Nearly two weeks ago, I saw the Benedum’s production of Wicked.  Now that I have time, I want to reflect on the importance of the story and its themes.

I am not ashamed to admit that I did not finish this novel.  It’s terribly hard to get through and parts of it are fairly inappropriate.  The musical, however, takes what the novel could not produce and improves it by about ten thousand times.  Not only is the story better, but the music, sets, lighting, and costumes provide a theatrical experience unlike many others.

Speaking as a teenage girl for a moment, I’d also like to point out that Elphaba’s plot is extremely relatable.  While I have never met anyone that was green in coloring, I myself have been privy to the “I’m not that girl” story line.  It is often, I’m sure, that a girl feels that she does not have worth because a boy chooses to notice her pretty, more popular “frenemy”.  While the ending in real life does not always concern the winning of said boy’s heart, the songs “I’m Not that Girl” and “I’m not that Girl, Reprise” have provided a beautiful lyrical expression of lament. Likewise, the friendship that evolves between Glinda and Elphaba provides another realistic storyline, or, at the very least, one that can teach us all something about judging others.  While both girls are guilty of assumptions based on few encounters, their eventual friendship lends itself to the idea of getting to know another.  As a very wise person once said, “prejudice is just ignorance”.

Of course, Glinda and Elphaba must part ways at the end of the story, but they leave with a beautiful song in the form of “For Good”.  That song stands alone in its meaning just through its lyrics:

I’ve heard it said that people come into our lives for a reason

Bringing something we must learn and we are led to those

Who help us most to grow if we let them and we help them in return…

Who can say if I’ve been changed for the better?  But Because I knew you

I have been changed for good.

The song reminds us all that everything we do on this planet is done for some sort of reason, whether that reason is clear to us at the time or not.  Likewise, the importance of others in our lives is also exposed, showing that every encounter changes us for good- whether that change is for the better or for the worse.

Thematically, Wicked provides a powerful message about the dangers of focusing solely on external beauty.  While Glinda the Good is beautiful in her outward appearance, she does have her fair share of ugly moments of the heart.  The same is true for Elphaba, though her physical features tend to leave more to examination.  Though green in visage, her kind heart and love for animals typically contradicts any proclamation of “wickedness”.  The old cliche “you can’t judge a book by its cover” plays a large role in the meaning of this work.

The amount of important content in Wicked spans far beyond the couple points that I have covered here.  The only sentiment that I think can express how much this musical says can be summed up thusly:  Go see it.