To coincide with the film adaptation’s release, we look at why the queer community is constantly drawn back to Elphaba’s plight
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY UNIVERSAL PICTURES
If you haven’t been following the hype around the new film adaptation of the musical Wicked, where have you been? It’s been almost impossible to escape from the pink and green tinted press tour that has circulated this highly anticipated film. Directed by Jon M. Chu, this new retelling of the classic tale stars a number of queer icons including Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Marissa Bode, Bronwyn James, and more.
But even before this gloriously queer cast was announced, Wicked has been bringing queer joy to audiences everywhere ever since its stage premiere in 2003. Based on Gregory Maguire’s novel of the same name – which in turn is based on the iconic children’s book The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz – Wicked tells the backstory of the Wicked Witch of the West through the perspective of Elphaba, an outcast who challenges the system of Oz.
Even people who have never seen the show will be able to tell you one key plot point: Elphaba is green. It is her greenness that leads her to be an outcast from the world around her. When she meets Galinda – Glinda The Good – the pair are initially rivals but soon become close friends.
Earlier this year, Cynthia Erivo – who plays Elphaba in the new adaptation – spoke at the Los Angeles LGBT Center Gala about the connection the LGBTQIA community has to the show. “Elphaba’s story is…about how a colourful, powerful, magical woman — despite being disparaged, demonized, and discriminated against — becomes a hero,” she said. “Wicked is a reclamation and a reimagining of the labels used against her. It is the proclamation of her right to exist in all her power. If that sounds familiar to you colourful, magical people in this room — it should.”
As Cynthia said, queer audiences have continually flocked to the musical for its powerful reclamation of otherness. Despite the world around her shunning her green skin, Elphaba manages to rise above. Its central song Defying Gravity has become somewhat of a queer anthem, a reminder that we can achieve whatever we want to, regardless of what others may think. The friendship between Galinda and Elphaba has also drawn parallels to the importance of allyship, and finding chosen family.
The magic of Wicked is its ability to continually and timelessly speak to the LGBTQIA community. This new film adaptation promises to be no different.
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