Composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz discovered Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West while on vacation and saw its potential for a … See more

^Note: "The Wicked Witch of the East" is the only major piece not to be featured on the cast recording, as the producers felt "the song included … See more

Music analysis
The score of Wicked is heavily thematic, bearing in some senses more resemblance to an opera than a traditional musical score. While many musical scores employ new motifs and melodies for each song with little … See more

Awards and nominations
The original Broadway production of Wicked was nominated for ten Tony Awards in … See more

Act One
The citizens of the Land of Oz are celebrating the death of the Wicked Witch of the West. Glinda the Good then appears and tells the wicked witch's backstory: her mother had an affair with a traveling salesman … See more

Original casts
Notable replacements
Broadway (2003–)
• Elphaba: Shoshana Bean, Eden Espinosa, Ana Gasteyer, Julia Murney, Stephanie J. Block, Kerry Ellis, Marcie Dodd See more

Original Broadway production (2003–present)
Wicked officially opened on June 10, 2003, at the Curran Theatre in San Francisco, after previews began on May 28. The cast included Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda, Idina Menzel See more