ELPHIE A Wicked Childhood

It's up to listeners to decide if they need a deep dive into the early childhood of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, who is the protagonist of the international phenomenon WICKED: THE MUSICAL. For those who do, Edoardo Ballerini's storytelling is grand and decisive as he wades through this dark addition to the canon. Elphaba is born to a father who is a pious missionary and a mother who is promiscuous and more concerned with her own image-conscious mother than with her daughter. She even isolates Elphaba from society. Taking the tone of a formal bedtime story, Ballerini vocalizes Elphaba's first bruising attempts at friendships and the childhood jealousies that result. ELPHIE is a worthy addition to the WICKED universe. K.L.L. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2025]