When Gregory Maguire was little, he was fascinated with Frank L. Baum’s The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) and the film The Wizard of Oz (1939). Much of his fascination had to do with childhood, which led him to write children’s books, but he also wrote one for adults entitled Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (1995), which just so happens to be in our collection downstairs. The novel predates Dorothy and reveals how the Wicked Witch of the West wasn’t exactly wicked, but just misunderstood.
Many of you can probably guess Frank L. Baum’s newest adaptation, but for those who hasn’t heard, it is called Wicked: A New Musical, which is a musical adaptation of Maguire’s adaptation of Wicked, which is an adaptation of…… well you get the idea. We have the sound recording downstairs in the collection as well. The musical came out in 2003, and is currently on tour! Wicked will be in Chicago from October 30 to December 21 if you’re interested in seeing it.
Since I’m not featuring a film today, I’m providing a link to part of the musical. Even if you haven’t seen the musical, you may recognize the actresses and/or song from Glee. Idina Menzel and Krisitn Chenoweth both have recurring roles on the series, and the song has been performed on the show by Chris Colfer, whose character (as well as the actor) is obsessed with the musical.