Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Wicked!Ariana Grande-Butera turned down a big move for Evil‘Popular,’ according to original music composer and writer Stephen Schwartz, who also revealed what changed about the music in the film adaptation. The story of Evil features Galinda of Great-Butera befriending Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) at Shiz University, before the pair become Glinda the Good Witch and the Wicked Witch of the West, respectively. Early in their friendship, Galinda tries to get Elphaba to change her style to become more popular, causing the classic song to be removed from the Broadway musical.
However, speaking to Variety, Schwartz revealed that the music team almost gave “Popular” a hip-hop remake for Evilwith Grande-Butera closing the idea. According to the composer and writer, the star wanted the music to be as close to the Broadway show as possible, not wanting to add an unnecessary touch that would diminish the character. However, they ended up changing a few octaves towards the end of the song to emphasize her vocal range. Check out what Schwartz had to say below:
In the spirit of being open to new things for the film, my music team and I thought, let’s update the tempo. Let’s maybe, I don’t know, turn up the hip-hop a little. Ariana said: ‘Absolutely no, don’t do that. I want to be Glinda, not Ariana Grande playing Glinda.
I had this idea for a new vocal ending. Ariana was a little hesitant about it, but I told her that if I had thought of it for the original show, it would have gone like this. Once she was sure that this new song was getting out of character, she agreed.
What Grande-Butera’s refusal to change Wicked’s music meant for the film
Keeping the songs faithful strengthened the film
Grande-Butera’s refusal to do a remixed version of “Popular” emphasizes how the cast of Evil kept the film faithful to the Broadway show. The film’s other songs, from “The Wizard and I” to “Defying Gravity”, are also very close to, if not the same as, the original stage performances. By not changing much the way the music itself was presented, the film offers a faithful adaptation of the storyusing only CGI effects and larger sets to emphasize established plot elements.
The songs in Evil are considered Broadway classics, making their presentation extremely important in the development of a film adaptation. By keeping the music as is, with just a few small changes to showcase the talent of its main actors, the film shows how much respect it has for the original composition. However, its small changes help make the theatrical version stand-alonehelping to show why Grande-Butera and Erivo were cast in the lead roles. Having his talent come through naturally with the source material makes his performances stand out even more.
Our Take on Wicked Keeping Popular Songs and Other Music the Same
No great remix makes it sound like a Broadway show
Keeping the songs on Evil it reinforces the work that Schwartz and co-writer Winnie Holzman put into the original Broadway musical, paying homage to the play while presenting it in a different way. While it would be interesting to see what different interpretations of songs like “Popular” would sound like, it ended up being a better decision to leave it as is. The same will probably happen in the next Wicked Part Twowhen it hits theaters next year.
Source: Variety