Pilkington and Blake to Join London's Wicked; Dallimore May Head Down Under

By Andrew Gans
12 Mar 2007

Dianne Pilkington
Dianne Pilkington

Dianne Pilkington will join the London cast of Wicked this summer as the curly-locked Glinda when she replaces Helen Dallimore, who created the role of the Wicked witch for the West End production.

Dallimore has been invited to open the forthcoming Australian production of the Stephen Schwartz musical and will play her final performance at London's Apollo Victoria Theatre July 14; Pilkington begins July 16.

In other casting news, Susie Blake will succeed Miriam Margolyes as Madame Morrible beginning April 2.

Wicked also currently features Kerry Ellis as Elphaba, Adam Garcia as Fiyero, Nigel Planer as The Wizard, Martin Ball as Doctor Dillamond, James Gillan as Boq and Katie Rowley Jones as Nessarose.

Dianne Pilkington was most recently seen as Grizabella in the U.K. tour of Cats. Her other theatrical credits include The Far Pavilions, Tonight's the Night, Beauty and the Beast, Taboo and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Wicked features a score by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. The creative team also includes scenic design by Eugene Lee, costume design by Susan Hilferty, lighting design by Kenneth Posner, sound design by Tony Meola, projections by Elaine J. McCarthy, wig and hair design by Tom Watson, music supervision and arrangements by Stephen Oremus, orchestrations by William David Brohn, dance arrangements by James Lynn Abbott, musical staging by Wayne Cilento and musical supervision-direction by Gareth Valentine.

Based on Gregory Maguire's novel, which turned every Oz myth inside out, Wicked explores the early life of the witches of Oz: Glinda and Elphaba. The two main characters meet at Shiz, a school where both hope to take up sorcery. Glinda is madly popular and Elphaba is, well, green. By a misunderstanding, they wind up roommates and, after an initial period of mutual loathing, begin to learn something about each other. Their life paths continue to intersect through a shared love, entry into the Emerald City and interaction with the Wizard himself. Eventually, their choices and convictions take them on widely different paths.

For more on Wicked call (0)870 594 9494.