Watch all four witches of “Wicked” get emotional as they share memories.
I’ve been listening to you for so long.
(Raises hand.)
Idina Menzel, Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, and Kristin Chenoweth.Entertainment Weekly
But first, they have to get through this emotional conversation.
Youre the voices Ive been listening to, Erivo manages to add.
And we get to sit here and do this together.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in ‘Wicked’.Wicked Movie/YouTube
It’s really wonderful.
Now everyones crying as Chenoweth adds, Thats the dream.
You get your part and you want it to keep going.Wickedcontinues on…through you.
Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth in ‘Wicked’.Joan Marcus
“You passed something to us, and we get to give that out,” she says.
“It’s really special.
It just hit me.
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo in ‘Wicked’.Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures
CYNTHIA ERIVO: I called you.
IDINA MENZEL:Yes, you did.
ERIVO: I did it almost immediately.
Cynthia Arivo and Ariana Grande.Taylor Hill/FilmMagic
MENZEL: Yeah, she was lovely.
Did I call back quickly?
ERIVO:We FaceTimed.
Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel in ‘Wicked’.Broadwaycom/YouTube
It was sunny and beautiful, and I remember you were in blue.
It was like the sun was on you.
MENZEL: You’re so sweet.
Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth.Amy Sussman/Getty
She was just so respectful.
KRISTIN CHENOWETH: I was like, Who can speak higher?
GRANDE:We couldn’t hear words.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in ‘Wicked’.Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures
CHENOWETH: There was white noise and pink snot glitter.
I had prayed for that to happen and it did.
GRANDE:It was a very insanely surreal moment.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in ‘Wicked’.Universal Pictures
CHENOWETH:I still relive it sometimes.
GRANDE:Then we met, and I had a present made for her.
CHENOWETH: She gave me this ring.
Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel.Bruce Glikas/Getty
[Holds up her hand to camera.]
MENZEL:We didnt give each other rings, but we love each other.
CHENOWETH:There’s still time.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande in ‘Wicked’.Universal Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
GRANDE:We all love to shop.
I think there’s plenty of time.
I felt given the room and space and lots of encouragement.
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.Karwai Tang/WireImage
[Turns to Menzel.]
GRANDE: I saved mine, too.
ERIVO:I play it a lot.
It meant a lot.
[To Menzel.]
Why are you getting teary?
MENZEL: I don’t know.
It’s all very emotional, and I just felt like you both did such justice to the story.
It’s a beautiful tribute.
Not to make it about us in any way, but you found your own light.
GRANDE:[Starting to cry.]
Its time to put the glasses on.
[Dons green sunglasses.]
ERIVO:How did we get here?
We only just started.
GRANDE:I knew Id need these.
CHENOWETH:I should have brought mine, too.
[Grande removes her glasses and hands them to Chenoweth.]
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic
Ariana, I know you went in for both roles.
Was that the same for you, Cynthia?
ERIVO:I was called in to just sing for Elphaba.
So I was given The Wizard and I, Defying Gravity, and For Good to sing.
CHENOWETH:Just those little ditties.
ERIVO:Mine was a camera test, so my audition was like three hours.
So I sang those songs, then did the scenes.
MENZEL:How close was the camera?
Youre like seeing your tonsils.
ERIVO:I forget that all the time.
If the mouth has to be open, the mouth has to be open, you know?
MENZEL:Because it’s real, because you have to see the veins.
But sometimes I say, Is this horrible singing face?
CHENOWETH:I tell them to back up.
MENZEL:Put some vaseline on the lens.
ERIVO:So I sang for the role and that was that for me.
How much, if at all, did all of you draw from what came before?
MENZEL:I read theWickednovel by Gregory McGuire, so I had a lot of that to draw from.
The time where it connected for me was in her cackle and finding that in our scenes.
CHENOWETH:I remember the day you did the cackle for the first real time.
You had been playing with it, and it scared me.
It was a great moment.
We played and played and played.
I just remember being in the corner a lot with my wand trying to choreograph fight choreography.
Its a gift for any actor to create that.
ERIVO:Margaret Hamilton was definitely a touchstone for me.
It was always something that brought me great comfort and happiness.
I would listen to it when I was nervous for something or sad about something.
It was always a safe space for me.
I also read the original L. Frank Baum books.
My mom got them from me for Christmas.
It’s really incredible.
The Ozian lore and the extensive history of all of these characters.
There are so many gorgeous, insane ones that aren’t even inWicked.
It was every single person our props department, costume designer, set designer.
Amy Sussman/Getty
Idina and Kristin, you’ve had 20 years to wonder what this film would look like.
Has your attitude toward it and what the project might be changed over the years?
But we’re both so happy with it.
It’s beyond my dream.
They were subtle and nuanced, and you could see every emotion in their eyes.
This story at its core is about friendship.
ERIVO:Well, I definitely gained a new one.
[Looks at Grande.]
GRANDE:Yeah, we definitely gained a
ERIVO, GRANDE:Lifelong friend.
GRANDE:And to love someone.
CHENOWETH:And to forgive them.
That’s what it is all in there.
It’s all in the tapestry of this piece.
It wasn’t always meant to be that.
Were you ever surprised by that?
At first, I kind of was.
I was like, Wow, it’s evolving into that.
MENZEL:I remember that.
GRANDE: That’s so beautiful.
MENZEL: But that’s not the truth.
CHENOWETH: It is the truth.
They went crazy when you flew.
And when you defied gravity, they lost their minds.
GRANDE:It’s just funny because this is what we do.
MENZEL:But honestly, the whole audience just explodes when she comes out in the bubble.
Even though she was afraid that she was eating soap suds.
CHENOWETH: I thought for sure I was going to get cancer from the bubble juice.
I ate so much of it.
That’s one thing they got to do in the movie you got to have a real bubble.
And you really fly.
But we both did our part.
Bruce Glikas/Getty
Cynthia, you really put your own stamp on the end of Defying Gravity.
Were there a lot of conversations around that?
Whilst we were doing the comps for the rehearsal tracks, I did it by the book first.
And [composer Stephen Schwartz] was like, I trust you with the story.
So what’s your war cry?
I tried a couple things and then I did the one that stuck because it felt good.
And that’s the one that stuck.
MENZEL:That’s so good.
Universal Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection
You all share a unique legacy in culture with these characters across time.
How does that feel and what do you hope that legacy is going forward?
MENZEL: It’s a good show.
When we’re older, we can do Vegas.
GRANDE:I love it.
I’ll be Dillamond.
ERIVO: Ill be Fiyero.
I want to switch with…[Points to Chenoweth.]
CHENOWETH: Can we kindly switch just one time?
MENZEL:No, I’m sorry.
I didn’t mean to joke.
Karwai Tang/WireImage
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This [new legacy] begins because it can go as far as it can go.
GRANDE:And goats.
CHENOWETH: And speaking their piece and their mind and what’s on their heart and feeling safe.
[Theyre] more beautiful because they speak their mind and they’re ferocious and powerful.
I love that that’s celebrated.
GRANDE:[Tearing up.]
Holy s—.
CHENOWETH:The legacy just continues.
That’s a big word, but it will continue with this movie, it continues with our show.
It’s a once in a lifetime legacy.
