Wicked returns to the Proctors stage tonight to start a nearly two-week run at the storied Schenectady theater, unspooling the fantastical Wizard of Oz lore that now has fans enamored with the OG villain herself, the Wicked Witch of the West.
The award-winning musical flies into the Electric City at a time when the Wicked story has never been more popular. Next month, Wicked: For Good, the sequel to last year’s blockbuster movie starring Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande, will hit theaters. But for now, the show that inspired it is coming right to our own backyard.
In the musical, which runs from October 29–November 9 at Proctors, Jessie Davidson steps into the iconic role of Elphaba. The actress plays the misunderstood, smart, green-skinned girl with a fiery spirit who’s befriended by Glinda, the popular, ambitious blonde who sparkles with charm. Together, they form an unlikely friendship that changes their lives (and Oz) forever.
The untold story of the Witches of Oz is a stunning production featuring elaborate costumes and a Tony Award–winning score by Stephen Schwartz. The musical—based on the book by Winnie Holzman—reintroduces our favorite characters from the Land of Oz, encouraging audiences each night to rethink what they know about good and evil.
Davidson’s take is less about menace and more about meaning—she plays a principled outsider who won’t accept the world as it is simply because that’s how it’s always been. Opposite her is Zoe Jensen, whose Glinda sparkles without ever tipping into stereotype. Jensen arrives with Broadway-tour bona fides—Eliza in Hamilton and a turn in Dear Evan Hansen—and makes the role feel newly minted.
“Zoe always pops in my dressing room while I’m still greening before the show,” Davidson says in a recent interview with Charlotte, NC’s WBTV News. “We have a little check-in just to be like, ‘You good? You good?’ ‘Yes.’ ‘All right, we’re rolling.’” That micro-ritual becomes macro-storytelling: two women meeting each other where they are, then refusing to let go.
“It’s one of those thrilling moments where I’m getting to go live my dream,” Jensen says of her role. “Getting to put on the iconic costumes—it’s really such a gift… It’s easily one of the hardest shows I’ve ever done based off stamina and what the role requires of where [Glinda] goes emotionally… To get to experience that with other audience members… is really, really quite an honor.”
In 2025, the Elphaba–Glinda bond reads like a guidebook for living together in complicated times. These women begin as opposites and end as advocates, modeling curiosity over certainty and connection over cliques.
“There’s possibility for connection with people who are so different from us,” says Jensen. It’s a point driven home by the show’s famous finale of friendship. In a culture that can default to sorting and siloing, Wicked argues for something braver: meeting, listening, changing.
Tickets for Wicked at Proctors are on sale now. For more information, visit atproctors.org or call the Box Office at 518.346.6204, Tuesday–Saturday 12–6pm.
