Stephen Schwartz’s “Wicked” will give audiences a lesson on how to defy gravity from Nov. 28 through Dec. 9 at the Landmark Theater.

“It’s a Tony Award-winning musical, and it’s really popular,” said Liz Carioti, box-office manager at the Landmark Theater. “They (the audience) can expect to really feel like they’re in Oz.”

Tickets are available for the show at the Landmark Theater Box Office and prices start at $30.

The show is based on the book “Wicked” by Winnie Holzman. It is loosely based on the plot of “The Wizard of Oz,” empathizing with the Wicked Witch of the West as opposed to Dorothy and her merry band of followers.

The musical has won four Tony Awards since it began in 2003, including Best Actress from original cast member Idina Menzel, and earned a nomination for Best Musical.

The show at the Landmark Theater features actresses Christine Dwyer and Tiffany Hass as leading characters Elphaba and Glinda, respectively. Broadway veterans Marilyn Caskey and Tony Award-winner Paul Kreppel are playing as Madame Morrible and The Wizard, respectively. It is part of an international tour of the show. The most recent stops for the cast have been in London at Apollo Victoria Theater and New York City at the Gershwin Theater.

The last time “Wicked” came to Syracuse was in 2010, when the show was performed at the Oncenter War Memorial Arena. The success inspired the Landmark Theater employees to hold their own run of the production.

“It did really well the last time it was here,” Carioti said. “About 60,000 people saw it when it was here a few years ago.”

For Carioti, the magic within the show can be found in its sets. She said she believes the sets will transform theatergoers. The sets and various props travel with the cast from one location to the next while on tour, and they are extensively elaborate. One prop includes a dragon that reaches out into the audience.

The Landmark Theater will also be holding a lottery for audience members two and a half hours prior to every performance. The lottery will grant winning audience members the opportunity to pick select seating for $25.

Published on November 29, 2012 at 1:13 am

Contact Chelsea: cedebais@syr.edu | @CDeBaise124