The national tour of the international hit musical Wicked welcomes Olivia Valli as Elphaba and Celia Hottenstein as Glinda beginning May 2 at the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis, Missouri.
Valli, who played Vivian Ward in the national tour of Pretty Woman, returns to Oz after understudying the role of Elphaba from 2016-2019. She also played her own grandmother, Mary Delgado, in Jersey Boys, which marked her Off-Broadway debut.
Hottenstein, who understudied the role of Glinda in the Broadway production of Wicked, also appeared in the national tour of The Phantom of the Opera as the Christine Daaé alternate, and in Off-Broadway's Desperate Measures.
The two actors join a cast that currently includes Natalie Venetia Belcon as Madame Morrible, Timothy Shew as The Wizard, Boise Holmes as Doctor Dillamond, Tara Kostmayer as Nessarose, Kyle McArthur as Boq, and Christian Thompson as Fiyero.
The ensemble features Emily Kristen Morris, Alexia Acebo, Jennifer Mariela Bermeo, Remmie Bourgeois, Kyle Brown, Anthony Lee Bryant, Matt Densky, Marie Eife, Kody Jauron, David Kaverman, Annmarie Kelly, Kelly Lafarga, Marina Lazzaretto, Ryan Mac, Brittany Marcell Monachino, Madison Claire Parks, Jackie Raye, Kat Rodriguez, Derek Schiesel, Jenna Nicole Schoen, Wayne Schroder, Paul Schwensen, Ben Susak, Maggie Van Wieringen, Nicky Venditti, Brion Marquis Watson, and Justin Wirick.
Wicked began previews on Broadway October 8, 2003, with an official opening October 30. The original cast included Tony winners Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth as, respectively, the green-faced, misunderstood Elphaba and the curly-locked Glinda. Wicked has subsequently been performed in over 100 cities in 16 countries. In April, the international hit musical became the fourth longest-running production when it surpassed Andrew Lloyd Webber's Cats.
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Wicked, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman, is based on the novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire.
The Joe Mantello-helmed production features musical staging by Wayne Cilento, scenic design by Eugene Lee, costume design by Susan Hilferty, lighting design by Kenneth Posner, sound design by Tony Meola, projections by Elaine J. McCarthy, wig and hair design by Tom Watson, music supervision and arrangements by Stephen Oremus, orchestrations by William David Brohn, and dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott. Casting is by the Telsey Office.
Wicked won 2004 Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Musical (Menzel), Best Costume Design (Hilferty), and Best Scenic Design (Lee).
The musical, which reopened on Broadway September 14, 2021, following the pandemic shutdown, is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Stage Productions, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt, and David Stone.
