NATIONAL WICKED DAY

National WICKED Day on October 30 honors one of Broadway's longest running musicals known as WICKED. Millions of theatre fans from around the world are celebrating today as the day the musical WICKED premiered on Broadway.

#NationalWICKEDDay

The musical WICKED made its debut at the Gershwin Theatre on Broadway on October 30, 2003. Since opening, WICKED has been performed nearly 8,000 times and seen by over 50 million people. In fact, it has also been translated into six different languages and is the 4th longest running musical on Broadway. Today, we celebrate the legacy of WICKED being one of the most successful musicals on Broadway.

WICKED BEGINNINGS

Every great Broadway production begins with a great writer and WICKED is no exception. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West was written in 1995 by Gregory Maguire. It is the first of four books in The Wicked Years series written by Maguire. The story is based on L. Frank Baum's The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and follows the life of the Wicked Witch of the West. The storyline in the Wicked series focuses on the unlikely friendship that forms between Elphaba and Galinda until the world decides to call one “good” and the other “wicked.”

The Wicked Years Series

Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (published 1995)
Son of a Witch (published 2005)
A Lion Among Men (published 2008)
Out of Oz (published 2011)

In 2003, WICKED was adapted into a Broadway musical. Since then, it has won over 100 international awards, including three Tony Awards and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album. Notable WICKED alumni include Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth, Joel Grey, Megan Hilty, Stephanie J. Block, Annaleigh Ashford, Taye Diggs, and more.

Every night when the curtains rise, the cast of WICKED delivers a jaw dropping performance. In one single night, the cast will wear 269 costumes and change 238 different times before the last scene.

FAST FACTS ABOUT WICKED

To pay homage to L. Frank Baum, Maguire formulated the name "Elphaba" from the pronunciation of his initials — "L.F.B."
After the opening number, the ensemble members make a 30-second quick-change into their Shiz University costumes, all while singing and watching the backstage conductor monitors.
WICKED is seen by more people each week than any other show, making it Broadway’s most popular musical, partially due to the fact that the Gershwin Theatre is the biggest theatre on Broadway. The theatre is a full city block with 1,926 seats!
It takes over 125 company members to run the WICKED backstage. In fact, the show requires 50-75 front of house staff and dozens more at off-site offices.
Elphaba's look is one of the most well-known on Broadway. Her elaborate costumes include an Act II dress made up of 37 different fabrics and 600-feet of ribbon that weighs 8-10 pounds. As for her famous green skin, it only takes 15-20 minutes to "greenify" Elphaba using water-activated makeup, grease paint sticks, and a waterproof setting powder. Alternatively, it only takes roughly 10 minutes to remove.
To create the iconic onstage fog, WICKED uses 500 pounds of dry ice per performance and goes through 16 barrels of dry ice per week.

6 WAYS TO HAVE A WICKED CELEBRATION

How do you celebrate National WICKED Day? Check out 5 ideas on how to get in the spirit below.

Read The Wicked Years series by Gregory Maguire.
Purchase, stream, and sing along to the Grammy Award-winning Original Broadway Cast Recording.
Learn about the history of WICKED and how it became a world phenomenon.
Go Behind the Emerald Curtain with a behind-the-scenes look that explores the inner workings of bringing WICKED to life 8 times a week.
Attend the WICKED musical anniversary weekend performances October 29 and 30 to participate in giveaways, special performances, and celebrity appearances.
Share your WICKED memories and photos on social media and tag #NationaWICKEDDay.