Audience members of Wicked: For Good, the conclusion to the two-part adaptation of the hit Broadway musical, are in for an experience.

One, in fact, that’s not too different from that of a certain gingham enthusiast who was whisked away into a whirling, pulse-pounding cyclone of unexpected emotional chaos, and then dramatically plopped into a dazzling, albeit unmooring and unfamiliar land.

Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore. And fellow Dorothys—fans of the blockbuster, Oscar-nominated previous film—we’re not in the same whimsical wonderland of the first Wicked.

As is the case with the musical’s Act Two, this sequel is markedly darker in tone and subject matter, perhaps jarringly so to those unfamiliar with the theatrical production. (Parents, be warned!)

It’s also the weaker of the t

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