 | | Past & Present Cast Members of Wicked at the Apollo Victoria | |
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Photos: Wicked Stars Past & Present Celebrate Fifth BirthdayDate: 28 September 2011 Whatsonstage.com Award-winning musical Wicked last night celebrated five years in the West End at the Apollo Victoria Theatre. The show, which has now grossed over £145 million at the box office and has played over 2000 performances is now the ninth longest running musical currently in the West End and the 18th longest running West End musical of all time. In December 2010, it became the first West End show to gross more than £1 million at the box office in a single week. Wicked currently stars Rachel Tucker as Elphaba, winning the 2011 Whatsonstage.com Award for Best Takeover in a Role. She appears alongside Louise Dearman (Glinda), Mark Evans (Fiyero) Julie Legrand (Madam Morrible), Clive Carter (The Wizard), Zoe Rainey (Nessarose), Ben Stott (Boq) and Julian Forsyth (Doctor Dillamond). It was recently announced that Gina Beck and Matt Willis will join the cast from 12 December 2011 taking over the roles of Glinda and Fiyero. The Broadway musical, which opened in London on 27 September 2006 (previews from 6 September), tells the “untold story” of the Witches of Oz - popular blonde Glinda, aka the Good Witch of the North, and her spin-victim friend Elphaba – who were both immortalised in the 1939 film classic The Wizard of Oz. The show has a book by Winnie Holtzman, based on Gregory Maguire’s novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. It’s directed by Joe Mantello. The cast were last night joined on stage for their curtain call and post-show party by cast members from the last five years including Kerry Ellis, Lee Mead, Alex Jessop, Alexia Khadime, George Ure, Jeremy Legat, James Gillan, Caroline Keiff, Cassandra Compton, Katie Rowley Jones, David Stoller, Harriet Thorpe, Sam Kelly, Desmond Barrit, Nigel Planer, Adam Garcia, Sarah Earnshaw, Dianne Pilkington, Cassidy Janson and Ashleigh Gray as well as executive producer Michael McCabe. TO SCROLL THROUGH ALL OF WICKED's FIFTH ANNIVERSARY PHOTOS, JUST CLICK ON THE "NEXT >" LINKS BELOW THE FOLLOWING FRAME. PHOTOS BY DAN WOOLLER FOR WHATSONSTAGE.COM. - by Andrew Girvan Related Content| Internal Links |  | Harriet Thorpe returns to play Madame Morrible in Wicked - 16th Apr 2013 news |  | Photos: West End Wicked celebrates five millionth visitor - 3rd Apr 2013 photos |  | Further venues confirmed for UK tour of Wicked - 1st Mar 2013 news |  | Wicked extends West End booking period to April 2014 - 11th Feb 2013 news |  | Photos: Stars out for Wicked Christmas gala - 21st Dec 2012 photos |  | Wicked embarks on first UK tour, September 2013 - 5th Nov 2012 news |  | Musicals Extend: Les Mis, Phantom & Wicked - 1st Oct 2012 news |  | Wicked flies out on first UK tour in 2013? - 22nd Aug 2012 gossip |  | Cast: Freeman, Plowright & Lupton join Wicked, Rowley Jones returns - 8th Aug 2012 news |  | Louise Dearman makes history in Wicked, swaps Glinda for Elphaba - 3rd Aug 2012 news |  | Louise Dearman back in Wicked... as Elphaba? - 3rd Aug 2012 gossip |  | Time Out TV: Behind-the-scenes with Matt Willis at Wicked - 1st May 2012 tv |  | A wedding & Awards in West End - 20th Feb 2012 blog |  | Photos: Matt Willis & Gina Beck join West End Wicked - 27th Jan 2012 photos |  | Musicals extend: Wicked books through Olympics, American Idiot adds week - 23rd Jan 2012 news |  | Photos: Andrew Lloyd Webber's reality casting recruits - 18th Jan 2012 photos |  | Brief Encounter With ... Composer & Conductor Marvin Hamlisch - 26th Sep 2011 interviews |  | Gina Beck & Matt Willis Join West End Wicked, 12 Dec - 14th Sep 2011 news |  | Photos: Popstars Pop Up for Pudsey in West End Musicals - 31st Aug 2011 news |  | Cast: Tucker & Crawford Extend, Full CFT Sweeney - 2nd Aug 2011 news |  | Theatregoers Meet Wicked Stars at WOS Outing - 11th May 2011 blog |  | Photos: Evans, Rainey & Stott Join Wicked Cast - 18th Feb 2011 photos |  | Musicals Extend: Love Post Oliviers & Wicked - 9th Feb 2011 news |  | Lion & Wicked Report Record Sales for 2010 - 5th Jan 2011 news |  | Musicals Extend: Wicked, Mamma, Phantom, Guys - 28th Sep 2010 news |  | Jesus Christ & Lee Mead Top WOS Reality TV Poll - 30th Jun 2010 news |  | 1st Night Photos: Mead’s Wicked Musical Return - 19th May 2010 photos |  | Wicked Returns Lee Mead to Musicals, Full Cast - 28th Jan 2010 news |  | Cast: Tucker Is Wicked Elphaba, Hairspray Tour - 15th Jan 2010 news |  | Wicked    - 26th Jul 2007 reviews |  | Review Round-up: Did Wicked Bewitch the Critics? - 28th Sep 2006 roundup |

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