Rolling into Norfolk This Wednesday

The Broadway musical Wicked opens its doors Wednesday at teh Chrysler Hall, running for three weeks. The top Broadway national tour in the nation will hopefully see a growth spurt in the theatre’s ticket sales as the play has been selling out across the nation. “It’s a phenomenal economic impact. We estimate about $4.5 million, which ranks up there with Lion King about four years ago and a little bit before that was Phantom,” Steve Harper tells the WVEC.com, the assistant director of the arts and entertainment for the CIty of Norfolk. “It does everything. I mean, our waiters and our waitresses rely on tips. (It) creates a lot of money for Granby Street. THey pump it right back into the street when they get off work. They pump it into the mall. I mean, it’s a good thing for the city and we need something like that right now,” 456 Fish manager Johnny Mallozzi commented. The city’s restaurants, major promoters and more are all highlighting their greatest assests when the show rolls into town, so make sure that you’re the first one there before it closes with a pair of Wicked tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 14, 2009 - Post a comment

Wicked Makes Theatre Number One

Though the top rank was taken from them for just a few weeks, the Gershwin Theatre regained their number one position this week as the number one venue ranking for the week ending in Sunday, May 10th. According to TicketNews’ exclusive ranking systems, it was a close race with all the NBA and NHL playoffs that are happening this week, but the Gershwin Theatre took the gold due to one slight factor - Wicked. The Broadway hit musical that has been touring the nation helped take the Gershwin Theatre to the lead in both TicketNews’s Top Broadway Events and Top Theatre Events, with a score of 2.99. 

TicketNews Exclusive Rankings and Power Scores are based on ticket sales for venues from the TicketNetwork Exchange™, the world’s largest secondary market exchange. A Power Score illustrates a given venue’s category-specific significance. Two factors are used to calculate a power score: total ticket sales for a venue, and total ticket sales within the category. As such, power scores should only be used to compare venues within a particular category. If you want to see the show at the number one theatre this week get Wicked tickets today. 

 

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 13, 2009 - Post a comment

Omaha’s Strength in Introducing Wicked

“It’s like a colony of ants, carefully choreographed,” James P. “Buck” Weyerman says to the Omaha Wolrd Herlad, the next lucky recepients of the national tour; Weyerman began as a dock stagehand in the mid ’80s and is now production manager for the Omaha Performing Arts Center, where for the past few days have been preparing for the world’s latest and greatest national tour - Wicked. 86 laborers together opening up over a dozen semitrailer trucks that are filled with enough equipement to transform the Orpheum into the story of the two witches of Oz - now only 36 hours separates the crew from the paying patrons, with expected number running over 75,000 in total during its four week run. Weyerman has the planning down to a “T,” with marked grids with over 80 overhead rigging points and a removable orchestra pit that allows for a wide and more expansive workplace. “It’s a heavy show, Buck,” one stagehand says to his boss. “Lotta weight.” With all the mood lighting and the extra contraptions that have made this play one of the most magical of the era, it’s no wonder that all this extra stuff would cost, and weigh, a lot. The stage is set and tomorrow is opening day, so make sure if you’re in the area that you have Wicked tickets now!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 12, 2009 - Post a comment

Greensville to Welcome Wicked

Becoming a top regional peforming arts center, Greenville is hosting the Tony Award winning show “Wicked” at the Peace Center for their 2009-2010 season. The Already the Greenville newspapers are confident that the Stephen Schwartz play will sell out tickets even with the recession at hand, as the Wicked national tour has made its round successfully thorughout its years on tour. The show arrives January 27th and will run until Valentines Day, 2010, which is a longer than normal run for national tours. The Peace Center is hoping that this nationally attractive play will catch the attention of many in the area, along with their heavy set of Broadway treats like “Chicago,” and “Spring Awakening.” Though Wicked tickets won’t be available for the show until October 3rd, the show that has brought many to the theatre, to tears, to laughs and so much more can be seen throughout the country now as Wicked is traveling around until it’s premiere in Greensville. Still, as fans of the show anxiously await the arrival of the play, they are bound to catch the hooks of “Wicked” tunes like “popular” and “Defying Gravity,” among others - so be part of the magic this Peace Center season and get your tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 11, 2009 - Post a comment

UK’s New Stars Beginning May 11

Celebrating 100 performances, Wicked is currently bringing aboard Sam Kelly as The Wizard and Natalie Anderson as Nessarose starting May 11, 2009, as well as welcoming back Alexia Khadime as Elphaba for the UK performance.  Kelly is one of the UKs’s most beloved actor, according to Broadwayworld.com, and has been featured on several television shows. The new contract extenstion has also brought along Dianne Pilkington (Glinda), Oliver Tompsett (Fiyero), Harret Thorpe (Madame Morrible), Ashleigh Gray (Elphaba standby) and Sarah Earnshaw (Glinda standby). The play opened at London’s Apollo Victoria Theatre in September 2006 and has raked in £70 million to a total of 2 million people. The show is running in North American (4 productions), Japan, Germany and Australia. From Monday 11 May 2009, WICKED stars Alexia Khadime (Elphaba), Dianne Pilkington(Glinda), Oliver Tompsett (Fiyero), Sam Kelly (The Wizard), harriet thorpe (Madame Morrible), Natalie Anderson (Nessarose), Alex Jessop (Boq), David Stoller (Doctor Dillamond), Ashleigh Gray (Standby for Elphaba) and Sarah Earnshaw (Standby for Glinda).  There is bound to be great adventurs no matter where you see this play with your own Wicked tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 8, 2009 - Post a comment

“Wicked” Fun Even The Second Time Around

Enjoy a review from GoLondon from an author who enjoy “Wicked” when it first opened then compared her experience to the show today: 

When I first saw Wicked in 2006 I was stunned by the following the show already had from its Broadway success. With an incredible merchandising promotion, Wicked T-shirts were worn by half the audience and most sang along to the songs.

