by Denis Grindel
Broadway’s long-running, smash hit phenomenon WICKED landed in town last week with a bang! It’s clear our audiences are totally enchanted by this heart warming reimagination of the Wicked Witch of the West, so we decided to catch up with the stars of the show, Talia Suskauer and Allison Bailey, to find out what makes this show so very magical...
Playhouse Square - PSQ: Hi ladies! Thanks for taking the time to chat with us today. You are both so very welcome to Playhouse Square! To kick things off let's introduce yourselves for anyone out there who doesn’t know you already....so what’s your name?
AB: Hi I’m Allison Bailey
TS: And I’m Talia Suskauer
PSQ: Have you got any nicknames?
AB: Ummm... I call her T T sometimes ha....
TS: She’s Bailey....
PSQ: And who do you play in the show?
AB: I play Glinda the Good Witch
TS: And I play Elphaba
PSQ: Where are your from originally?
TS: I’m from Pensacola Florida
AB: I’m from Palm Beach Gardens Florida
PSQ: Ever been to Cleveland before?
AB: YES!
TS: ...no
PSQ: Are you looking forward to seeing anything while you’re in town?
TS: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for sure...
AB: Absolutely, that’s what I’m looking forward to most....and the food! I heard the food is good here?
PSQ: What was the first show you were ever part of?
TS: When I was 4 in preschool I was in The Wizard of Oz and I played Dorothy!
PSQ: Wow full circle moment right?
AB: When I was 7 I was in Oliver and I played an orphan.... pivotal role...haha!
PSQ: What is the message of WICKED to you?
TS: Love and friendship and treating others the way you’d want to be treated.
AB: ...and not judging a book by it’s cover!
PSQ: Any pre-show ritual?
TS: Always seeing each other...we have to see each other and hang out before the show.
AB: Yes and making tea together!
TS: Tea! Yes we love tea.
PSQ: What kind?
AB: Ginger Turmeric!! It’s so good.
TS: So good!
PSQ: Good for the voice?
TS: Yeah.
PSQ: What's your favorite moment in the show?
TS: Ummm... really anything we do together... but I love when you first see that Glinda and Elphaba are going to be friends and they grab hands and they are like this is it...we’re doing this together!
AB: Popular is very fun... it goes together with the friendship theme....
PSQ: Ok, some quick fire questions to finish.... Pink or Green?
TS: GREEN!
AB: Pink!
PSQ: Bubble or Broomstick?
TS: Broomstick baby!
AB: Bubble... all day... every day!
PSQ: And if you had a magical power in real life what would it be?
TS: To fly!
AB: ...to travel by Bubble of course!
You can catch Allison and Talia in WICKED now playing at Playhouse Square through Jan 2. Tickets available at Playhousesquare.org.
