UApresents and Broadway in Tucson are teaming up to bring the biggest-selling Broadway musical of all time to Centennial Hall.
"Wicked" will be here for three weeks from next Jan. 5 to 23 as a joint production of the two arts groups - the biggest outside collaboration for UApresents and the first time that Broadway in Tucson has worked with another Tucson arts group on a production.
Single tickets won't be available until October, but current season-ticket holders for either group get first dibs when they renew for 2010-11. Both organizations say that will be in about a month.
This will be the first Broadway play at the 2,456-seat Centennial Hall since UApresents cut its Broadway series in the 2006-07 season.
"This is one show we did want to have on the (University of Arizona) campus, and it makes sense to have it on our stage. It's wonderful," said UApresents Executive Director Natalie Bohnet.
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Ironically, Broadway in Tucson and UApresents were considered competitors when the former came to Tucson in 2004. Two years later, UApresents decided against bringing in big road shows, leaving musical theater to Broadway in Tucson.
The two groups began discussing the collaboration last fall when it became apparent that Broadway in Tucson couldn't reserve Tucson Music Hall for the three-week run. The company shares the 2,289-seat venue with two other resident groups, the Tucson Symphony Orchestra and Arizona Opera, both of which already had reserved time in January.
TSO has three concerts that month including, ironically, a pops concert that explores the music of "The Wizard of Oz" movie; Arizona Opera has a production at the end of January.
"It was impossible to fit it in around the scheduling structure for the symphony and opera," said Lendre Kearns, Broadway in Tucson's general manager.
Nick Scandalios, executive vice president of Broadway in Tucson's New York-based parent company, Nederlander, said the joint effort could lead to future collaborations.
"It's an exciting notion that by working in partnership with UApresents, . . . we might be able to bring in other shows that normally pass us by," Kearns added. "What about 'Mary Poppins'? What about bringing 'Phantom' back? 'The Little Mermaid' is hitting the road. We (have) the potential . . . to play some of those."
Neither Scandalios nor Bohnet would comment on the partnership's financial arrangements.
Kearns said both groups will split the run for their season-ticket holders so that no one is vying for the same seat.
On StarNet: Go to azstarnet.com/gallery to see more photos from the production.
Tickets
• On-sale dates: Current Broadway in Tucson and UApresents season-ticket holders get first shot at tickets when they renew for the 2010-11 season in a month or so. Single tickets won't go on sale until October. Prices will run $35 to $129, according to Broadway in Tucson.
• Details: www.broadwayintucson.com or www.uapresents.org
Tale of the tickets
"The Lion King"
• Presented by: Broadway in Tucson for a six-week run from Aug. 17 to Sept. 24, 2006.
• Tickets sold: 82,000, for an 85 percent capacity run.
• Receipts: $5.7 million.
• Economic impact: About $5 million, according to Broadway in Tucson.
"The Phantom of the Opera"
• Presented by: UApresents for a four-week run from April 10 to May 4, 2002.
• Tickets sold: 59,700, for a 75 percent capacity run.
• Receipts: $3.37 million.
• Economic impact: $10 million, according to UApresents.
Wild about 'Wicked'
• The story: Ever wonder what happened in the Land of Oz before Dorothy dropped in? That's the story of "Wicked." It takes us into the friendship between Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West, and Galinda (later Glinda), the Good Witch of the North. Songs and lyrics are by Stephen Schwartz, and the book is by Winnie Holzman, based on Gregory Maguire's best-selling novel "Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West."
• The appeal: "Every once in a while, a show comes along and it taps into something that's in the zeitgeist of the human condition. . . . What 'Wicked' does is take that deeply human thing and take it to a place that's above and beyond, which is why people keep coming back and seeing it again. . . . People just respond to it. It's guttural." - Nick Scandalios, executive vice president of Nederlander.
'Wicked' Timeline
• Opening date: The Tony Award-winning show opened at the Gershwin Theatre on Broadway on Oct. 30, 2003; it is still there and is sold out on most nights.
• On the road: "Wicked" hit the road with its March 7, 2005, opening at Toronto's Canon Theatre, where it played seven weeks. It has since played in more than 80 cities worldwide.
• Off to London: "Wicked" opened at London's West End on Sept. 27, 2006. The run will continue to at least Oct. 30. It also is playing in Japan, Germany and Australia.
• Arizona runs: The production came to Arizona State University's Gammage Auditorium Aug. 23 to Sept. 3, 2006. The run sold out, with 45,500 tickets sold. The show returned last July 1 to 26; 90,700 tickets were sold.
Contact reporter Cathalena E. Burch at cburch@azstarnet.com or 573-4642.
