday 06 September 2014

Performance Reviewed: Thursday 10 July (Press Night)

Reviewed by Kyle Pedley

Wicked will cast it's spell upon you... Wicked is wicked-ly good... Spellbinding!

With that obligatory bit of housekeeping out of the way, it's almost difficult to comprehend what to say about musical colossus Wicked that hasn't already been said countless times over. One of the most celebrated and successful musicals of the 21st Century, it is an internationally renowned mega-hit whose adoration (and ticket sales) show no sign of dwindling any time soon. Winnie Holzman's adapted tale that takes a canted look at the witches of Oz (taken from Gregory Maguire's more morbid book of the same name) combined with Stephen Schwartz's already-iconic music has leapt into our collective cultural consciousness and tapped into a generational zeitgeist in a way that most other musicals could only dream of.  And now, as the show takes off on its first ever UK and Ireland tour, the fervour and excitement in Birmingham and the surrounding area for the show's arrival at the city's Hippodrome theatre has been at fever pitch, showing that these witches are as 'popular' as ever and just as adept at defying expectations as they are gravity.

THEATRE INTERVIEW - Nikki Davis-Jones (Wicked)

WICKED INTERVIEWS:

Part One - Nikki Davis-Jones (Elphaba)

Wicked flies on in to the Birmingham Hippodrome next week as part of it's first ever UK and Ireland tour, and we are celebrating the occasion with a pair of interviews with the two of the show's leads.

In this first part, Kyle sits down with actress Nikki-Davis Jones, who plays Elphaba in the show, and discusses how Wicked is proving to be the gift that keeps on giving...

By Kyle Pedley.

Interview Conducted Thursday 24th April 2014.

Nikki Davis-Jones as Elphaba
in Wicked

“I’m clearly not very good in auditions!”

It’s a modest dash of self-deprecation from the lady who has bagged one of musical theatre’s most coveted leading roles, and further indicative of a warm, humble personality that likewise may initially seem at odds with the role she has been drafted in to play. But such humility is not without context and reasoning, with a string of standby and cover roles in shows such as Blood Brothers and Mamma Mia that led to eventual promotions being the career pattern for actress Nikki Davis-Jones thus far.

That was before a certain green-skinned opportunity came flying in on a golden broomstick and looks set to change her career ‘For Good’.

GOLDEN (A) AWARDS 2013 - THEATRE

Last week we announced the winners of our Golden (A) awards in Film and Television, with acclaimed independent critical darling Beasts of the Southern Wild taking home Best Film and CIA thriller Homeland being selected as Best Television Series.

We now turn our attention the very finest in theatre, taking into consideration the wealth of theatre productions both West End-based and touring in 2012. Any performances seen in early 2013 (for instance Book of Mormon, Priscilla: Queen of the Desert the Musical, Cats and The Rocky Horror Show) will all be in contention for next years awards and were too late to be considered for this years awards (2012 performances only!).