After reading the book, the musical was the most disappointing show I have ever seen in my life. The costumes were amazing, some of the songs were good (particularly "Popular") and I must say that the actress playing Galinda/Glinda at my show was hilarious! There were even some clever references to the film The Wizard of Oz that I appreciated. However, as far as storyline goes, I think that it sucked a bit.



The book was so incredibly dark and perverse...Especially the part with the Clock of the Time-Dragon at the beginning...with the one puppet that had a dick at either end of it and the two other puppets attaching themselves onto it (and then after witnessing this, the villagers planned to attack the people that the puppets represented) ...and then the Philosophy Club with the Tiger, Tibbett and that woman.

SPOILERS










Also, there was so much death in the book which I thought really indicated how corrupt the government of Oz was. I don't understand why Gregory Maguire would have let his story be used in a musical format...I thought the point was to sympathize with Elphaba and to mourn her death and betrayal by those that she had been close to. But since she faked her own death in the end and that Glinda and her sang that cringe-worthy song about their friendship, I just felt that it lacked alot of drama and story. I didn't even feel that based on what was shown in the musical, that the character of Elphaba actually seemed complex and interesting.

Fiyero's death was another event that I found should have been in the musical. It served a point of showing how Elphaba got other people involved in her problems.

Overall, I just feel that since the novel had ties to actual political and religious authority figures with lots of power in the world, that the musical should have reflected this more.


Anyways, I guess most people saw the musical and then read the novel after. (I know lots of the preppy, dumb girls in my school were all "omg! like, I wanna read wicked now." and I'm thinking "ohh gawd...as if they'll appreciate it." )

I probably sound extremely biased here. I realize that it must be hard to make a musical out of something so grim but well...Evita wasn't all sunshine and rainbows and it worked. (I've seen Evita live also and I loved it!)

What is everyone else's opinion? Did anyone read the book first and love the musical?

I read the book first, mostly hated the musical, except for the set design. I thought the songs were unmemorable and they took out most of the darkness and the political themes that made the book so good. And a happy ending? WTF? Awful. I think it would have worked as a play, not a musical.

I never saw the musical. And apparently I shouldn't, because I didn't even realize until now there was a 'happy ending.' WTF? There's a sequel, in which the witch is still dead (although, I suppose he could pull the soap-opera trick, since there wasn't a body, but I really hope not). And, near the end of that book, there's the arrival of a character who one review pointed out "might as well be called 'next sequel'. " I read about the musical when it was opening, and I was annoyed that they'd made it a story about the two witches, when the book was most clearly about the one - Glinda was a supporting character, an important one, and perhaps the most we actually saw of any character from the Wizard of Oz except Elphaba herself, but a supporting character.

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I can't even begin to imagine how this book would work on stage. It's so complex and so detailed I just don't know how a musical could do it justice. I think I'll avoid it.