The Minneapolis production of the critically acclaimed and highly successful musical “Wicked” features two of the city’s homegrown talents, Kristine Reese who plays “Nessarose” and Don Amendolia who plays “The Wizard”. Although seasoned theater talent Amendolia spent his younger and even current years in the town of Woodbury at the Garden State in New Jersey, he honed his acting skills through various productions held at the Chanhassen Dinner Theatre, Guthrie Theatre and the Cricket Theatre which has been shut down – all of which are located in Minneapolis.

Almost a week from the opening of the Minneapolis production of “Wicked”, the Hennepin Theatre Trust will be raffling off $25 tickets for the show as a special treat to their loyal theatre patrons. For each of the musical’s run from August 11 to September 19, a select number of names will be drawn 2 hours before the show starts. Those who would like to score themselves a couple of good seats to the musical for a huge fraction of the price should be at the Orpheum Theatre 2 ½ hours before the show starts.

“Wicked” is headed for the Twin Cities. The award winning musical will make it’s triumphant return to the Orpheum Theatre for a six week run from August 11 to September 19. After having very successful runs here in 2006 as well as 2008, “Wicked” has returned for what will almost certainly be another sold out run.

Cast profiles of key members including Vicki Noon (Elphaba), Natalie Daradich (Glinda), Marilyn Caskey (Madame Morrible) and Don Amendolia (The Wizard).

Wicked, the Broadway musical, features a book written by Winnie Holzman and music from Stephen Schwartz. The story has its basis in “Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West,” a best selling novel from Gregory Maguire. Maguire’s novel parallels the 1939 film plot taken from the classic story by L. Frank Baum called “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” by taking the Oz witches’ perspective.

The Orpheum Theatre opened originally in 1921 and was named the Hennepin. The theatre seats 2,579. Kirchoff and Rose of Milwaukee designed the Beaux Arts style building.

Katie Rose Clarke, playing Wicked’s Glinda the Good Witch, descends like the fairy goddess out of the sky with her wheel like apparatus shooting bubbles off. She sings, “no one mourns the wicked,” in the splashy opening of the show, setting the good versus evil simplistic narrative up. However, as the story unfolds it’s never appeared to be this current or nuanced.