Wicked says goodbye, as Jersey Boys reigns supreme
The year-long Sydney season of Wicked has come to an end, with the hit show playing its final performance at the Capitol Theatre on Sunday.
The year-long Sydney season of Wicked has come to an end, with the hit show playing its final performance at the Capitol Theatre on Sunday.
But the city will not be left without a major hit show, with Jersey Boys doing incredible business at the Theatre Royal and producers said to be quietly confident of a run longer than Wicked.
The end of the Sydney season, which is the start of a short break for the company before it moves to other cities including Brisbane and Adelaide, marks several key milestone moments.
On Saturday, Patrice Tipoki played Elphaba for the final time, after taking on the role following Amanda Harrison’s departure. Tipoki will not continue on to other cities.
And yesterday, it was Jemma Rix taking her final bow in the role.
Wicked has been a major success for master producer John Frost, who all but re-wrote the book when it came to marketing a major musical and presenting it in such a way that it became an integral part of tourism in the city it was playing in.
Such a concept from Frost was far more successful in Melbourne than in the tougher Sydney market, but the show still made a huge impact on the harbour city and its theatre-goers.
Meanwhile, Jersey Boys is gaining rave reviews and doing great business in Sydney, where it will now be left as the city’s only major musical.
Records were broken at the Theatre Royal last week when Jersey Boys became the highest grossing show in the theatre’s history.
The show is gaining much media acclaim and is earning money-can’t-buy publicity on such outlets as Radio 2GB, whose audience is the perfect market for such a show. It has been celebrated by breakfast show host Alan Jones, while morning show host Ray Hadley labelled it the “best musical” he has ever seen.
Co-Producer Paul Dainty predicted before Jersey Boys opened that it would emerge as a major success for the city.
“Sydney will unquestionably fall in love with Jersey Boys,” he said.
“The music alone is worth coming to the show but Jersey Boys has not become the global phenomenon just for the well known tunes. Jersey Boys has a great script – it is like a play and a rock concert all in one. People grew up with the music, no matter what age you are. On top of that, you get this great story that thrusts you into an enthralling journey at breakneck pace which you are not expecting.”
Jersey Boys has not posted a Theatre Royal closing date.