Helen Woolf, Amy Ross and Aaron Sidwell at the Wicked launch at the Grand Theatre, Leeds. Pictures: Ant Robling
AMY ROSS, HELEN WOOLF and AARON SIDWELL are starring in the spectacular touring version of the hit musical Wicked which will play ten UK and Ireland cities and has just opened at the Bristol Hippodrome.
Musical Theatre Review’s Mike Tilling chatted to the cast at a tour launch at Aspire, Leeds [Wicked is at Leeds Grand Theatre from 13 June to 7 July 2018].
I strike the right note with my warm-up question: “How is the cat?” The delightful Amy Ross’ (Elphaba) response is immediate and effusive, with a revealing comment added.
“Fine thanks. When Aaron (Sidwell, playing Fiyero), Helen (Woolf, playing Glinda) and I first met we discovered that we were all cat people. The bond was instant.”
Off to a good start then.
Earlier we had just been treated to a rendition of two songs from the show by Ross herself (‘The Wizard and I’) and in duet with Woolf (‘For Good’).
Once again, I was struck by the thought: just how do performers find the commitment to perform without the context of a live band, support from a chorus and minus set and props?
“It’s not only that,” puts in Ross, “I could see the audience today, whereas the lights blank out everything in the theatre. I was more nervous just now with only a small audience than in front of 1,500 people.”
Helen Woolf and Amy Ross
Sidwell was just getting over a cold, so had not been called upon to sing. However, I was intrigued by his reputation for using method acting techniques. Was it true, for example, that he had lost eight kilograms in five weeks to play Johnny in American Idiot?
“Yes, and I had to do a similar thing for Steven Beale in EastEnders. I’ve had to put some back on for playing Fiyero. But the physicality is only one part of it. You have to find something in yourself to bring to the role that can give it veracity. It can be applied to any acting context. But my time at EastEnders had run its course, so I jumped at the chance of a major UK tour with Wicked.”
Both Ross and Sidwell come from theatre families. They also have very similar early memories of musical theatre. Ross had been taken to see Jason Donavan in Joseph, while for Sidwell it was Starlight Express.
Time to move on to the tour.
I ask about the differences, good and bad, of touring a major musical like Wicked. Executive producer Michael McCabe overhears my question and tells me that there are only 14 theatres outside London that can accommodate the show and they are touring to ten of them.
“It’s going to be a full-on Wicked experience with no compromises, requiring 12 truck-loads of props and costumes. We will be carrying over 1,800 costume items alone.”
“A programme like EastEnders,” adds Sitwell, “has its own pressure: you have to learn lines quickly with little time to add polish. On the other hand, it’s a tough schedule when you are touring a musical. You have to work hard to stay fresh and give audiences full value for money eight times a week.”
I close with a familiar question: do the demands of musical theatre – singing, dancing and acting – make the highest demands on an actor of any genre?
Most theatrical people are wary of this question for reasons of personal modesty and professional caution. None of that for Ross who responds with an enthusiastic: “Yes.” This does not come from vanity, but from passion for the form.
It is only a couple of years since Wicked last toured and was at the Leeds Grand. However, it is one those shows that can be revisited time and again, as many have, but next time they will experience the powerful vocal chords and acting prowess of Amy Ross, Helen Woolf and Aaron Sidwell.
* Wicked is visiting Bristol Hippodrome (5 February until 3 March), followed by the Liverpool Empire (7-31 March); Birmingham Hippodrome (4-29 April); Edinburgh Playhouse (8 May-9 June); Leeds Grand Theatre (13 June-7 July); Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre (17 July-26 August); Sunderland Empire (4-29 September); Southampton Mayflower Theatre (3-27 October); Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff (31 October-Saturday 24 November) and Palace Theatre, Manchester (4 December 2018- 5 January 2019).
Based on the best-seller by Gregory Maguire which took its inspiration from the creations of L. Frank Baum brought so vividly to life in the classic movie The Wizard of Oz, the production continues its open-ended West End run at the Apollo Victoria Theatre. Wicked has music and lyrics by multi Grammy and Academy Award-winner Stephen Schwartz (Disney’s Pocahontas and The Hunchback of Notre Dame) and was adapted for the stage by Winnie Holzman. Musical staging is by double Tony Award-winner Joe Mantello.
* Tickets for the West End production of Wicked are available HERE.
Readers may also be interested in:
Wicked tour – Amy Ross and Helen Woolf to star – News
SHARE THIS POST:
Comments are closed.