On Wicked

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I think I’m one of the few people who hasn’t seen the Wicked stage musical and until a few weekends ago, the movie. I had a general idea of what it was about though, and I love musicals, so I had a feeling I would like it.

I was not wrong. For being written so long ago, it’s incredible how timely the themes of the movie are: racism, ableism, the pursuit of power, the lengths we’ll go to be “popular”. Without spoiling too much, there’s a point in the movie where the Wizard (played by Jeff Goldblum) says (paraphrased) “nothing brings people together like a common enemy”. I mean, damn.

In the movie/musical, Elphaba (the “wicked” witch) has a disabled sister named Nessa. In the musical as I understand it, this part was usually played by a non-disabled female actor. But for the movie they chose to actually hire a disabled female actor—something that needs to be done way more often.

The way Nessa is treated in the film was really interesting to me. Wicked definitely explores the theme of ableism: Nessa is called “tragically beautiful”, Elphaba says it’s her fault that Nessa was “born that way” and it’s said with pity, Nessa assumes her classmate Boq only asked her on a date because he took pity on her for being disabled (in truth, it’s because Galinda-the “good” witch he’s in love with—tells him he should). But when it comes to her father and a lot of the people at their university, Nessa is treated with far greater care than her older sister, Elphaba who is teased and shunned. Depending on how you look at it though, it could be that people just treat Nessa with kid gloves more because she’s disabled (more exploration of ableism there).

I definitely saw some of my experience in Nessa but I actually saw far more in Elphaba’s experience. She falls for the handsome, shallow-but-not-so-shallow Prince (played by the immensely handsome and talented Jonathan Bailey) who clearly has feelings for her too but ultimately chooses Galinda because she’s the type of person he’s supposed to be with—the societally approved “pretty” and “popular” one. Elphaba sings a song called “I’m Not That Girl” where she expresses her belief that she’s not the girl that princes choose, a theme that very much resonated with my own experience and views. Elphaba is seen as “different” because of her green skin and she grows up being told and treated like she’s weird or undesirable. My disability and my limp made me feel the same. I saw non-disabled girl after non-disabled girl get hit on, get dates, have a line of people who desired them while I didn’t. That’s not to say it never happened, but it was certainly at a much lower rate. I was more often than not rejected by people I liked too because I didn’t fit the mold of what’s “normal”. I’ve definitely never felt like “that girl”.

I will never be able to understand what it’s like to have different colored skin and all that comes with, but I still felt and saw a lot of what I’ve gone through in Elphaba’s story. From walking in to a room and everyone staring at you (not in a positive way) to being made fun of for my weight, my hair, my bra cup size, or my limp, it’s all been there in one way or another.

The animal portion of the story was something that took me by surprise. It’s the one part of the musical I hadn’t heard about. But it struck me as another major metaphor for what’s going on right now. The talking animals being caged and forced not to talk or be who they are is just like what’s happening to people all over the U.S. right now. The Wizard isn’t just trying to create a common enemy like the orange man is, he’s also trying to get rid of something that doesn’t make sense to people or makes them uncomfortable, just like the orange man is. He’s also trying to exert power over whoever he can and distract people from the fact that he actually has no power as a Wizard (sounds very familiar).

This is only Part 1 with Part 2 still to come, but in the end of the movie, I didn’t see Elphaba’s change to being “Wicked. Instead, she’s pushed so far and misled and mistreated so much that she finally wants to start accepting herself. She’s tired of trying to get people to love and accept her, only to have them let her down. People might see her wanting to “fly solo” as sad and isolationist, but I see it as being empowered instead. She’s not going to live by anyone else’s rules anymore or stretch herself to fit some unrealistic ideal. Whereas Galinda chooses to stay with what’s comfortable and her need to be liked and admired (which she’s ultimately rewarded for based on how things turn out in the Wizard of Oz).

It’s really a super enjoyable musical, one I have a feeling I’ll be watching again. Cynthia Erivo is just a massive talent. Ariana Grande has never been my favorite but she does a great job too. Just be prepared to have Defying Gravity in your head for at least a week 😂

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