While i agree with most of this, i definitely did not get the impression that her life got better after she was cured. Everyone in her life left her under the belief that she "didn't need them anymore." My interpretation was that she became an evil dictator embittered by the realization that everyone she loved only saw her as an object of pity. With that framing i think they could keep the plot point, if they added some scenes to strengthen those themes.
@@DizzyBility They hired a real wheelchair user for the movie because it's possible to do her storyline with movie magic. But it's impossible/impractical to do on stage.
Good point! Perhaps a corrected version would be: before she was cured, she was adamant her life would drastically improve if she was healed. However, she was proven wrong after it actually happened: highlighting that true happiness doesn’t solely depend on physical ability - other factors play a crucial role.
I agree with some of your points and adding depth to Nessa's character, however, I feel like the musical actually addressed some of these abelist themes the way they did intentionally. Wicked is about addressing superficiality, and how figures twist the narrative to have the public vilify people who are actually good via scapegoating, and use their appearances as a means to "other" them. Because of this context, I believe that it serves a platform to address issues in a very nuanced fashion. For instance, you mentioned Nessa being "cured" is a harmful narrative that reinforces stereotypes of being "fixed," but the musical already covers the issue. Even though Nessa is "fixed" with her problem in reality it's not because her conflict is being socially isolated and othered due to her physical condition. In this sense, it showcases the problem with "fixing" disabled people. Which is why I agree with you about giving Nessa more interactions with her peers for more in-depth perspective of being disabled and humanizing her.
It’s about cause and effect. Nessa and Elphaba are essentially two sides of the same coin. Nessa sheltered and spoilt rotten by her father who feels extreme guilt over making his wife take medication that caused deformities, yet Elphaba who essentially had an elixir also deform her body also is someone to be barely tolerated and shown contempt. Both children were victims of circumstance beyond their control, yet both treated very differently under the same roof. Which in turn developed their personalities. Nessa was spoilt by her Dad through her childhood, in the end as an adult she expected to be fawned on by those in her company even if it’s against their will. Essentially you could take Nessa out of that wheelchair and keep her personality traits and still have people treat her like she is helpless and pity her because her mother died so tragically, her personality would still be the same. And Elphaba essentially being indoctrinated in her from a young age by her father to look after her little sister would still react the same way.
This is how I read it too. Of course she blames herself for Nessa's condition, it's been hammered into her since childhood. Of course Nessa feels sorry for herself, bc of how their father treated her. If you've been treated like you're helpless, you're going to believe it. Elphaba does try to stop people from helping Nessa without permission, but some don't listen. Also, I think dismissing her behavior in Act II as simply being bc of her disability leaves a lot out. Of course she clings to Boq. Her sister has been declared an enemy of Oz, and her father died, leading to her taking over his position. The two people she loved most are now gone. Of course she's not a mentally healthy individual. And lastly, they live in a world of magic where talking animals can become mathematicians and work as nannies. I don't think it's shocking that someone raised to feel deficient bc she's wheelchair bound would ask her 'wicked witch' older sister to help her walk. And lastly, Elphaba doesn't take care of Nessa just bc she's in a wheel chair. She does it bc she's her older sister. That's just sibling behavior
Very much a golden child and scapegoat situation, Elphaba is the scapegoat and Nessa is the golden child. Elphie blames herself for what happened to Nessa because her father blames her for everything.
