Obligatory Wicked post. Deal.
On Thursday, my family went to see Wicked. OH MAN, it was freaking awesome. It's up there with Ragtime and Into the Woods for me. Now, I know that some purists may have at me for saying this...I listen to the original Broadway soundtrack, and I've seen videos, and I really do like Idina and Kristin a lot. But...I <3 Shoshana and Megan, big time. I'd like to share some bootleg videos with you. But be forewarned, they ARE from cellphone cameras, so quality and cameramanship is obviously not the greatest. But it's the only way to get my Shoshana and Megan fix. Click on the pictures for the fun!
Defying Gravity (the big number at the end of the first act...and how)
Popular (Megan is so hilariously over the top...this song is so great)
Hahaha... "BALLGOWN!"
I also have a shorter version of Defying Gravity (just the end bit), but it's slightly higher quality. The musical certainly had some very funny moments, but also its share of tear-jerking moments. One of the saddest parts (no real spoilers) for me was in the third song, that Elphaba (who eventually becomes the Wicked Witch of the West) sings in regards to her excitement about the possibility of becoming the Wizard's magical-type assistant. Having been ostracised by her peers for being green, she's excited about the prospect of being accepted by everyone if she's able to work with the Wizard. And near the end of the song - The Wizard and I - she sings:
Unlimited
My future is unlimited
And I've just had a vision
Almost like a prophecy
I know - it sounds truly crazy
And true, the vision's hazy
But I swear, someday there'll be
A celebration throughout Oz
That's all to do with me!
...and anyone who's seen the musical (and/or the film The Wizard of Oz) knows that there is indeed a celebration in Oz in the end to do with her, but not quite the way she would've expected. It still makes me sad when I hear it. Also, the music for the lines "Unlimited, My future is unlimited..." is almost tear-jerking for me too. Don't know quite what it is though. The songs "I'm Not That Girl", "For Good", "Defying Gravity", and "As Long as You're Mine" are good in the tugging-at-heartstrings department, though "Popular", "This Feeling", "Dancing Through Life", etc, are hilarious to balance it.
Ah, what a great musical. I loved it.
As a side note, after getting dinner, the family stopped into a candy store, and I bought $15 worth of jelly beans for myself. They're going in the awesome Jelly Belly candy machine that Bianca got for me. I also got a tin of mints, and the tin is shaped and painted to look like an NES controller. It's the coolest thing ever.
Sigh. I wish I could sing like Brian Stokes Mitchell.
Defying Gravity (the big number at the end of the first act...and how)
Popular (Megan is so hilariously over the top...this song is so great)
Hahaha... "BALLGOWN!"
I also have a shorter version of Defying Gravity (just the end bit), but it's slightly higher quality. The musical certainly had some very funny moments, but also its share of tear-jerking moments. One of the saddest parts (no real spoilers) for me was in the third song, that Elphaba (who eventually becomes the Wicked Witch of the West) sings in regards to her excitement about the possibility of becoming the Wizard's magical-type assistant. Having been ostracised by her peers for being green, she's excited about the prospect of being accepted by everyone if she's able to work with the Wizard. And near the end of the song - The Wizard and I - she sings:
Unlimited
My future is unlimited
And I've just had a vision
Almost like a prophecy
I know - it sounds truly crazy
And true, the vision's hazy
But I swear, someday there'll be
A celebration throughout Oz
That's all to do with me!
...and anyone who's seen the musical (and/or the film The Wizard of Oz) knows that there is indeed a celebration in Oz in the end to do with her, but not quite the way she would've expected. It still makes me sad when I hear it. Also, the music for the lines "Unlimited, My future is unlimited..." is almost tear-jerking for me too. Don't know quite what it is though. The songs "I'm Not That Girl", "For Good", "Defying Gravity", and "As Long as You're Mine" are good in the tugging-at-heartstrings department, though "Popular", "This Feeling", "Dancing Through Life", etc, are hilarious to balance it.
Ah, what a great musical. I loved it.
As a side note, after getting dinner, the family stopped into a candy store, and I bought $15 worth of jelly beans for myself. They're going in the awesome Jelly Belly candy machine that Bianca got for me. I also got a tin of mints, and the tin is shaped and painted to look like an NES controller. It's the coolest thing ever.
Sigh. I wish I could sing like Brian Stokes Mitchell.