I saw Wicked tonight.
I had many friends tell me how much they liked it, and an equal number who said they hated it, and numerous “meh” responses.
Overall, I loved it.
The sets are amazing, the music is amazing, the sound is amazing, the singing is amazing, the acting is…well, to be honest, Wicked does not really have a lot of acting. When you have flying monkeys, why the hell would you need acting? Not that the acting was bad, there just wasn’t much need for it.
Now, if I had any fault with the show, it is that every number I have ever heard from it comes in the first act. In fact, the best parts of the show are in the first act, the theatrical equivalent of premature ejaculation. Awesome, but it all happened too fast.
One other thing about the first act. In the dance scene, when Elphaba shows her dance and they all started doing it, that part really needed to be more. It was a very lyrical scene and should have been exploited.
The second half was good, though, like a young stud who has had an hour or so to recoup and go at it again, albeit with not quite as much fervor.
Yeah, really I just wanted to use as many sexual metaphors as I could manage in one review. The truth is, I had a wonderful time.

But wait! You are waiting to hear about the drunk. So here is how it goes. During the first half I noticed that there is someone clapping at very odd times, and laughing at lines that were not necessary funny. This was not enough to be annoying, just a bit odd. Like when the broom appeared and he not only clapped, but got the rest of the audience to join in. I have never clapped for the pastie in Billy Elliot.
Now, this alone would have been enough. But then, during the intermission, he started singing, full voice, to the crowd. To his credit, he had a pretty good voice, and the crowd, God help us, was cheering him on! Then he went down to the front of the theatre and literally sang the praises of the music director, and then announced, still in song, that the actress playing Elphaba was the greatest actress in the world.
Now, you would think that by this time the ushers would have been reverse ushering this fellow, but in fact, some friend of his collected him, he had a stern lecture from an usher, and we all survived the second half with only the occasional odd clap or laugh. I am amazed the show was not stopped sometime in the second half by him prancing onto the stage, grabbing a pair of monkey wings, and flying into the crowd as though it were a mosh pit. In retrospect, that might have helped the second half.
And there is an epilogue. At the end of the show there was a plea from the cast for BC/EFA donations, and he bid $1,000 for something and $100,000 for something else. The lady on stage then laughingly suggested that he sing something. Quickly realizing that he was going to, she shouted, “No, Just kidding!” Thank God.

Anyway, as I said, wonderful show, wonderful time, best interval ever. For the record, I did NOT clap when he sang. He was good, but not THAT good.