i don't think galinda using her to pawn boq off was presented as good. it's in Dancing through Life, the song about how interested Galinda is in being shallow, careless, inconsiderate, and selfish. Her one-two abuse of nessa and elphaba BOTH getting misinterpreted as Goodness *requires* her actions there to be actually Wicked. and it's pointed out immediately both times--first by fiyero and then by the dressing room friends, that galinda is being malicious on purpose. but because she is The Good, when she does Evil it's misinterpreted as magnanimity even by Elphaba. and because Elphaba is The Wicked, she gets misinterpreted as Evil any time she tries to do Good. that contrast is central to the show themes reiterated in Popular and Wonderful... and it requires Galinda to be appropriately read by the audience as a huge bitch to Nessa but man that act 2 I just saw the movie and stage tour back to back and the Monkeys Wings bit is a much different tone. onstage it's oh no for a minute until the monkeys have healed and then they don't apparently mind much. in the movie it's emphasized how horrible it is what happened to the monkeys. the monkeys are the only spell we see used before Nessa's shoes, they set the audience expectations for how the new spell will go with Nessa when elphaba starts doing it. i think the *physical* horrorshow with the movie monkeys is foreshadowing to us that in movie part 2, nessa's shoe spell will similarly be more overtly framed as a horrific mistake of elphaba's, just like the monkeys
While I agree with most of what you say, rewriting the musical at this point would probably cause more problems than solve them. Nessarose being able to walk via the shoes comes from the book in which, while not in a wheelchair, she has problems balancing when walking due to her lack of arms (her father being a Quadling caused this). Personally I think the film has done a better job of giving her agency and the second part will continue to do so. I wonder if the depiction of Elphaba “curing” her will be more negative since we have seen multiple times that she does not want to be “helped” because of her disability. If Elphaba does it despite Nessa not wanting her to, it would bring even more conflict and drama to their relationship, and I like that.
Perhaps instead of Nessa being cured and Boq announcing he's going to leave her, Nessa could find out another way that Boq doesn't really love her and has been in love with Glinda the whole time and then try to put the spell on him. Elphaba would still need to be involved in a way, so she can still feel like she let Nessa down in No Good Deed. There was a deleted scene that revealed that Elphaba knew Boq didn't have genuine feelings for Nessa. Maybe she either told Nessa the truth thinking that it was better for her to know, or forced Boq to tell her?
I think this is a really wonderful video essay that brings up a lot of excellent points about disability representation in wicked, and the harmful tropes it uses in telling its narrative and the ways that the movie version could potentially improve upon these shortcomings. I do agree with one of the other comment about, their interpretation of descent into evil, being more tied to her and distaste, and hurt surrounding people viewing her as an object of pity as opposed to who she is as a person, and I think that if the movies go that direction will also giving Nessa the depth that she deserves, that would be amazing.
I thought of a way to update the making Nessa walk scene that could work. Nessa would feel like Elphaba cares more about ‘stupid Animals’ than her own family but the way she would word it would make Elphaba think Nessa hates being in her chair or Nessa implies Boq would only truly care for her if it wasn’t for the chair and does the spell to make her ‘walk’ or something. The scene would imply it’s extremely painful for Nessa at all but the thought of being able to be with Boq overrides her pain. Another option would be Elphaba opens the book to show Nessa there’s no way to help but the pages flip to a random spell and Nessa just says the words, because she could half understand it, and it causes her to ‘walk’ with much pain. This would lead in perfect to the spell she does on Boq. Edit: Thought of another one that could work that has Elphaba respecting her sister better: because the film made a point of Nessa wheeling off in a jealous rage when Boq was part of the group saying bye to Glinda going to EC maybe she’ll be trying to emulate Glinda’s appearance in the hopes of making him love her and when dressing like Glinda doesn’t work she’ll assume it’s because she needs to walk as well. When she asks Elphaba to help her and refuses the grimmorie could flip to a spell to give someone what they want most and Elphaba goes into a trance reading it. When she’s done she’ll see Glinda, only the features are off because it made Nessa look like how she pictures Glinda along with wearing the ruby shoes, though it fools Boq for a moment he instinctively knows it’s not Glinda and would’berate’ Nessa for trying to change who she is and says how he loves the real Glinda for who she is. The spell would fade and we see the real Nessa, but now wearing the ruby shoes instead of silver, and angrily snatches the Grimmorie from Elphaba and butchers the spell because she now wants his love for Glinda gone, which causes his heart to vanish. The rest goes the same but this shows how jealous she is of Glinda and how desperate she is to get Boq to love her like she loves him even though he only has platonic love for her. Hopefully either version makes it less ableist and more about how her desperation and jealousy to keep Boq.
