Kerry Ellis now London Wicked’s Elphaba

 

 

Kerry Ellis, the popular English stage performer, is taking over Idina Menzel’s role as Elphaba in teh London production of teh musical Wicked, BroadwayWorld.com reported on December 20. The prinicpal cast is, then, Kerry Ellis as Elphaba, Helen Dallimore as Glinda, Adam Garcia as Fiyero, Miriam Margolyes as Madame Morrible, Nigel Planer as The Wizard, Martin Ball as Doctor Dillamond, James Gillan as Boq and Katie Rowley Jones as Nessarose. Read BroadwayWorld’s full article here.

Ellis’s credits include understudy work as Eliza Dolittle in My Fair Lady, Magic of the Musicals, and Merrily We Roll Along; her previous work has been impressive, but this role as Elphaba is tuned to be her breakout opportunity, given Wicked’s huge popularity and the potential for superstardom attendent to its leads.

A clipping from Martin Ball’s online diary on MySpace describes Ellis’s first attempt in the Wicked musical’s role as Elphaba: “Kerry is a wonderful Elphaba, with a beautiful, beautiful voice and a lovely quality on stage. As I watched (and heard!) her triumphant reception at the curtain call I felt a delicious feeling of anticipation: come New Year I’ll get to play this show with her for six and a half months! I am very pleased to be able to report that Wicked is in the best possible hands next year.” The backstory on this first appearance is supercharged backstage drama, and I suggest you give it a peek. It demonstrate’s Ms. Ellis’s ability to operate well under themost strenuous circumstances, which is a skill she’ll certainly need in the lead of London’s Wicked musical.

The changing of the green guard will take place with the changing of the year, on January 1st, and while many fans will surely be disappointed to see Idina Menzel leave the role that brought so many to London’s Apollo Victoria only as recently as this past September, they’re certainly in for a treat with Ellis under the Anarchist Elphaba’s green cape, needle-sharp hat, and burden of musical misanthropy.

Tickets for the American production (touring shows as well as permanent city productions) are available on StubHub’s Wicked tickets forum.

Posted in Uncategorized on December 23, 2006

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