The Age article
"Our aim is not to create a carbon copy of what's already been done elsewhere," she says, even though she works with the original direction by Joe Mantello. "We are creating our own Wicked that draws on the individual gifts of everyone in the cast."
Wicked workers
Magic is brewing at the Regent in front of the curtain and behind it
THE stalls in the Regent Theatre look like the setting for the next NASA space launch. Seating has been disrupted and at least six tables covered with laptops have been set up as rehearsals continue for the $20 million production of the musical Wicked.
"Australia has not seen anything as technically sophisticated as this," says the show's associate director, Lisa Leguillou, who arrived from New York more than a month ago to work on the production.
As she speaks, two dancers dressed as winged monkeys descend on wires from the ceiling, waving their arms and legs as if flying. "That is more thrilling than in New York," says the show's dance supervisor, Mark Myars, who was the dance captain in the Broadway premiere five years ago.
"Only women who are in the ensemble get a chance to do this, because they are lighter than men. We had auditions to see who could fly and not be scared to death," he says.
"It is very high up there," Leguillou adds. The monkeys are part of a political subplot that highlights the fascist tendencies of the ruler of Oz, the Wizard.
Wicked's success around the world has established a parallel universe peopled by characters from the book by Gregory Maguire, first published in 1995 as a prequel to the classic The Wizard of Oz.
The monkeys' flying trick was part of the original show, but the aerobatics in Melbourne extend much further from the stage. Because of the size of the Regent Theatre, a second flying frame has been erected far into the auditorium.
Leguillou and Myars have worked on the staging of productions in Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo and Stuttgart, as well as the first US tour. Another is planned for Amsterdam.
Leguillou says her three-year-old son, who is with her in Australia, is convinced of the existence of flying monkeys and insists on going to bed wearing his monkey gloves. The musical has always been part of his life, but his devotion to it is only a little more extreme than the following it has generated around the world.
The story leaves Dorothy and her companions behind to focus on Elphaba, an outcast who is born green and grows up to be an intellectual activist and, eventually, the Wicked Witch of the West. Glinda, a blonde socialite, becomes her best friend after they meet at college.
The show has won 15 major awards, including a Grammy and three Tonys. It has taken more than $US700 million ($A735 million) in New York alone and current advance sales in the US are worth $40 million. In Melbourne, bookings have already passed $9 million.
The leads here are Amanda Harrison as Elphaba and Lucy Durack as Glinda, the Good Witch. Harrison, 33, who won a Helpmann Award for her part in the Queen musical We Will Rock You, says her character wants fairness and justice for everyone. "She is an idealist who has no problem being green and does not think of herself as an outcast," she says. "She becomes an activist, but the Wizard calls her a terrorist and all of Oz ends up being terrified of her."
Durack, 26, says the show's main theme is the need for tolerance. "Glinda becomes much more tolerant through her friendship with Elphaba, as well as becoming a much stronger person."
The friendship between opposing personalities is a key ingredient of the show's success. "It has cross-generational appeal, but high-school girls make up a big part of the audience," Myars says. "Older people will appreciate the political analogies and those in their 30s will get the humour. Those younger are really drawn to the relationship between the two women who grow to love each other."
He says the show's technical complexity means the actors have a steep learning curve when they leave the rehearsal room and come into the theatre. Harrison admits the amount of "stage business" she has to learn is daunting. "It is all too easy to lose sight of what we've already done in rehearsal," she says.
Myars says of the performers: "If they can do this, they can do anything because it is everyone's biggest show. They are big roles and that, combined with all the technical challenges, means the performers can take on any part in future."
The 35 cast members will use 200 costumes (left) and 96 wigs. The show is a challenge for the creative team, too, Leguillou says. "Our aim is not to create a carbon copy of what's already been done elsewhere," she says, even though she works with the original direction by Joe Mantello. "We are creating our own Wicked that draws on the individual gifts of everyone in the cast."
Previews of Wicked begin on Friday. It opens on July 12.
Source.
Wicked workers
Magic is brewing at the Regent in front of the curtain and behind it
THE stalls in the Regent Theatre look like the setting for the next NASA space launch. Seating has been disrupted and at least six tables covered with laptops have been set up as rehearsals continue for the $20 million production of the musical Wicked.
"Australia has not seen anything as technically sophisticated as this," says the show's associate director, Lisa Leguillou, who arrived from New York more than a month ago to work on the production.
As she speaks, two dancers dressed as winged monkeys descend on wires from the ceiling, waving their arms and legs as if flying. "That is more thrilling than in New York," says the show's dance supervisor, Mark Myars, who was the dance captain in the Broadway premiere five years ago.
"Only women who are in the ensemble get a chance to do this, because they are lighter than men. We had auditions to see who could fly and not be scared to death," he says.
"It is very high up there," Leguillou adds. The monkeys are part of a political subplot that highlights the fascist tendencies of the ruler of Oz, the Wizard.
Wicked's success around the world has established a parallel universe peopled by characters from the book by Gregory Maguire, first published in 1995 as a prequel to the classic The Wizard of Oz.
The monkeys' flying trick was part of the original show, but the aerobatics in Melbourne extend much further from the stage. Because of the size of the Regent Theatre, a second flying frame has been erected far into the auditorium.
Leguillou and Myars have worked on the staging of productions in Chicago, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo and Stuttgart, as well as the first US tour. Another is planned for Amsterdam.
Leguillou says her three-year-old son, who is with her in Australia, is convinced of the existence of flying monkeys and insists on going to bed wearing his monkey gloves. The musical has always been part of his life, but his devotion to it is only a little more extreme than the following it has generated around the world.
The story leaves Dorothy and her companions behind to focus on Elphaba, an outcast who is born green and grows up to be an intellectual activist and, eventually, the Wicked Witch of the West. Glinda, a blonde socialite, becomes her best friend after they meet at college.
The show has won 15 major awards, including a Grammy and three Tonys. It has taken more than $US700 million ($A735 million) in New York alone and current advance sales in the US are worth $40 million. In Melbourne, bookings have already passed $9 million.
The leads here are Amanda Harrison as Elphaba and Lucy Durack as Glinda, the Good Witch. Harrison, 33, who won a Helpmann Award for her part in the Queen musical We Will Rock You, says her character wants fairness and justice for everyone. "She is an idealist who has no problem being green and does not think of herself as an outcast," she says. "She becomes an activist, but the Wizard calls her a terrorist and all of Oz ends up being terrified of her."
Durack, 26, says the show's main theme is the need for tolerance. "Glinda becomes much more tolerant through her friendship with Elphaba, as well as becoming a much stronger person."
The friendship between opposing personalities is a key ingredient of the show's success. "It has cross-generational appeal, but high-school girls make up a big part of the audience," Myars says. "Older people will appreciate the political analogies and those in their 30s will get the humour. Those younger are really drawn to the relationship between the two women who grow to love each other."
He says the show's technical complexity means the actors have a steep learning curve when they leave the rehearsal room and come into the theatre. Harrison admits the amount of "stage business" she has to learn is daunting. "It is all too easy to lose sight of what we've already done in rehearsal," she says.
Myars says of the performers: "If they can do this, they can do anything because it is everyone's biggest show. They are big roles and that, combined with all the technical challenges, means the performers can take on any part in future."
The 35 cast members will use 200 costumes (left) and 96 wigs. The show is a challenge for the creative team, too, Leguillou says. "Our aim is not to create a carbon copy of what's already been done elsewhere," she says, even though she works with the original direction by Joe Mantello. "We are creating our own Wicked that draws on the individual gifts of everyone in the cast."
Previews of Wicked begin on Friday. It opens on July 12.
Source.