Wicked at London’s Apollo Victoria Theater

Wicked is currently the 17th longest running musical on Broadway. The music and lyrics are by Stephen Schwatz and is loosely based on the award winning novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. The story is parallel of the 1939 book and film The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and is told from the perspective of the witches of the Land of Oz.

The show recently celebrated its 7th anniversary on October 30, 2010 and has performed the show 2,950 as of December 12, 2010. During the week of January 2, 2011, the London Broadway and both national touring shows broke all records for the highest weekly gross after their hit single “Defying Gravity” was performed on the popular TV show Glee.
Wicked is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba and her relationship with her parents, her sister Galinda, later known as Glinda the Good Witch of the North and the people of Oz and munchkin land.

Their relationship is of opposite personalities and rivalry over the same man, political strife over the Wizard’s corrupt government and Elphaba’s eventual fall from grace are the main story line of the play. The story begins before Dorothy’s arrival in Munchkin Land and continues through her travels to OZ. The play references several events that appeared in the original 1939 film.

Wicked appeared in October 2003 on Broadway at the Gershwin Theater and was directed by Joe Mantello. It starred Idina Menzel as Elphaba and Broadway super star Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda. The Broadway production’s success has spread to theaters in Chicago, Los Angeles, and London’s West End.

Wicked tickets are available and the show is currently playing at London’s Apollo Victoria Theater in England on Wilton Road near Victoria Station The building was designed to be a ‘super cinema’ in 1930 by E. Warmsley Lewis. It is decorated and designed in a beautiful art deco style and can currently seat 2,208 people making it one of the largest theaters in London

For 18 years the theater exclusively showed Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical, Startlight Express and the theater was extensively redesigned to accommodate the multi tier roller skating rink need for the performance.

The London’s Apollo Victoria Theater is world renowned for its striking architecture and world class performances. It is located in the heart of London allowing tourists to easily grab dinner at one of the many exquisite restaurants nearby before taking in a show.