This really should have been written less than two weeks after the event happened! But I have been so busy AND ill! So I am going to try and remember as much as I can and give you all a good account of the July 9th matinee performance of Wicked!
To begin, it was a Nikman show, this we knew as Rachel was, at the time sunning herself in Greece! I was of course a little disappointed (The Tuckamnion in me always craves a Tuckman show!) but also excited to see another Elphie, Nikki Davis Jones would be my third Elphaba in as many visits! After finally getting my hands on the tickets I had purchased on eBay the previous evening (that's another story altogether and I was a little worried at one point!) I was in my seat, N47 restricted view, still a great seat if anyone is thinking about it - I only missed 2 things during the whole show!
So after my Ellington in February 2009, Tuckman in March 2011 now it was time for Nikman July 2011!
The lights went down and, as I always do, I held my breath during the first few bars of the overture - all down to sheer excitement! It was strange sitting on my own, the two tickets i had got were in different parts of the theatre so my niece was sat centre stalls (I let her have the better ticket - that's what makes me so nice!) so I was on my own! But I cared not, I was inside the AV watching Wicked and nothing else mattered!
Before I could blink Louise was floating down in her bubble and my heartbeat increased and continued to do so over the next couple of hours! I was, as I am now sure I always will be, drawn to Glindas face during the entirety of NOMTW. The emotion was pouring from Louise's face and my eyes were filling with tears already, less than 5 minutes into the show!
Time always seems to go in fast forward when I am watching Wicked and before I knew it Nikki was on, and impressing me already in Dear Old Shiz and the scene around it. Her Elphie was quite different to Tuckers, I saw a cheekier, more happy go lucky Elphaba, one that was easy for the audience to fall in love with and empathise with when others were making fun.
'The Wizard and I' was Deej's first real chance to wow me, and boy did she do that. Her pure excitement at meeting the wizard was evident throughout the entire song and the 'Wizard Voice' she put on made me smile from ear to ear! I was officially impressed!
I was most impressed to find this on YouTube a few days after seeing the show, a permanent reminder of my third trip to Wicked and the wonder that is Deej!
'What is This Feeling' was an absolute highlight for me, Louise for some reason seemed far more funny than I'd ever seen her before. The woman sitting next to me was in hysterics which made me far more at ease with my laugh out loud antics! I also particularly loved Deej's Elphie in this song, her cheeky personality really shone through and the 'BOO' at the end was actually the funniest I have seen!
Mark Evans was again fantastic during 'Dancing Through Life' his dance skills really make a difference I think and help to make him my favourite Fiyero, although I have only seen him and Oli Thompsett so I don't really have much frame of reference! DTL was also the first chance we got to see Ben Stott and Zoe Rainey together as Boq and Nessa. I can never stress enough that these two roles are so underrated and deserve more praise than they get! (See my previous blog... http://nogoodbloggoesunpublished.blogspot.com/2011/05/its-not-all-about-glindas-elphies.html ) Ben and Zoe are perfect together and sometimes I find myself strangely drawn to them on stage even when other things are going on!
Now, having already witnessed what I believed to be a super funny Louise Dearman in WITF I was more than a little excited to see what she had to offer in 'Popular' and I wasn't disappointed! The flounces were flounciful, the la's were Lousome and the whole song absolutely hysterical! I am so glad I managed to see Lou perform Popular again, especially as it would now appear the toss toss giggle has now become obsolete! Sad times :-(
As the cast started building up to the end of act one, I began getting restless as I always do waiting for 'Defying Gravity'. Its a feeling that i can't quite describe, I long for the song but also don't want it to be over at the same time...it's weird I know but hey it's me!!
I can honestly say I was blown away by Nikki and her performance she gave it everything and there were even some mini riffs thrown in which made me squeal with excitement and also served to fuel my yearning for No Good Deed! The clarity of her voice was so amazing and the first 'meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee' was unbelievable!!
But once again you can decide for yourself, as there is an audio of the actual day! Ozsome eh?!
So, it was act II already, we were once again wowed with the emotion shown by Louise in 'Thank Goodness' and this time by Mark as well as Fiyero begins to realise its Elphaba he truly loves.
One song I was particularly looking forward to in act II was 'Wicked Witch of The East' I was really excited to hear Zoe again, I absolutely LOVE her portrayal of Nessa, especially the act II, more harsh Nessa. It was walso a chance to see the relationship that had developed between Her and Boq. Zoe was phenomenal in WWOTE and for the first time I began to feel sympathy for Nessa and see her character in a totally different light. Zoe nailed the song, the final 'It was Elphabaaaaaaaaaaaa' note had me open mouthed and absolutely in awe of this most talented woman!
I knew 'As Long As Your mine' was not going to be the hot steamy scene that we get at a Tuckvans show but Nikvans certainly did not leave much to the imagination! There was bum grabbing, dress lifting and plenty of neck kissing...still enough to make me slightly embarrassed that there were kids sat near me, but that's how ALAYM should be!!
I felt like an excited child by the time No Good Deed came around, if I wasn't physically bouncing in my seat I certainly was in my head, my favourite songs from Wicked change of a daily basis and that day NGD was it!
Nikki Davis Jones your No Good Deed was unbelievable! The following video is from the evening show but is amazingly similar to what we were treated to during the matinee. I love, love, love, the clarity of her voice and the riffs that she adds that really make the song her own which is so important for an actress.
The woman sat next to me, who hadn't made any interaction with me up to this point suddenly turned to me and said 'That was amazing wasn't?!' I couldn't speak for screaming but nodded enthusiastically loving the fact that a performance had had that affect on someone!
I couldn't believe it was nearly over, the opening chords of 'For Good' were being heard and yet again there were tears in my eyes. This was the first time in the performance that I missed Tucker, nothing bad about Nikki's performance of the song but I just love the emotion that is clear for all to see when it is a Tuckman show. Yet I still cried!
And then that was it, once again my Wicked experience was over. The second act always flies by and I wish it didn't! The cast were all amazing, I expected nothing else Louise i felt was being extra funny for some reason (which was a good thing!). Mark & Ben were the perfect male foils fora show known for it's leading ladies. Zoe Rainey actually amazed me, she is for definite my favourite Nessa and I would LOVE to see her as Glinda someday - WWOTE has shot up the rankings on my iTunes most played!
Nikki, what can I say? She couldn't have been a better Elphaba on the night for me, I got a sort of Idina mixed with Kerry vibe from her, along with her own individuality this made for a wonderful interpretation of Elphie that I loved getting to know and watching change, for good.
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