I've got another idea on how they could change it. The conflict I've seen mostly stablish in the first part seems to be that Nessa is annoyed that Elphaba draws attetion to herself (despite the fact that she never wants to do it on purpose). So I think the confrontation could be more in the lines of "you get all the attetion, the magic, the chance to meet the wizard". Elphaba spell could try to make some of her magic go into the shoes to "even things out", it would also play into Nessa being jelouse of Glinda who at this point is the famous "Good Witch", so she'd had another reason to want the powers. It would help to explain why Nessa is able to read the book (since they also made the fact that Elphaba can read it a bigger deal than in the show), why Nessa calls herself the Wicked witch of the East and why the shoes magic allow Dorothy to go back to Kansas. It's just an idea, we'll see what they end up doing.
I think you've missed the point. Somebody with a condition like Nessa's has close to a 0% chance of learning how to walk and is permanently disabled. When I speak about the "impossible cure" trope in the video I'm referring to these sorts of disabilities only. Although perhaps I could have gone into how Nessa's mobility issue is not the same as everybody else you may see in a wheelchair. As an ambulatory wheelchair user myself I'm quite aware that there are people with mobility issues who do walk.
*looks at your earrings* Cosmo, Wanda, you aren't fooling anyone. I now know you have, FAIRY GODPARENTS!!! In all seriousness this was a really good video with excellent points. Keep up the good work!
Some great points here that are good things to keep in mind but they've mostly been invalidated already, so I can add rebuttals having seen the movie since it appears this video was made without watching it. It is made quite clear in the movie that people moving Nessa around without her permission is a bad thing, not something that is accepted. Someone pushing Nessa around despite her protest is even what sparks Elphaba's outburst that forces her to expose her magic. Boq in the movie (at least thus far) does not pursue Nessa out of pity, but rather because Glinda asks him to, and when Nessa calls him out on suspecting she's being pitied, he truthfully protests that assumption since it was not part of his reasoning. Him preferring Glinda has nothing to do with Nessa being in a wheelchair; he just happens to like Glinda and ends up with Nessa when he realizes Glinda isn't interested in him but Nessa is. Glinda is the only main character that expresses that condescending pity, and it is not portrayed as neutral or good, it is a flaw of Glinda's. Nessa is not ever cured - she is provided shoes that allow her to walk, which, while a far stretch of the imagination, are not so different in practical usage from the developing technology of functional prosthetics. You claimed her involvement was not integral to the plot, but I'm not sure how you can say that when her shoes are The Shoes that Dorothy steals. They need to be made important somehow and be on her feet when she's crushed, at a moment when there is not a wheelchair. All that said, Marissa Bode is a wheelchair user herself so I'm not worried and I'm sure her involvement will guarantee a careful portrayal of the situation.
Although in the universe of Oz, magic is real and it seems miracle cures are possible. Though isn't Nessa waking only due to enchanted glass slippers? Making them in effect a magic form of mobility aid?
That’s how I remember it. Also I believe the enchantment is actually to grant the heart’s desire of the wearer which is why those same slippers are later what allows Dorothy to wish herself home so technically the slippers don’t have to specifically allow Nessa to walk but could also do other things if she wanted
@@dolphmanity Well I disagree, but your comment is meaningless anyway since OP's point had nothing to do with that, they were saying that Marissa Bode is actually a wheelchair user, not just acting as one, so she would undoubtedly participate in advocating for herself and the accurate and respectful portrayal of a character in a wheelchair.
So you didnt really address this much but how would you maintain her antagonistic role in a non problematic way? Or is her being an antagonist inherently problematic and the wicked witch of the east should be changed?
Not sure how they portray it in the movie as I’ve yet to watch it but from what I recall in the book and stage show Nessa isn’t cured of her disability. The slippers are what allows her to walk but if she takes them off the magic stops working. It’s more like Elaphaba upgraded her mobility aid rather than curing her
That doesn't happen until act 2, which will be part 2 of the film, which hasn't released yet. But most of the criticisms in this video already don't apply to the movie.
Her Villainy IS tied to her disability though- as a lot of folks' abusive behavior is in real life. That's her element in the deconstruction of different kinds of evil- abusive behavior as a result of social isolation. That's what BPD/NPD are- neurological responses to years of trauma. And are disabilities in and of themselves.
