Turns Out The Boca Raton Native Isn’t Just A Singer. She Is One Heck Of An Actress!
BY: ANDREW COLTON | Editor and Publisher
BOCA RATON, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2024 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — Boca Raton native Ariana Grande just did something that few other performers could have pulled off. Bring the character of “Glinda The Good Witch” to life in a movie that in many ways is more compelling than the Broadway musical on which it is based. Wicked is a stunning movie musical that, unlike many movie musicals, doesn’t suck. In fact, we won’t be surprised if Ariana Grande wins several awards for her performance.
Grande’s upbringing in Boca Raton is well-documented. She attended both North Broward Prep and Pine Crest. Her parents remain in the area. She now lives in California but the legend of Ariana Grande lives on in Palm Beach County where she is occasionally seen. And let’s be clear: it’s that Boca Raton upbringing that may very well be the foundation for her approach to Glinda in Wicked. How so? We say this with utmost respect to her and her craft: it’s challenging to be empathetically sarcastic on film, but that’s exactly how she plays Glinda. And it works. Beautifully.
Boca Raton is the home of empathetic sarcasm. People pretending to care about other people but only doing so through the prism of making themselves look good. (Example: “Do you need help crossing the street? I’d love to help you cross the street, just as soon as I tell my aunt in Great Neck and everyone in my condo association that I helped you cross the street.”)
That’s Glinda for most of the movie, and Ariana Grande brings the viewer into the character and often into the joke, flawlessly. You find yourself smiling at her delivery, at her mannerisms, at her portrayal. She is a pleasure to watch. And her singing — to no one’s surprise — is stunning. She is the complete package.
For those of our readers who think they’ll never see a movie musical, we encourage you to think twice. Wicked is gorgeously shot — much of it shot on a real-life Emerald City set constructed in the UK, not just against a blue screen (Elphaba is green — so green screens are out). The acting from all of the performers, including Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba, Michelle Yeoh as Madame Morrible, Jeff Goldblum as the Wizard, Jonathan Bailey as Flyero Tigellar, and Ethan Slater as Boq Woodsman, makes the nearly three hour movie fly by like a witch across the western sky. This Is the first part of a two-part movie. “Wicked: Part 2” will be released in a year.
Wicked Part 1: Directed by Jon M. Chu, now showing in theaters across Palm Beach County. Rated PG. Runs 2:40.
