“Wicked: For Good”: Revenge of the Shiz

Glinda lays her head on Elphaba's shoulder as they sit smiling in a peaceful meadow.

Down the witches’ road, one last time…until Universal decides this should be a prequel trilogy.

The best thing I can say about Wicked: For Good is how heartening it was to confirm that communal experiences can still happen if we want them. Our showing was the most crowded Tuesday night I’ve witnessed in months, and certainly the most responsive, at two points in particular. One was the film’s funniest scene — a wacky slapfight that garnered loads of laughter and audience backtalk, maybe because it was the only scene with that kind of spark — and the other was, as a Wicked fan would expect, the tender BFF-breakup duet “For Good”. I can’t remember the last time I heard that many people crying and sniffling at the same time.

Its box office grosses certainly reflect a tsunamic response from the public at large. I’m glad so many people have enjoyed quality time out of the house and away from their phones, maybe even the lady with super-sized elbows who sat next to me and only dug her phone out of her purse twice to check the time. I like to think that’s far fewer times than she’d normally check her phone if she were bored. Good on her for showing self-restraint! Anyway, here came headlines trumpeting, “CINEMA IS BACK, BABY!”

If you were among the millions of Americans who super-loved it, gave it an 11/10, and won’t shut up about it for the next month or two, enjoy your convos with other fans in your usual social spaces, you’re free to go and we’ll see you the next time Google brings you to my virtual hobby-shack’s tiny doorstep. Cheers! Have a nice day! Yay Elphaba!

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“Wicked: Part I”: Down the Witches’ Road

Off-center mirror reflecting Galinda and Elphaba being friendly.

Emerald and Ivory, sing together in perfect harmony…

Previously on Midlife Crisis Crossover: our family has traveled to New York City twice and caught a genuine Broadway show each time. In 2011 a Minskoff Theatre matinee of The Lion King overwhelmed us with the big, big, BIG differences between plays performed at your rather capable local theater versus the big-budget pageantry of Actual Broadway™. In 2016 we bypassed Disney’s ongoing Broadway domination in favor of the equally tourist-magnetic Wicked at the Gershwin Theatre. We went in with no preconceptions or spoilers, knowing the basic premise but having never heard a single note of it. Years after the original cast’s departure, songs such as “The Wizard and I”, “Popular”, and “Defying Gravity” were a powerful revelation to hear for the first time. After it ended, I kinda didn’t wanna leave and I was the only male waiting in the long line at the merchandise stand.

One drawback to the latter experience: our seats were not up close. When Anne bought our advance tickets, she was pretty certain we’d be somewhere in the middle. In reality, the Gershwin had a tremendous middle. The wall-to-wall sound system ensured every note would carry to one and all, and we were wowed by the sets, the visual effects, the sweeping gestures and the broader emotions. From our vantage, though, faces and expressions were inscrutable dots — even the Wizard himself, played at the time by TV’s Peter Scolari, the only cast member we knew. We were so far from the stage that I had absolutely no idea Elphaba was wearing glasses until another character mentioned them. That afternoon remains an unforgettable milestone for us, but we weren’t affluent enough to afford the perfect experience.

For anyone who won’t be traveling to Manhattan anytime soon, or for anyone who’d love an encore with off-Broadway perks, Universal Pictures has just the prerecorded roadshow version for me and you! From Jon M. Chu — the director of such musicals as the stage-to-screen adaptation of In the Heights as well as the last G.I. Joe movie that’ll probably ever be made in my lifetime — comes the latest rendition of Gregory Maguire’s alt-timeline branch of L. Frank Baum’s public-domain Oz Expanded Universe, the novel-to-stage-to-screen partial adaptation Wicked: Part I. At 160 minutes long it’s only five minutes shorter than the entire Broadway production and its 15-minute intermission, but it only covers Act One and the intermission will be at least a year long. Thankfully attendees are permitted to leave the cinema and continue leading our lives while we’re waiting for Act Two to commence, though it’s a total ripoff that we’ll have to buy whole new tickets before we can return to our seats.

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Past Time for “Bad Times at the El Royale”

El Royale!

The Don. The Dude. The Diva.

For some reason I had a heck of a time trying to keep the name of Bad Times at the El Royale straight my head. On the way to the theater, I had to keep reminding myself it wasn’t called Bad Times at the El Diablo. Then I stepped up to the cashier and asked for tickets to Bad Times at the El Dorado. Before setting up this entry, I had to double-check and remind myself it also wasn’t Bad Times at the El Rodeo, though that might make an intriguing sequel in which the survivors step fully into California for an upper-class shopping trip that goes horribly awry.

Until that worthy successor to this very entertaining film arrives, it’s El Royale all the way. El Royale, El Royale El Royale. I think I’ve got it now.

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