Wicked the musical

Act 1

Act I

While the citizens of Oz celebrate the death of the Wicked Witch of the West, Glinda descends onto the stage in her bubble to confirm the circumstances of the Witch's melting. She recalls that the green-skinned Elphaba was conceived during an affair between the erstwhile Munchkin Governor's wife and a mysterious stranger with a bottle of green elixir. Everyone was repulsed by Elphaba from birth, so Glinda asks the Ozians to empathize. The remainder of the plot forms an extended flashback through the events of Glinda's and Elphaba's lives.

At Shiz University, the pair first meet amongst students reuniting with their friends. Elphaba is hardly surprised that all the students, including the popular but shallow Galinda, revile her. The only reason that Elphaba is sent to Shiz is to take care of her beautiful, wheelchair-bound younger sister Nessarose, who is presented with a bejeweled pair of Silver Shoes, being their father's favorite. Despite Elphaba and Galinda's instant mutual loathing, Madame Morrible, Shiz's headmistress, makes them roommates. Elphaba has been excluded from Madame Morrible's Sorcery Seminar, but when Elphaba betrays an innate magical talent in sudden anger, Morrible notes that her talents may be of use to the Wizard of Oz. Elphaba dreams of what she and the Wizard could accomplish together. Galinda and Elphaba later write home about their unfortunate room-mate assignments. The students gather in a history class taught by Doctor Dillamond, a Goat and Shiz's only Animal professor, who keeps mispronouncing Galinda's name as "Glinda". After dismissing the class upon the discovery of an anti-Animal slogan on the blackboard (which reads, "Animals should be seen and not heard"), Doctor Dillamond confides in Elphaba that something is causing the Animals of Oz to lose their powers of speech. Elphaba believes that the Wizard is the only one who can help.

Fiyero, a Winkie prince, then arrives at Shiz and immediately impresses his own brand of mindless, cavalier and carefree living on the students. Besotted with Galinda, a Munchkin named Boq asks her to accompany him to a party at the Ozdust Ballroom, but having felt "perfect together" with Fiyero, Galinda asks him to invite Nessarose instead. Nessarose, not realising Galinda's real motives for getting Boq to ask her out, is delighted, and tells Elphaba that she wishes she could repay Galinda somehow. Later, Galinda discovers a black pointed hat in a box and gives it to Elphaba as a mock present. Elphaba, remembering how happy Galinda had made Nessarose (and not realising that she had ulterior motives), asks Madame Morrible to reconsider Galinda in her Sorcery Seminar, in return. When, however, Elphaba arrives to the party wearing the hat, she is only ridiculed. Defiant, she proceeds to dance alone without musical accompaniment. Feeling guilty, Galinda joins her, marking the start of their friendship. Meanwhile, Boq convinces Nessarose that it was not pity that prompted him to ask her out, but the fact that she is "so beautiful", not realizing the full extent of Nessarose's affections towards him.

Back in their dorm, Elphaba tells Galinda that her mother had been fed milk-flowers to prevent her second child from being born green-skinned; the milk-flowers instead caused Nessarose to be born prematurely, which left her crippled whilst her mother died in childbirth. Feeling sympathetic, Galinda decides to give Elphaba a personality makeover, making her admirable to fellow students.

The next day, Doctor Dillamond is arrested by Ozian officials. The new history teacher arrives with a caged lion cub as the subject of an in-class experiment, revealing that Animals are to be kept in a new invention he has created, called a cage, the benefit of which is that Animals raised in them will not have the power of speech. He reveals that soon all Animals will be turned dumb, and Elphaba is outraged. She and Fiyero steal the cub and set it free, and as Elphaba begins to discover romantic feelings towards Fiyero, she personally reaffirms that she "wasn't born" to be loved. Madame Morrible finds her, announcing that Elphaba has been granted an audience with the Wizard in the Emerald City.

At the train station, Galinda, Fiyero, Nessarose and Boq see Elphaba off, all happy for her accomplishment. When it becomes apparent that Boq is not genuinely interested in Nessarose, Galinda feels guilty and suggests that Boq is not the right person for Nessarose, who in turn insists that it is herself "that's not right." Elphaba expresses concern about leaving her younger sister, but a protesting Nessarose insists she will manage without her and leaves. In an attempt to impress Fiyero, Galinda announces that she will change her name to "Glinda" in honor of Doctor Dillamond's persistent mispronunciation. Fiyero fails to notice and leaves. Glinda breaks into tears. Feeling badly for Glinda, Elphaba invites her along to see the Wizard.

After a day of bonding and sightseeing in the Emerald City, Elphaba and Glinda meet the Wizard. Eschewing the special effects he employs for the benefit of most visitors, he invites Elphaba to join him. In testing Elphaba's true talents, the Wizard asks Elphaba to perform a levitation spell on his monkey servant, Chistery, using the Grimmerie – an ancient book of spells. Madame Morrible delivers the book to Elphaba, having just become the Wizard's new "press secretary". Elphaba demonstrates an intrinsic understanding of the lost language contained in the book, and successfully gives Chistery wings. However, Elphaba can see that he seems to be in pain and demands that Morrible and the Wizard show her how to reverse the spell. Unfortunately, Morrible tells Elphaba "spells are irreversible". The Wizard then reveals a cage full of winged monkeys, proving the extent of Elphaba's powers. He makes the comment that they (the monkeys) will make perfect spies.

After Elphaba questions this comment, Morrible and the Wizard attempt to cover up what was said, but it is too late; Elphaba now realizes that the Wizard and Morrible have been behind the troubles in Oz all along. It was he who robbed the animals of their speech and created the cages. Elphaba is shocked that her once-admired hero is actually a criminal and a fraud. Still, the Wizard wants Elphaba to join him in "creating a really good enemy" for the Ozians using her powers. Unable to contemplate the situation, Elphaba grabs the Grimmerie and runs off within the palace and Glinda runs after her. Realizing that she may know too much about his plans, the Wizard sends Morrible and his guards after Elphaba and Glinda. They finally reach the attic of the palace where Elphaba uses a broom to barricade the door. Morrible's voice is then heard outside a nearby window, warning all of Oz of this "Wicked Witch" and her horrible deed to the innocent monkeys. Elphaba and Glinda now must choose which path their lives will take. Ultimately, Glinda chooses to take a life living with the Wizard and becoming a public figure within Oz. Elphaba, however, decides to use her newly learned powers of levitation to fly away from the palace, against the Wizard and do what she believes is right. Using the Grimmerie, she places a spell on the broom (with which she barricaded the door) and flies away from the palace guards when they bust into the attic. But this public act of defiance convinces the Ozians of her true wickedness forever.