Willemijn Verkaik returning to West End production of Wicked

West End Frame Award winner Willemijn Verkaik is returning to the West End production of Wicked to reprise her performance as Elphaba from Monday 30th January 2017. 

Sue Kelvin is also returning as Madame Morrible whilst Sarah McNicholas is joining the cast as Nessarose. As previously announced, Rachel Tucker (Elphaba), Anita Dobson (Madame Morrible) and Katie Rowley Jones (Nessarose) will play their final performance on 28th January 2017.

In 2014 Verkaik won West End Frame’s Best West End Debut Award for her portrayal of Elphaba in Wicked (Apollo Victoria). The Dutch star first played the role in Germany in 2007. She then starred as Elphaba in Holland before joining the Broadway company, making her the only actress to have played the iconic character in three different languages. 

Verkaik  is the voice of Elsa in the German and Dutch language versions of Disney's Frozen which is the highest grossing animated movie of all time. After leaving the Wicked London in 2015, she played Paulina in the West End premiere of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (Playhouse Theatre).

Her theatre credits also include: Kala in Disney's Tarzan (Germany), Donna in Mamma Mia (Stuttgart, Germany), Songs For A New World (Stuttgart, Germany), Amneris in Aida (Tecklenburg, Germany) and Killer Queen in We Will Rock You (Cologne, Germany). 

The current West End cast of Wicked also includes Suzie Mathers (Glinda), Oliver Savile (Fiyero), Mark Curry (The Wizard), Martin Ball (Doctor Dillamond), Idriss Kargbo (Boq), Alice Fearn (Standby for Elphaba) and Carina Gillespie (Standby for Glinda).

Wicked will celebrate 10 years at the Apollo Victoria Theatre on Tuesday 27th September 2016 and is already the 8th longest-running show currently playing in West End. Around the world, Wicked has now been seen by 50 million people in 14 countries, and won over 100 major awards.

Wicked has music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and is based on the novel ‘Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West’ by Gregory Maguire. It is adapted for the stage by Winnie Holzman. Musical staging is by Wayne Cilento and the production is directed by Joe Mantello.

Photo Credit: Matt Crockett