On Thursday evening I arrived at The Lowry in keen anticipation of the night! Visitng Media City itself is always a nice treat – I do think it’s a great asset to Manchester and the North West – and if you haven’t yet visited I would definitely recommend jumping on the Metrolink for a day out and a walk around the canals and industrial buildings.

The Lowry itself is also inherently a part of Manchester and Salford, and even if you aren’t able to attend a show there, definitely visit and check out the free art exhibitions they have on offer. As well as the obvious displays from Mancunian artist, LS Lowry, there’s always changing exhibitions and the building itself is a work of art. There are a few small different theatres/screens in The Lowry and Wicked was of course taking centre stage in the main theatre – I don’t really have pictures of that, but it’s a beautiful purple, modern theatre and the seats are super comfortable too!

Once inside, I was greeted at the press table and had my moment on the ‘green carpet’ of course – everything is Elphaba (the Wicked which of the West and star of the show!) green. As well as press and local celebs (think Coronation street stars, Lancashire Cricket players and the Manchester family from Gogglebox!), there were certainly a lot of Wicked Superfans. I saw more than one person dressed in green, and honestly I was kind of loving it. It’s so great to see people so passionate about a theatre production and after watching the show, I can really understand why they were…

Taking my seat inside The Lowry I was greeted with the most incredible set – note the huge dragon! – before it had even started. Wicked is a West End and Broadway musical that since opening 9 years ago has created a phenomena around itself. Telling the story of Glinda the Good Witch and Elphaba, The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz, it is based on the international best-selling novel ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ by Gregory Maguire. It tells how these two witches met and developed their own personalities before they ever visited Oz. And honestly, it’s pretty incredible how so many parts of the plot overlap and come to answer for so many oddities in the original Wizard of Oz.

Yep, you might have guessed that the two above pictures weren’t taken by me, but as one knows, one is not allowed to snap away during the performance. I also wouldn’t want to give too much away about the plot, or what to expect, but what you can expect is an absolutely magical couple of hours, getting lost in fantastic acting, singing and dancing. The sets, costumes and aesthetics are so fantastically over the top, and the music is so passionate, that I felt myself getting emotional more than once (perhaps helped by a glass or two of wine, but mostly of course to the music).

The first half was technically the longest half, but time passed so quickly as I totally swept up by the whole musical. It’s definitely not just a musical, but a whole experience, and every part of the performance encompasses so much attention to detail. During the 15 minute interval, I enjoyed a glass of wine and popcorn canapes in the Wicked-themed VIP press room, enjoying a glass of wine whilst overlooking the rest of Media City as the sunset; a magical experience in itself.

Over all, I could not recommend #WickedUK to you enough. If you get the chance – go! Just go, to the Wicked Musical at The Lowry you won’t regret it. There are currently tickets left for Monday – Wednesday performances at The Lowry before it’s closing date on Saturday 25th July, so take the chance while you can – you can find out more info here.