Back from Philly, having done some business, also was able to take in the touring production of WICKED, which is if anything even more beautiful to look at in this larger theater with a more compact stage. Thought it was going to be at the wonderfully named Kimmel Center, but it actually turned out to be at the Academy of Music two blocks from the Kimmel Center building, even though it seems to be a presentation of the Kimmel Center. Lots of people made the same mistake. The sound, which has been a problem for me the times I've sen the show at the Gershwin in New York, was actually quite remarkable at the Kimmel Center, I mean Academy of Music, and the piece overall really packs a wallop. There were understudies or standby for four count 'm four of the main leads, including Elphaba, Glinda, Fiyero and Dr. Dillamond, and the sign announcing these seemed partially hidden behind the cast list in the lobby.
But I'd never seen a touring production of this big a musical, and was suitably impressed by the reconception of the vast scenic design. The more compact set actually makes the physically tremendous show feel more intimate than the sometimes I-don't-know-where-to-look but still grand Broadway set. At the Kimmel Center, I mean Academy of Music, it's easy to take the whole thing in as one beautiful series of stage pictures.
