Here’s the poignant story behind the resurfaced video of Idina Menzel playing “Wicked’s” Elphaba on Broadway in red sweats and without her green skin

On November 29, 2024By Littum

As you probably know, Evil is having a bit of a moment right now thanks to the inevitable starring movie adaptation Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande that was released last week.

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande as Elphaba and Glinda in Wicked — Therefore, it is only natural that there has also been renewed interest in the stage show, which originated back in 2003.

For context, *Evil* is a loose adaptation of Gregory Maguire’s 1995 novel *Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West*which in turn was inspired by the 1900 L. Frank Baum novel *The Wonderful Wizard of Oz* and its 1939 film adaptation.

© Universal Pictures / Courtesy Everett Collection

While Cynthia and Ariana play the lead characters of Elphaba and Glinda respectively in the film, musical theater plays Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth were the first actors ever to play these roles.

Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel at the curtain call for Wicked — The two led the cast when the production debuted in San Francisco in May 2003, and stayed on when the show transferred to Broadway in New York later that year. They are also the vocalists heard on the original Broadway Cast recording of *Evil* soundtrack.

Both Idina and Kristin won critical acclaim for their performances on the show and quickly became synonymous with the production, and their legacy was repeatedly honored in the film adaptation as well as the campaign process surrounding the release.

Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

Amidst all this, a video of Idina performing as Elphaba on Broadway has resurfaced online, with many confused by the fact that she’s wearing a red Adidas tracksuit instead of her character’s costume – and she’s also not green skin.

Joey McIntyre as the Scarecrow and Idina Menzel in a red tracksuit appear in Wicked — What *Evil* newcomers don’t know is that this is a rather infamous moment in Broadway history when Idina bravely chose to return to the stage after breaking her rib during a previous performance – here’s the full story.

As mentioned, Idina started the role of Elphaba in May 2003, and during a matinee performance in January 2005 – just one day before her last scheduled show – the star fell through a trap door during the show’s melting stage and suffered a painful injury.

According to reports at which point the show ended up being stopped for 45 minutes as an emergency crew came to get her out of the trap and to a nearby hospital.

Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

Shoshana Bean was a stand-in for Elphaba during this production, and apparently ended up turning green in just seven minutes so she could perform the last two minutes of this show for the audience.

Jennifer Laura Thompson and Idina Menzel during Idina Menzel's final performance in "Evil" After injury during the show — Shoshana then played Elphaba for the evening show that day, and also stepped in for the next day’s performance while Idina recovered.

Fans – some of whom booked tickets for this date specifically to see Idina’s final show – were understandably disappointed to miss out, but the star ended up surprising them with an unprecedented performance towards the end of the second act.

Shoshana played Elphaba until the climactic meltdown scene, then right after Idina took the stage in her tracksuit for the last few minutes.

Not surprisingly, the audience went wild.

Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

In fact, Idina received a rousing five-minute standing ovation — some of which can be heard in a clip that recently went viral on TikTok.

TikTok @broadwayvideos / Via tiktok.com

The video, which was first uploaded on Wednesday, has been viewed more than 650,000 times and has garnered tens of thousands of likes and hundreds of comments.

Many praised Idina for bravely closing her race as planned and giving her fans a truly unique memory that will last them a lifetime.

Jennifer Laura Thompson and Idina Menzel during Idina Menzel's final performance in "Evil" After injury during Sho — Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic

Remarkably, this did not actually end up being Idina’s last run as Elphaba, with the star reprising her role in London’s West End in 2006.