Wicked in London

Last weekend I had my first chance to walk around London, but that portion of my visit wasn't really that great. I saw the parliament building, big ben, and Buckingham palace, but I didn't care enough to take pictures. Why should I waste my time when you can find tons of them in a Google image search? I care very little about checking landmarks off my list; I'd much rather talk to locals or see something actively entertaining.

To that end, I decided to pay up for tickets to Wicked, a musical telling the story of the wicked witch of the west (from the Wizard of Oz of course). I could tell I was in for something good when I saw the green body paint on the fans outside the theater. The production had drummed up a cult following, and there were fans milling around with painted nails and pointy hats discussing their last few viewings.

I sat next to an Australian woman who was touring Europe. I asked her about Sydney and her travels in Switzerland, and she gave me a little information, but she wasn't really a chatterbox. She may have been too busy anticipating her second showing. Thankfully, she didn't spoil anything for me.

As nearly all my friends here will attest, the show was excellent. A few even bought the soundtrack. The only person who wasn't thrilled was a guy who had no idea it was going to be a musical. I suppose it must have been like biting into a bagel when you're expecting donut. Truly, though, it was a great bagel. For several lead actors, this was the last performance, so there was extra energy in every scene and extra fervor in the applause. I'm very glad I decided to go.

Then we drank beer on the train ride back to Oxford just to keep things classy.