Final cast members have been announced for the Broadway Blockbuster musical WICKED, which flies into Australia’s Emerald City at the Sydney Lyric from 25 August 2023.
Rising star Zoe Coppinger will be the Elphaba Standby, the girl born with emerald-green skin who grows up to become the “Wicked Witch of the West”. Zoe made her professional music theatre debut at age 18 in The Production Company’s season of Gypsy and has since performed in Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Guys and Dolls, Nice Work If You Can Get It, Jesus Christ Superstar, The Boy From Oz, Curtains, Fiddler On The Roof and Muriel’s Wedding. Most recently, Zoe played the role of Missy in Crossroads Live’s 9 to 5.
The talented group of performers comprising the WICKED Ensemble and Swings includes Christian Ambesi, Conor Bann-Murray, Brittany Carter, Olivia Castagna, Eli Cooper, Matt Cranleigh, Joseph Donovan, Sage Douglas, Bayley John Edmends, Todd Jacobsson, Rohan Khanna, Andrew Kroenert, Elisha Zion Lee, Jordan Malone, Emily Monsma, Matilda Moran, Jackson Reedman, Amelia Sanzo, Edward Smith, Ksenia Teliatnikova, Lucas Van Rhijn, Jessica Vellucci, Mietta White and Jun Woodfield.
These stellar performers join the already announced lead cast of Courtney Monsma as Glinda, Sheridan Adams as Elphaba, Robyn Nevin in the role of Madame Morrible, Todd McKenney as the Wizard, Liam Head as Fiyero, Adam Murphy playing Dr Dillamond, Shewit Belay in the role of Nessarose and Kurtis Papadinis as Boq.
“We received over 2,000 applications when the casting call for WICKED went out, we auditioned over 1,000 of Australia’s top performers and are so excited with the calibre and talent of every one of our cast members,” said John Frost, on behalf of his Co-producers.
“WICKED is loved by Australians, and we have no doubt audiences will embrace our ‘thrillifying’ cast led by Courtney and Sheridan. We can’t wait for it to open in Sydney in August, for Australia to fall in love with the show all over again.”
Almost 20 years since its premiere on Broadway, WICKED remains one of the most successful and popular musicals in the world. Winner of over 100 major awards including the Grammy Award, the Olivier Award, six Helpmann Awards, three Tony Awards® and six Drama Desk Awards, WICKED is “A Complete Triumph! An original musical that will make you laugh, cry and think” (USA Today).
The musical has played in 16 countries around the world including Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, The Philippines, New Zealand, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, and has been translated into six languages. WICKED has become the 4th longest running show in Broadway history (surpassing Cats).
The novel Wicked by Gregory Maguire, published in 1995, has sold 5.5 million copies, with 5 million of those sold since 2003 when the musical opened. Buoyed by the musical’s success, the novel has appeared on bestseller lists for close to two decades since its initial publication.
Long before Dorothy dropped in, two other young women meet in the land of Oz. One born with emerald-green skin is smart, fiery, misunderstood and possessing an extraordinary talent. The other is bubbly, blonde, ambitious and exceptionally popular. They become rivals, then friends… until the world decides to call one “good” and the other one “wicked.”
Based on the novel by Gregory Maguire, WICKED has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz, and a book by Winnie Holzman. The production features musical staging by Wayne Cilento with original direction by Joe Mantello.
WICKED is produced by in Australia by John Frost for Crossroads Live Australia, Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone, and is proudly supported by the NSW Government through its tourism and major events agency, Destination NSW.
Experience the unforgettable, award-winning musical WICKED in Sydney this year.
WICKED
Sydney Lyric Theatre – The Star, 55 Pirrama Rd, Pyrmont (Sydney)
Season commences from 25 August 2023
Bookings: www.ticketmaster.com.au
For more information, visit: www.wickedthemusical.com.au for details.
Image: The Company of WICKED – photo by Joan Marcus