Thursday 22nd November 2018, a bright sunny morning here in Cardiff Bay and I’m at the Millennium Centre for another two more performances of Wicked.Today I’d like to talk about the role of the Cast Ensemble, another group of people I have to mention whenever I can. These actors and actresses are worth their weight in Gold to the production. The amount of singing and dancing required to make a good show, comes from the likes of these amazing people. Wicked has lots of instances where they stand out, in many of the songs throughout the show.

This Ensemble also has some fabulous voices in their midst. I love the voice of Howard Ellis, during the opening scene as we meet Elphaba’s parents, the note he has to hold is incredible. Also the solo singers in ‘Thank Goodness’ at the start of act two. Their contribution to ‘No one mourns the wicked, Dancing through life and the brilliant ‘March of the Witch hunters’ to name a few, is just phenomenal, and helps make this musical so impressive to watch.

The other role of this superb Ensemble is to provide cover for the main stars of the show. Two absolutely brilliant actresses spring to mind. Charli Baptie as Glinda and Amy Webb playing Elphaba. These two have been amazing covering for Helen and Amy (Ross), and I have to say their performances so far have been excellent, fabulous voices from both. A credit to the Ensemble to be able to find cover of their quality to act up into the main leads.

The cast for the matinee can be seen in the caption below.Today is a welcome return to the brilliant Nikki Bentley as Elphaba, who I’ve not seen since Bristol. So good to have the chance to watch 3 amazing Elphaba’s in one place, over the weeks it has been here.

Oh my God, what a performance Nikki gave, I’ve forgotten just how good she is, a beautiful voice and totally nailed everything she sang, I have to admit to having tears in my eyes every time she burst into song. It’s not everyday you get to watch two amazing Elphaba’s in one day, as Amy Ross is on tonight, along with another ensemble member in the also totally amazing Charli Baptie. Tonight’s cast list appears below.

Two totally fabulous shows today, with two different Glinda’s and Elphaba’s, could not have wished for a better day. So impressive and it seems the partnerships work brilliantly with Helen and Nikki on the matinee performance, along with Charli and Amy for the evening. Absolutely fabulous day of theatre, which is another reason why I love Wicked so much.