Review: Flawless production of 'Wicked' centers on age-old themes of good, evil

Before the little Kansas girl in the gingham dress got caught up in a tornado and landed on a witch, there was a lot of drama in the merry old land of Oz.

“Wicked,” the smash musical now on stage at Kravis Center through April 9, details the origin stories of the other characters in “The Wizard of Oz”: the Scarecrow, the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, the Wicked Witch of the East — the one pancaked by Dorothy’s farmhouse — and mainly Glinda, the Good Witch, and Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West.

Based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 book of the same name, “Wicked” opened on Broadway in 2003 and never left. With music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Winnie Holzman, “Wicked” is beloved by its legions of fans — don’t be surprised to see audience members decked out in green, wearing costumes in homage of the main characters, and singing along and mouthing dialogue. “Wicked” isn’t just a show, it’s an event.

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The plot follows Glinda (Jennafer Newberry) and Elphaba (Lissa DeGuzman), who meet at college and become unwilling roommates and unlikely friends. Glinda is popular, shallow, and blonde; Elphaba is smart, spirited, and green. The two initially loathe each other for those qualities, but after Glinda pulls a prank that results in Elphaba making Glinda’s wish come true, Glinda sees her strange roomie in a new light and they become inseparable, until a visit to the Wizard turns Elphaba into a fugitive and changes the course of their lives.

But beyond the clever plot, the imaginative deep dive into a story we thought we knew so well, “Wicked” also manages to be both topical and timeless, an examination of our understanding of good and evil, and how those definitions are not black and white, but lie within the gray area in between.

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The production is flawless. This is a finely honed, expertly crafted machine of a show, and every song, every design element, every performance, is perfection.

Newberry and DeGuzman have great chemistry and sound amazing together on their duets, such as the perky “Popular” and the achingly moving “For Good.”

As Glinda, Newberry has the showier role and wrings hilarity out of her dialogue. But DeGuzman is a powerhouse. Whether lamenting that the handsome new student won’t see her as anything but the green outcast on “I’m Not That Girl,” or looking toward a bright future and fulfilling her potential on “The Wizard and I,” or literally soaring to new heights on the show’s signature song “Defying Gravity," DeGuzman portrays Elphaba’s many facets with spunk and poignancy.

“Wicked” is a musical that everyone should see at least once, though it warrants repeat viewings. Because watching a witch defy gravity and seeing the good in what we once believed to be wicked never gets old.

If You Go

“Wicked” runs through April 9, at the Kravis Center, 701 Okeechobee Blvd., West Palm Beach.

For tickets and more information, call 561-832-7469 or visit Kravis.org