In 2009, the hysteria has died down but three years on and over 1,000 performances already means Wicked is still a major West End theater success.

 

Wicked is musical theater at its best: a dazzling stage set, superb costumes, with an extremely talented cast.

 

When you arrive at the Apollo Victoria Theatre you will make your way through the theater foyer with its green glow. Tickets are scanned and not torn so it’s speeding seating in this large art deco London theater. Once seated I bet the first thing you spot is that enormous mechanical dragon above the stage. And when the show starts flying monkeys appear from everywhere and the dragon starts roaring. But that’s about as frightening as it gets so don’t worry, you can bring the kids. Wicked is recommended for all over 9 years old and that sounds about right as any younger I think they’d be frightened or bored as this is actually adult musical theater that the children are welcome to enjoy too.

 

As in the film The Wizard of Oz, Glinda (later the Good Witch) is English and Elphaba (later the Wicked Witch) is American. The whole production feel very American but heh, it is.

 

 

Photo credit: Tristam Kenton

The highlights for me were the costumes which are outstanding, and the end of the first half where Elphaba appears to be flying wearing a huge cloak with dramatic lighting. The weak point for me was Kerry Ellis as Elphaba putting on a real nasally New Yorker accent. It sort of hurt my inner ear, if you know what I mean. Speaking of accents, the Wizard (Desmond Barrit) didn’t seem to have his accent under control.

 

As before, I lost track of time during the performance and that’s not like me so this must be good. I was completely immersed in the story as were the people in front of me who even stopped Twittering on their iPhones long enough to watch the show.

 

This is cult theater and will appeal to Harry Potter fans of wizards of witches and all who enjoy losing themselves in musical theater for a few hours.

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 7, 2009 - Post a comment

Win The Lottery

Here’s how the Wicked lottery works: Two and a half hours before the Wicked nightly performance opens, the Times - Union Center for the Performing Arts offers up a basket to put one’s name in it - after about thirty minutes, they lock up their doors again, draw names and those lucky enough to have their names drawn had the opportunity to purchase one or two tickets for $25 each in the twenty seats of the first two rows, which normally are $80 to $132. For those lucky enough to stick around after the drawing and had already picked up a wristband from their attempt to win the lottery earlier that day sometimes have the change to get balcony tickets at a discounted prices ($35 plus $3 charges), but that only happens every once in a while. Though Wicked tickets always seem to sell out just as quickly as they go on sale, there is always a lucky chance that you may get to see the special feature, espeically when you’re dealing with StubHub, so don’t hesitate about trying out new things! With a great show like Wicked, which has won several Tony Awards over the years, there should never be a missed opportunity when picking up tickets to see this award winning show!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 6, 2009 - Post a comment

Kentucky’s Payment Plan

Get ready people, because the Kentucky Center for the Arts in Louisville, Kentucky is gearing up for their upcoming season and is ready to sell out like never before. “‘Wicked is usually sold out at the beginning, before the show even opens, but we noticed it was more walk up buisness and people trickling in a little later [this year],” Matt Porter said to the WLKY.com. So unlike previous years, the center is offering up something brand new to manage the recession and economic downturn - a payment plan. For the 2009 - 2010 season, “for people purchasing in the next month to six weeks, there’s a three month payment plan so people have the option of not paying all at once.” Broadway Across America is offering up a special return of the infamous witches in ‘Wicked’ this May at the theatre and season ticket holders, those who hold tickets to see the five shows of the season (”A Chorus Line,” “Irving Berlin’s White Christmas,” a spoof of “Alfred Hitchcock’s 39 Steps,” “Legally Blonde The Musical” and “Jersey Boys”) can pay a fraction of the New York Broadway prices. See how Wicked tickets do this year with your own for the Kentucky Center of the Arts!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 5, 2009 - Post a comment

Wicked’s Omaha Adventure

Wicked opens Wednesday at the Orpheum Theater in Omaha, and everyone in town is talking about it. Even Glinda the Good Witch, also known as Katie Rose Clarke, who recently graduate from the Sam Houston Stative college in her native Texas, says that starring in the Tony Award winning musical is a dream come true to the Journal Star. “When it came out, I never imagined that someday I would be playing the role of Glinda. I remember I was really taken by the music and story. I knew I loved it,” she said during promotions for the show. While Clarke was still in school the show debuted and now she takes on the role of Glinda, the Good Witch who is always sparkly, positive and popular. “She was, of course, beautiful,” Clarke says about her character. “Everybody loves her.” But she would surprise many when she reveals that it wouldn’t be so bad to take on the task of green one day - “I love my role, [but] it woudl be fun to do the green witch once. I’m not sure I could sing it.” 

Stephen Schwartz wrote the music and lyrics with book help from Winnie Holzman to turn Gregory Maguire’s best selling novel from 1995 to the Broadway stage. The story follows two witches in school as they eventually become Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West in the unlikely partnership they form while sharing a dorm room. It’s a great play that deserves all the acclaim, so grab some Wicked tickets today!

Permalink - Posted in Uncategorized on May 4, 2009 - Post a comment


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