WICKED Tickets Go On Sale Nov. 30!

SO MUCH HAPPENED BEFORE DOROTHY DROPPED IN
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BROADWAY’S BIGGEST BLOCKBUSTER WICKED
COMES TO CHARLOTTE – ON SALE DATE SET FOR NOV. 30!
BY STEPHEN SCHWARTZ AND WINNIE HOLZMAN
BASED ON THE NOVEL BY GREGORY MAGUIRE
MUSICAL STAGING BY WAYNE CILENTO DIRECTED BY JOE MANTELLO
Charlotte, NC —WICKED, the most anticipated musical production of the 2007 – 2008 season will go on sale to the public on Friday, Nov. 30. From 8 – 10 a.m., tickets will be exclusively available at the Belk Theater Box Office (130 N. Tryon Street). Beginning at 10 a.m., any remaining tickets will be available for purchase online at BlumenthalCenter.org, by phone at (704) 372-1000 or in person at the Performing Arts Center Box Office in Founders Hall. There is an 8-ticket limit per patron.
Due to the unprecedented demand for tickets to WICKED, it is likely that the Charlotte engagement will sell out in record time. Patrons are urged to purchase their tickets to WICKED early. The first 100 people in line at the Belk Theater Box Office will receive official WICKED merchandise and Dunkin’ Donuts will treat early buyers to free coffee and donuts. Local radio stations Christmas K104.7 FM and KISS 95.1 FM will be on site offering the crowd a chance to win prizes. Wilson’s World on “Fox News Rising” will broadcast live from the on sale starting at 5:45 a.m.
WICKED will play April 9 – 20, 2008 at Ovens Auditorium. Tuesday – Saturday night performances will be at 8 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday matinees will be at 2 p.m. and Sunday evening performances will be at 7:30 p.m. There will be an added matinee performance on Thursday, April 10 at 2 p.m. Tickets range in price from $30 - $80. Premium seats will also be available.
WICKED is a new musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Godspell, Pippin, Academy Award winner for Pocahontas and The Prince of Egypt) and book by Winnie Holzman (“My So Called Life,” “Once And Again” and “thirtysomething”) based on the best-selling 1995 novel by Gregory Maguire. WICKED is set to make its Charlotte premiere starting April 9, 2008.
The musical is directed by 2003 and 2004 Tony® Award winner Joe Mantello (Take Me Out, Assassins, Love! Valour! Compassion!, The Vagina Monologues, Glengarry Glenn Ross) and features musical staging by Tony® Award winner Wayne Cilento (Aida, The Who’s Tommy, How To Succeed…). WICKED, winner of 15 major awards, including a Grammy® Award and 3 Tony® Awards, is the untold story of the witches of Oz. It is produced by Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt and David Stone.          
Long before Dorothy drops 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. WICKED tells the story of their remarkable odyssey, how these two unlikely friends grow to become the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.
WICKED features set design by Tony® Award winning Eugene Lee (Ragtime, Show Boat, Candide, Sweeney Todd), costume design by Tony® winner Susan Hilferty (Into the Woods, Assassins), lighting design by Tony nominee® Kenneth Posner (Hairspray) and sound design by Tony Meola (The Lion King and the recent Man of La Mancha). Stephen Oremus is the show’s music director. Orchestrations are by William David Brohn, with dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott.
The national tour of WICKED has “cast quite a spell” (Washington Post) throughout North America. It opened at Toronto’s Canon Theatre on Tuesday, March 8, 2005 and sold out a seven-week run. WICKED has continued to break box office records and sell out multiple-week engagements in Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington, DC, Philadelphia and Boston to name a few.
WICKED, “Broadway’s biggest blockbuster” (The New York Times) began performances in New York on Wednesday, October 8, 2003 at The Gershwin Theatre and continues to be the top-grossing show on Broadway. WICKED is “good enough to run for a decade or two,” proclaims The Wall Street Journal. It’s “a cultural phenomenon,” exclaims Variety. “If every musical had the brain, the heart and the courage of WICKED, Broadway really would be a magical place,” states Time Magazine.
The Chicago company of WICKED took the stage on Friday, June 24, 2005 at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts, Oriental Theatre, and the Los Angeles production of WICKED started performances at the Pantages Theatre on February 10, 2007.
There are currently three international productions of WICKED: a London production, which opened in September 2006 at the Apollo Victoria Theatre; a Japanese-language production, which opened on June 17, 2007 in Tokyo, Japan; and a German-language production, which opened in Stuttgart on November 15, 2007. An Australian production will open in Melbourne, Australia on July 12, 2008.
Grammy Award-Winning Cast recording available on Decca Broadway. For more information about WICKED log on to www.wickedthemusicaltour.com.
The North Carolina Blumenthal Performing Arts Center serves the Carolinas as a leading cultural, entertainment and education provider. For more information, visit BlumenthalCenter.org or call (704) 372-1000. The Center receives operating support from the Arts & Science Council and the North Carolina Arts Council. The Center is also supported through the generous aid of its sponsors, including Presbyterian Hospital, The Official Healthcare Provider; U.S. Airways, Official Airline of Blumenthal Performing Arts Center; and Stanford Group Company, sponsor of the Stanford Broadway Lights Series.

                                                     AT A GLANCE…
WHAT: WICKED On Sale Event
WHEN: Friday, Nov. 30 – Exclusively at Belk Box Office from 8 a.m. – 10 a.m.;
Tickets will be available via phone and internet beginning at 10 a.m.
WHERE: Belk Theater, 130 N. Tryon Street (Charlotte)
COST: $30 - $80
FOR TIX/MORE INFO: Beginning Nov. 30: 8 a.m. – 10 a.m. at the Belk Box Office (130 N. Tryon Street)
At 10 a.m.: BlumenthalCenter.org, (704) 372-1000 or in person at the Performing
Arts Box Office in Founders Hall (Bank of America Corporate Center).

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