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'Wicked' Comes To Baltimore

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- It's almost show time. Thirteen semi-trucks filled with equipment---one of them just for costumes.

Amy Yensi got to see "Wicked" load in to Baltimore.

The theater will come alive on Wednesday night but a lot goes on before the curtains open.

The booming vocal performances and intricate set designs keep "Wicked: The Musical" a hit with theater lovers. Now you can see it live---without a trip to Broadway.

"If you're going to come see the show here in Baltimore, it's basically like seeing the show at the Gershwin Theater in New York," said "Wicked" company manager Ryan Lympus.

A 70-member crew, the same costumes and caliber of actors but closer to home at the Hippodrome Theatre. Bringing the Great White Way to Charm City is no small feat.

"We travel with everything, including the stage deck: all the lights, the speakers, the precinium, the costumes and props," Lympus said.

The giant dragon will be breathing down on audience members starting Wednesday evening and will be here for the next four weeks.

It takes two and a half days to set everything up so the tour hires an additional 70-80 stagehands to make it happen.

The tour travels with its own musicians and conductor but nine local musicians will also play the show while it's in town.

Lympus says aside from the special effects, the story of the Wicked Witch of the West and the Good Witch of the North is why it's so popular.

"The story of Elphaba, the green witch, trying to fit into a world where she's really different---that's the story that people really relate to," he said.

There are still tickets available and the last show is on April 26. There are eight shows every week.

This is the third time the tour is stopping in Baltimore. It debuted on Broadway eleven and a half years away.

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