WICKED! will be back to gammage this summer!

I am so jazzed! Since I saw the show last year, I told my kids about it and we've been listening to the soundtrack ever since. My kids are already HUGE fans of Les Miserables, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Aida. For literary costume day (a.k.a. Halloween!) at school, my son dressed as Jean ValJean. My younger son went as "Joseph" for actual Halloween last year.

The musicals have been wonderful teaching vehicles for us, because the characters and music are so compelling. We've had wonderful, ongoing discussions about situational ethics, that they never would have understood otherwise. My older son (now 8) first saw Les Miserables on DVD when he was 5 and a half. I walked back in the room as the show (PBS 25th anniversary concert in full costume) was ending and he was crying. I thought that he was hurt, but he said, "it's just so beautiful, mommy!". I've heard him explaining to his cousins that some situation in real life is "just like when Javert was after Jean ValJean...of course, stealing is wrong, but he only stole the bread to feed his dying nephew"! We've talked about the ways that both Javert and ValJean were "right" and "wrong". Likewise, the mix of "good" and "evil" in both Glinda and Elphaba in Wicked, spurred lots of discussions too. My kids understand the idea of self fulfilling prophecies for Jospeh. We always end with reiterations about how no matter what force you're up against, you have the power to choose for yourself what kind of peron to be, etc.

I'm so excited to be able to take them to see Wicked live! If you've never seen the show, I highly recommend it!