MINNEAPOLIS — "Wicked," Stephen Schwartz's 2003 Tony-winning prequel to "The Wizard of Oz," returns Wednesday for a five-week run at the Orpheum Theatre in Minneapolis. It's the sixth time the tour has landed at the Orpheum, and all the engagements have been extended ones that draw roughly 100,000 patrons to Hennepin Avenue. Young diehard fans are among that number.
The national tour is headlined by Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, native Lissa deGuzman, who plays Elphaba, the green-skinned outcast with magical powers. DeGuzman, who appeared in "Aladdin" and "King Kong" on Broadway, acts opposite Texan Jennafer Newberry, who plays her bubbly friend Glinda.
The Star Tribune asked three young Minnesota actors why they are smitten by "Wicked" — Hugo Mullaney, a sophomore at Wayzata High School whose credits include Winthrop Parooin "The Music Man" at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres; Audrey Mojica, a sophomore at St. Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists whose biggest role to date is the title character in "Annie" at the Children's Theatre Company; and Sofia Salmela, a sophomore at Duluth East High School who played the title character in "Matilda the Musical" at the Children's Theatre.
