Ok so I've listened to the Wicked soundtrack - the one from the Broadway original - but I just saw it today in Chicago with Ana Gasteyer and Kate Reinders...and I must say, I think they sounded MUCH better. The reviews have also said that the Chicago cast was much better than the broadway cast. I'm already looking for tix again it was so good!

the music is wonderful....
i'm glad to hear chicago is working well.

I'd love to see it on stage.....I saw the preview of it on the Tony's and it looked great...

While what you say could be true, it's hardly fair to compare a live performance to a soundtrack. Don't know if the current Chicago cast is the one that will be in Denver next month -- but I'll let you know how they compare to the original NY show.

From what I've herd, the touring company is the best Cast right now.

I saw the WICKED cast in NYC in April 2005 and we "just" saw the touring cast in Los Angeles this past weekend. The touring cast does a great job!! There's a few special effects that have been eliminated, but nothing that impacts the feel of the show overall...they did add a few special effects that positively enhance the show using GOBOs...

I love the soundtrack with Idina and Kristin and the current Elphaba, Stephanie J. Block, does a wonderful job, but you can definitely hear her classical training when she has to hit those high notes...Kendra Casselbaum (Glinda) also does a great job, but she does this "kick" thing that started to dwell on my husband's nerves...especially in the "Popular" scene...it was almost like she was manic or something...LOL...but she does a good job as well...

I agree you can't compare the soundtrack to a live performance...there's much more sensory stimulation during a live show so it's easier to pull towards the live performance...not to say that the Chicago cast may/may not be better...don't know...but to compare is very difficult...JMHO

Well I agree it is much different seeing it live than listening to the soundtrack, but I just thought the inflections and the personality that comes through in the voices of the chicago performers was more, I don't know how to explain it, captivating? Awesome awesome show though...can't wait to see it again!

Huey Lewis will be Billy Flynn in Chicago. He will start on Nov. 1. Looks like Chicago will have Huey Lewis as Billy Flynn and Brooke Shields as Roxie Hart. Brooke Shields starts on September 9th and Huey Lewis on November 1.

Oh Good...I love theatre - I've never been to NYC (until next week) so I've never seen a show on Broadway, but I hit most of the shows and we used to always get season tickets for the shows that came through Louisville. As you'll see these aren't all musicals...but I just love it all.

I've seen:
in louisville
Les Mis,
Phantom (3x),
The Sound of Music.
Scarlet Pimpernel,
Stomp,
Rent,
Joseph & the Amazing TEchnicolor Dreamcoat,
Mama Mia,
McBeth,
Hamlet
Tha Pavillion - the BEST SHOW I HAVE EVER SEEN BY A LANDSLIDE
Proof
Dracula
Christmas Story
The Graduate
Little Shop of Horrors
and God knows how many other smaller shows at Actors THeatre of Louisville (15-20 more?) - I miss that place - it puts on amazing shows.
Also, Shakespeare in the Park puts shows on every year so from that I've seen most of Shakespeare's worked reproduced.

I wish I could have seen Jesus Christ Superstar when Sebastian Bach was playing Jesus...the former front to skid row

in DC
Jesus Christ Superstar


In London
Blood Brothers,
Oleanna (With Julia Stiles),
Sweetest Swing in Baseball (with Gillian Anderson),
Phantom,
Bombay Dreams,
The Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged
THe Complete Bible
Thoroughly Modern Millie

You didn't miss anything.

Saw Avenue Q with son last night.

Had dinner with some of his college and summer theater friends who are here before the show.

One of them has just been cast as an understudy for the "white women" in the show, and the poor boy just had to go backstage with her after the show and meet the cast.

So, for me, it's been a great month:

Brooklyn, the Musical
The Light in the Piazza
Spamalot
Avenue Q

going to see my first real broadway performance in new york this weekend - Rent, with Rosario Dawson, Taye Diggs and Jesse Martin all in it - i think they were all original cast

My first Broadway show: The Original Broadway Cast of Les Miserables (1986). Dang, that was way back in the days.

i was misinformed - they weren't in it

but it didn't matter - it's kind of distracting when famous people are in performances

i was in the 3rd row though - that was nice.

Taye Diggs (that's where he met his wive, Idina "the gasper" Menzel) and Jesse Martin were part of the original cast.
Link
Rosario Dawson was never part of the cast.