Wicked

Today I was getting very excited about my upcoming trip to Chicago to celebrate my friend Melissa's birthday. We'll see a show at The Second City, visit the Art Institute of Chicago and take in fireworks at Navy Pier on New Year's Eve, I am most excited to see "Wicked." I've had the soundtrack to the musical for more than a year now, and I can't wait to see the actual show!

If you're not familiar with "Wicked," here's a description from the official Web site:

Long before Dorothy dropped in, two other girls meet in the Land of Oz. One, born with emerald-green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. How these two unlikely friends end up as the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch makes for the most spellbinding new musical in years.

"Wicked" is a complex story of friendship, betrayal, and good and evil. How do best friends turn out so different? And when they choose such opposite paths, did one choose best? The story illustrates how someone with good intentions can go bad and how someone trying to do good can begin to compromise. I am always impacted by the final song, in which Glinda and Elphaba (the wicked witch) prepare to part ways forever. Glinda sings:

"Who can say if I've been changed for the better?
I do believe I have been changed for the better.
And because I knew you, I have been changed for good."