Ariana Grande added “proofreader’ to her list of credits recently. The actress spotted an error in the captioning of the video for “Popular,” from the upcoming film Wicked, in which she stars.
The video used the word “poise” in place of the correct “ploys,” which Grande called out in the comments section.
This was more than an actress knowing her lines. Grande has been a fan of Wicked since she was 10, when she met Kristin Chenoweth, Broadway’s original Glinda, after a performance of the hit musical.
Grande’s eagle-eye revealed her as a former theater kid, those greasepaint-and-spotlight obsessed teens who know their favorite musicals inside out, upside down and backward.
Wicked holds a special place in the hearts of middle- and high-school theatricals. Why? Two leading female roles spotlighting acting and singing with oodles of show-stopping numbers; the themes of friendship both blossoming and eroding; the way it makes a fantasy from childhood into something both fantastic and relatable. For adolescents of a particular mindset, Wicked is practically a commandment to master your craft and move to New York.
The audience hotly anticipating Wicked on screen goes well beyond theatrical teens, though.
Wicked is on track to have one of the biggest opening weekends of 2024, and forecasters predict a gross north of $1 billion. And you’ll hear about it regardless of your fanhood or lack thereof. Starbucks has tie-in drinks saluting the film’s two main characters, Glinda and Elphaba. Target has declared itself the “ultimate fan destination” for Wicked fans. Also, Wicked will sponsor driver Chase Elliott in the 2025 NASCAR Cup Series. Ha ha! Just seeing if you were paying attention. Wicked isn’t sponsoring any NASCAR drivers. Yet.
The film, directed by John Chu (Crazy Rich Asians), is based on the long-running musical of the same name. The musical is based, loosely, on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.
Maguire’s novel drew from L. Frank Baum’s 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz as well as its beloved 1939 film adaptation. Like the musical and now the film, the novel mostly takes place prior to the arrival of Dorothy Gale. Wicked focuses on the characters who became Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West, their origins and their unlikely friendship.
The film version won’t just bring the musical to the screen. Wicked the movie will be released in two parts: part one on Friday, part two next year. The first film runs almost as long as the stage musical, suggesting Chu may bring elements of Maguire’s novel and/or the novel’s source material into the film’s story. For example, the character of Dorothy, an important but unseen presence in the Broadway show, will appear in the filmed version.
The success of the two-part ploy (not poise) will depend on part one of Wicked sustaining the enthusiasm accompanying the pre-release all the way through to next year’s holiday season. That could be tough for any project, but if there’s a title with a solid grassroots support base in place, it’s Wicked.
In interviews, Grande and co-star Cynthia Erivo, Glinda and Elphaba, respectively, bring an enthusiasm and downright devotion rarely seen on a press tour. Tears are not infrequent when the two discuss the importance of Wicked to them. As The New York Times said, “They are not just in Wicked. They are living and breathing Wicked.”
Their unbridled emotion has struck a chord with young actors who sense their shared and deep love of theater. Many posted on TikTok with comments such as “Don’t try to tell me this isn’t a shared experience,” “The performing arts bring the emotions OUT y’all should try it sometime” and a simple, powerful “I feel seen!”
The Straz has presented Wicked five times since 2006, and we have no doubt each run pointed more than a few young compasses toward theater. It’s that powerful. Seriously, seeing “Defying Gravity” is enough to make the hearts of the most stage-phobic of audience members pound with delight. Imagine what it does to burgeoning actors already dreaming of a life treading the boards.