Wicked

Fandom
Name:	Wicked
Abbreviation(s):
Creator:	Stephen Schwartz and Winnie Holzman (musical), Gregory Maguire (derivative novel), L. Frank Baum (original novel)
Date(s):	1995 (novel), May 28, 2003 (musical premiere)
Medium:	books, Stage musical
Country of Origin:	United States
External Links:	Official Site
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Wicked - Shiz University |MODERN AU| by uchihayunafan

Wicked is a book series (aka The Wicked Years) turned popular stage musical that retells the story of the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz into a sympathetic protagonist, showcasing her relationships with her rival-to-friend Glinda Upland, and her canon romantic love interest Fiyero Tigelaar. The musical's full title is Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz, while the original Gregory Maguire novel's full title is Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West.

There's a distinct divide between those fans who have read the books (many, if not most, having also seen or been involved with the fandom of the musical), and those who have only seen or who are familiar with the show. However, certain aspects of the novels will sometimes be incorporated into fanworks based on the musical, such as Elphaba being intersex, or the existence of her son, Liir. The terms bookverse and musicalverse are used to differentiate the two source texts.

The crux of the show centres primarily on Elphaba and her relationship with Glinda, a relationship that is often interpreted as romantic. This homoerotic subtext between the two is a big pull for both new and old fans of the musical, and Elphaba/Glinda (known as Gelphie) are seemingly the most popular ship in the fandom.

Canon

The musical first premiered in San Francisco for a pre-Broadway tryout before opening on Broadway at the George Gershwin Theatre. The show is sometimes called Wicked: The Musical to differentiate it from the novel by Gregory Maguire that it is based on.

Musicalverse

The musical is well known for songs such as Defying Gravity, Popular, and For Good.

Film Adaptation

In 2008, it was announced that a movie version of the musical is in the works. The film has had a somewhat delayed production, but as of August 2022, is now two films scheduled to release over the Winters of both 2024 and 2025.

In 2021, it was announced that Cynthia Erivo would be playing Elphaba, and Ariana Grande would be playing G(a)linda.

Fandom

Musicalverse

Wicked on Broadway is consistently playing to sold-out or near-sold-out audiences, making it the most consistent top-performer on Broadway. Fans always congregate at the stage door after performances, and are known for giving the cast presents.

Despite this, many fans rely on bootlegs in order to watch the musical before seeing it physically, if that's even possible. Without them, fans often have to rely on hearsay. The quality of the video and audio can differ substantially, though gifs from these sources are common regardless.

Fans are both appreciative and highly critical of the actors that take on the main roles in the show, and heated debates often occur when fans discuss which actor is "better." A subsection of fans are adamant that the original cast (consisting of Idina Menzel as Elphaba, Kristin Chenoweth as Glinda, Norbert Leo Butz as Fiyero, etc.) are the show's ideal cast. As time has gone on however, the fandom as a whole seems to be much more accepting of the different versions of the characters.

At the time of the film adaptation's initial reveal, some fans had already started arguing over who should be cast.

Shipping

Glinda/Elphaba, a femslash pairing, is very popular within the fandom. Elphaba/Fiyero is also fairly common, Glinda/Fiyero less so though still present. The OT3 of Glinda/Elphaba/Fiyero is also discussed.

Terminology

• Gelphie is the pairing name for Glinda/Elphaba

Wicked RPF

Some fans also started shipping the actors together such as Idina Menzel/Kristin Chenoweth (pairing name "Chenzel") and others thewitches3 (Female actresses of Wicked).

Example Fanworks

Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples.

Fanfiction

• "you didn't know you crossed" by raspberryhunter. Missy writes Glinda gets on with her life after Elphaba's apparent death, but even though time passes along, her dreams keep calling her back to her friend. An incredibly tender and sweet fix-it.

Fan Films

• Unauthorized Defying Gravity Wicked (Feb 2022) by Sarah Batchelder (@SmallBatchFilms)

Archives & Fannish Links

• Wicked & crossover works at FFN
• Wicked - All Media Types works at AO3
  • Wicked - Schwartz/Holzman
  • The Wicked Years Series - Gregory Maguire
• Passion & Perfection Wicked section - bookverse & musicalverse - femslash only

LJ Communities

• wicked_fans, general community
• wicked_fanfic, fanfiction community (also accepts other Wizard of Oz works)
• wickfic, another fanfiction communuity
• wickedart, fanart community
• wicked_elite, an elite community
• wickedmusical, a Wicked: Musical community
• wicked_obc, Wicked original Broadway cast community
• wicked_prompts, prompts community
• wicked10, 10 prompts community
• wicked100, 100 word drabbles community
• wicked_kinkmeme, a kink meme community
• gelphie_lovers, Elphaba/Glinda community

Mailing Lists

• Not That Girl, an Elphaba mailing list

DeviantART

• gelphie (Elphaba/Glinda)

Tumblr Blogs

• dailypopular - Blog that, when active, posted daily gifs of the scene 'Popular'.

Fannish Links

• Gelphie: Glinda x Elphaba fansite
• Wicked Wiki at Wikia