Elphaba may have been reluctant to attend Shizu University, but Cynthia Erivo still wants to pursue a Ph.D.
Specifically, the star, who plays Elphaba in the on-screen “Wicked,” is interested in how everyday experiences affect people's voices, including when they speak as well as when they sing. Masu. Erivo was enthusiastic about this research after being accepted as a fellow at Harvard University's Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study in 2021, but had to decline the fellowship due to his never-ending busy schedule. Ta.
Although filming has wrapped on Wicked, she just wrapped up a big press tour for Part 1, is in the middle of an awards season campaign (this week includes SAG Award nominations), and is poised for another big media blitz. facing sexuality. when the second part opens later this year. She also starred in, produced, and adapted the film version of the Tony Award-winning Broadway drama “Prima Facie.”
However, what remained in her mind was that she was working as a teacher at her alma mater, the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. “All I can say is, always,” she said in a recent interview. when they sing. ”
She explained that when students reach a note that excites them, they seem to back off. “The notes are there. The sounds are there,” she realized, but “they put it in the song. It disappears.”
Erivo, who got together in late November just a week after Wicked grossed a whopping $114 million domestically, seems relieved to have suddenly become a global superstar. He was surprisingly enthusiastic about sharing his theories on the psychology of speech.
Even without Elphaba's green makeup, micro-braids, and black dress, Erivo was instantly recognizable to the patrons of Sardi's in Manhattan's theater district that we spoke to. Wearing a two-tone Regina Pyo skirt and an olive Sies Marjan feather sweater, she sported her signature long bejeweled nails, dazzling nose and ear piercings, and close-shaven haircut. He was also proud of his charm. Downstairs, her likeness was displayed on the restaurant's celebrity wall. This is an honor she received after winning a 2016 Tony Award for her role as Celie in the Broadway revival of The Color Purple. (She also won an Emmy and a Grammy for her performance in connection with the role.)
What connects The Color Purple, Wicked, and other key moments in her career is her ability to move seamlessly between her characters' understated personalities and passionate inner expressions. is. Sitting with Erivo, I could see the qualities she shared with them: a keen intellect and an inquisitive mind. These traits are in line with the screen roles for which she is best known, including the bookish Elphaba, the genius Aretha Franklin in the 2017 miniseries Genius: Aretha, and the prophet Harriet Tubman in the 2019 biopic. This is best reflected in performance.
“I didn’t choose the characters lightly,” she said. Their intelligence, which manifests itself in many ways, allows her to enter their psyche. I've overcome it. ”
Erivo confidently says that she doesn't want her characters to disappear, but rather, “maybe they stay with you and help you work through something, remember something, and change something.” He explained. She admitted that it might be a lot to ask of the characters, but for her, “It's kind of a thrill and I hope that it might be possible.”
This also explains the influence she had on the “Wicked” creative team after her audition. The film's director, Jon M. Chu, who first saw Erivo on Broadway, said he wasn't sure whether the then-35-year-old would be able to embrace that young, innocent character again, especially under these circumstances. He said he couldn't have it. , a “different atmosphere” in Oz.
“She was wearing jeans and a T-shirt, and my idea of what she was capable of completely changed,” Chu recalls. “She was like a little girl, and the way she sang 'The Wizard and I' was nothing like Cynthia Erivo from The Untouchables.”
“She made me completely believe in Elphaba's longing for a better place and her optimism at the beginning of the film,” he continued, adding, “We never knew we were coming out. Instead, we were waiting for someone to come into the room and take our role away from us.” Along with excuses as to why someone should be cast. We just wanted to see the person for who they are, and that's what she does. ”
Awards voters also have some support. Erivo was nominated for a Golden Globe, but lost to Demi Moore. She is currently a SAG Award nominee and is considered a strong contender when Oscar nominations are announced on January 19th. Her influence on popular culture continues to resonate at the Golden Globe Awards and other appearances. His “Holding Space” interview with Wicked co-star Ariana Grande quickly went viral and inspired countless memes.
Erivo has spent his career pushing the expectations of others. First, she won the role of Celie in the London revival of “The Color Purple” in 2013, then took a nearly two-year hiatus from theaters in 2015 when the show moved to New York. Four years later, there was a backlash when Erivo, who was born and raised in Britain and is of Nigerian descent, was cast as Tubman, a famous black abolitionist who escaped slavery in the American South. However, Erivo was nominated for both Academy Awards for Best Actress and Best Original Song.
In “Wicked,” she wore green makeup and prosthetic ears, but Erivo's transformations rarely involve radical physical changes. At 5 feet 1 inch tall, she tends to look larger than life due to the icons she plays, her thorough research process, and diligent preparation long before filming.
Kasi Lemmons, the director of “Harriet,” said she was amazed by Erivo's ability to imbue even the smallest details into scenes that were complex and harrowing to shoot. “The first thing we did was have Harriet lead people seeking freedom across a vast field. And when Cynthia came along, she was Harriet, but then she ran away. ,” Lemons said. “It wasn't the kind of athletic run I've seen her do in movies like Widows. There was something feminine about her run, the way she wore her dress. There was something so ordinary about it. She brought a softness to Harriet that I thought was essential, until it unfolded in front of me. I didn’t know if it was.”
Erivo experienced similarly captivating moments in Wicked's “The Wizard and I,” a remarkable work that reveals Elphaba's ambition, loneliness, and self-consciousness. But while it's only for a moment, it's more than just that. When Elphaba looks in the mirror and sees her skin change from green to brown and back again, the film recognizes the power of casting Erivo as a rare black actress in this beloved role. .
Leslie Odom Jr., who visited the set of Wicked last year, filmed a scene with Erivo in Harriet and John Ridley's romance film Needle in a Timestuck (2021). I witnessed it. “It was just a joy to see someone master some discipline. When you can do it at that skill level, I find it very inspiring,” he told me. I did. “But I also saw tenderness and acceptance of herself. That means this piece is not tortured. Witnessing someone allowing themselves to be enough.” I felt like I was.”
And Erivo's finale of Wicked, “Defying Gravity,” is such an unforgettable combination of virtuosity, vulnerability, and charisma that, for me, an avid Wicked theater fan, I will never listen to it any other way again. However, Chu pointed out that: I never stopped working to master a scene. “It takes resilience, dedication, and a commitment to see that character through to the end.'' Watching her requires all of us to commit to that level, and it raises the bar for everyone.'' I did.”
