'Wicked', the movie adaptation of the musical show, debuted in UK cinemas from 22nd of November, three years after its initial announcement. It stars renowned singer Ariana Grande as Glinda (the good witch) and double-award-winning actress and singer, Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba.
Having a star-studded cast and three years in the making, Wicked had to prove to be worth the long wait.
Ariana Grande being such a prominent artist in the singing world has meant she has garnered one of the largest fanbases in her industry. Mixed reviews can be expected from Ariana's huge fanbase who are not necessarily likely to be familiar with the genre of musical theatre. Hence, Wicked has a bigger task to cater for a diversifying audience as well as retaining their ready-and-waiting musical theatre loyalists.
For someone who does not have a lot of knowledge of musical theatre and is not overly familiar with many musicals, I found this movie adaptation thoroughly enjoyable, surprisingly moving, funny in a quaint sort of way and awe-inspiring in terms of its soundtrack. I will be looking forward to part 2, coming out in November 2025, knowing that I won't be disappointed if part 1 is anything to go by!
In the lead up to its debut in the UK, the press tour, mainly starring Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, and occasionally Jonathan Bailey, had received some discourse on social media surrounding clips from the press tour interviews. See, Erivo and Grande, had developed a tendency to cry during multiple interviews, which struck confusion for many viewers. For them, it didn't seem abundantly clear what was so overwhelmingly euphoric or disturbingly melancholic about the situation to induce tears.
Having now seen the movie, I can more clearly understand why they may be feeling such surges of emotion. Watching the strong vocal abilities of Erivo particularly moved me; she exudes passion with her voice, body and facial expression did in fact, almost bring me to tears in the movie theatre. For the actors, the time spent on set together, the emotions of pride, relief, gratitude, joy and sadness of their experience coming to an end must also have a large part to play and help to explain the seemingly excessive emotional reaction seen in the interviews.
Nevertheless, emotional reactions should not be scorned; this kind of vulnerability is often stigmatised on social media and therefore seen less and less, where it should be protected and encouraged instead.
