Donna Vivino, who has been seen on Broadway in Les Misérables and Hairspray, steps into the role of the misunderstood, green-faced witch when the tour arrives at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis.
Vivino joins a cast that currently includes Katie Rose Clarke as Glinda, Myra Lucretia Taylor as Madame Morrible and Lenny Wolpe as The Wizard.
Donna Vivino has been seen on Broadway in Les Misérables, Saturday Night Fever, Hairspray and Fame Becomes Me. Most recently, she has been the standby for the role of Elphaba in the Wicked tour.
Current Wicked tour dates follow:
Nov. 5-Dec. 7 at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis
Dec. 10, 2008-Jan. 4, 2009 at the Opera House in Detroit
Jan. 7-Feb. 1 at the Kentucky Center in Louisville
Feb. 4-March 1 at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center in Appleton
March 4-April 5 at the Keller Auditorium in Portland
April 8-May 3 at the Capitol Theatre in Salt Lake City
July 1-26 at the Gammage Auditorium in Tempe
Based on Gregory Maguire's novel, which turned every Oz myth inside out, Wicked explores the early life of the witches of Oz: Glinda and Elphaba. The two main characters meet at Shiz, a school where both hope to take up sorcery. Glinda is madly popular and Elphaba is, well, green. By a misunderstanding, they wind up roommates and, after an initial period of mutual loathing, begin to learn something about each other. Their life paths continue to intersect through a shared love, entry into the Emerald City and interaction with the Wizard himself. Eventually, their choices and convictions take them on widely different paths.
Wicked features a score by Stephen Schwartz, a book by Winnie Holzman, direction by Joe Mantello and musical staging by Wayne Cilento. The creative team also includes 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.
Wicked won 2004 Tony Awards for Best Actress in a Musical (Menzel), Best Costume Design (Susan Hilferty) and Best Scenic Design (Eugene Lee).
For more information visit www.wickedthemusical.com.
