In what might be the musical equivalent of tailgating, “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” took what could have been a run-of-the-mill moment of corporate synergy, added a 37-piece orchestra and said “It’s time to have feelings!”
The cynical might have thought the NBC special – littered with “Wicked”-themed commercials that sold everything from Lexus cars to body wash – had too much marketing and self-congratulating to be taken seriously, but those people are haters.
Who among us wouldn’t revel in celebrating (and celebrating and celebrating) a phenomenon like the one that has followed “Wicked” for almost a year? Let the people enjoy – even the random ones in the audience who covered their faces in poorly-applied green paint like they were cosplaying a beer-bellied brute at an NFL game. (The crowd costumes really should have been an all-or-no-one situation.)
What “Wicked: One Wonderful Night” did the best was, of course, the music. Many cast members from the two John M. Chu-directed movies took the stage, as did the original Glinda and Elphaba, Kristen Chenoweth and Idina Menzel, who joined stars Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in a special rendition of “For Good” from the Gershwin Theater.
This was both a frustrating move and a welcomed one. The former because we all really just wanted to hear the whole song from Erivo and Grande as Oz intended; the latter because, well, it was amazing.
Stephen Schwartz accompanied the quartet in an arrangement that both honored the original and let Erivo and Grande make it their own.
Grande wasn’t only one whose mouth was twisting with overwhelming emotion during the song, which prompted at least one person to text her best friends that she loved them so much.
If good things come to those who wait, as some people say, maybe even better things come to those who wait longer. “Wicked: For Good,” consider me ready.
Thankfully, the wait is almost over. “Wicked: For Good” soars into theaters on November 21.
Last year’s “Wicked” became the highest-grossing film based on a Broadway musical, and it earned 10 Oscar nominations, including best picture. Grande and Erivo also scored acting nominations. The film won two statues – one for best achievement in production design and one for costume design.
“Wicked: One Wonderful Night” will be available to stream on Peacock tomorrow.
