story for people who like The Wizard of Oz. So who is it for?
Wicked, of course, is a movie adaptation of a musical theater adaptation of an adult book adaptation of a family movie adaptation of a children’ s book. With that many layers of adaptation between the movie and the original source material, it’ s rather surprising that it’ s as close to the movie it’ s inspired by as it is( in fact, as I understand it, the Wicked book is even further removed, and more similarities were incorporated back into the musical). Linda Hutcheon wrote in A Theory of Adaptation that adaptations are“ palimpsestuous,” meaning that they are understood in relation to all the works that came before them. It’ s almost impossible for an audience to consider Wicked outside of its relation to The Wizard of Oz, and to be fair, Wicked doesn’ t really want people to. There are multiple scenes in the movie that serve as origins for elements of the 1939 movie, including not just multiple characters from the story, but also things like the Wicked Witch’ s pointed hat, and her cloak and broom. Multiple plot elements can’ t be fully appreciated unless the viewer is passable familiar with the 1939 movie.
But like I already stated, Wicked’ s audience is not that movie’ s audience. Wicked is courting the YA crowd, with its vaguely collegiate setting, romantic subplots, and themes of individuality and independence in the face of external pressures to conform. Frankly, Wicked is best enjoyed entirely separate from The Wizard of Oz, as its own independent story. Whether that is even possible, with The Wizard of Oz being as omnipresent in the cultural zeitgeist as it is, is difficult for me to say, and might end up depending on how Act 2 is handled in the sequel. But in some respects, the overwhelming popularity of the original Oz stories might help it succeed in that regard. An audience member might well be familiar with the concept of the Wicked Witch of the West without ever seeing the original movie or reading the books— enough to appreciate how Wicked plays with the concept, at least.
Given how tonally and thematically different Wicked is from the movie it’ s inspired by, it might not be a good adaptation of The Wizard of Oz. However, the movie is absolutely a good adaptation of the stage musical, and is a great watch in its own right. Give it a watch, and see what you think— without even considering The Wizard of Oz.
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