Nessarose, unable to walk in the book due to lack of arms due to her birth, bot because her fathers from Quadling country, to who ever put this out there its wrong. Nesserose has been treated both in the book and the stage show, and the movie as her fathers perfect pet, and the one who gets the most attention due to her being not green but a normal color, and also in a wheelchair in the musical, since it would be hard to depict an actor or actress without any arms or hands and just feet to work with. The book their father is not the mayor of munchkin land their great grand father and grand father and mothers family are the ruling mayors of Munchkinland, and their father is a man of the un-named God, man who spreads the word of the gospel. In the show he's the governor and is abusive to Elphaba which is not the case in the book. Like father passed down Nesseros in the book is very overly religious and uses it to become a tyrant after Elphaba refuses to take up being governor even though she's the oldest child of the Throp family. In the stage show Nesserose is just handed the position after their father dies, which I'm sure added to her stress and it didn't matter if she was in a wheelchair or not, ruling at such a young age and the way she was forced into it, would change anyone. She's more uptight in the show and upset and nasty in it, and I think that Bode brings out the book side to Nesserose I'm hoping we get the more ridged Nesserose in part two. She keeps the munchkins there so that Boq stays with her and can't leave, she would have done that anyway in a chair or not in a chair. The wheel chair yes they pity her and Elphaba tries to do stuff for her, but Glinda just sees her and just wants to get ride of Boq who is a pest, and its not her fault that Boq cant come clean to Nesserose about why he really is looking after her. Also you can have a wheelchair user seem to be walking in a film, allot harder to do on a Broadway stage. The character is written based on Gregory Maguires character, and writers have the write to write their characters the way they see them and want them to be in their story they are telling.
I'd describe it as self-advocating for myself and other disabled folks who want the theatre industry to produce meaningful stories of lived experience, but go off, thanks for the engagement💁♀
@@izzzyiztrashwith all due lоve and respect I used to think this whole obsessive “асtivism”/advocacy thing was соol and mеaningful until I matured a lot and realised that a lot of it is tremendously “еcho-chamber-y” and dоgmatic, closed off to any other pеrspectives, and sounds incredibly аnnoying and entitled to normal people (as in people just trying to live their lives). Just fyi
Having a disability myself I'd like it to be normalised when a disabled person says they'd like not to be disabled anymore. No, it's not because I hate myself or because I want to "please society". It's because I would like things to be easier for me, because I would like to experience things that are out of my reach right now. Whenever I say this there is always someone telling me "there is nothing wrong with you, you can be happy just as you are" but at the same time I know they wouldn't want to be in my place...
While i agree with most of this, i definitely did not get the impression that her life got better after she was cured. Everyone in her life left her under the belief that she "didn't need them anymore." My interpretation was that she became an evil dictator embittered by the realization that everyone she loved only saw her as an object of pity. With that framing i think they could keep the plot point, if they added some scenes to strengthen those themes.
I felt this way too but it could be done with more depth and complexity… but would also love a wheelchair user to actually play the role too
@@DizzyBility Isn't Marissa Bode a wheelchair user?
@@DizzyBility They hired a real wheelchair user for the movie because it's possible to do her storyline with movie magic. But it's impossible/impractical to do on stage.
Good point! Perhaps a corrected version would be: before she was cured, she was adamant her life would drastically improve if she was healed. However, she was proven wrong after it actually happened: highlighting that true happiness doesn’t solely depend on physical ability - other factors play a crucial role.
I agree with some of your points and adding depth to Nessa's character, however, I feel like the musical actually addressed some of these abelist themes the way they did intentionally. Wicked is about addressing superficiality, and how figures twist the narrative to have the public vilify people who are actually good via scapegoating, and use their appearances as a means to "other" them. Because of this context, I believe that it serves a platform to address issues in a very nuanced fashion. For instance, you mentioned Nessa being "cured" is a harmful narrative that reinforces stereotypes of being "fixed," but the musical already covers the issue. Even though Nessa is "fixed" with her problem in reality it's not because her conflict is being socially isolated and othered due to her physical condition. In this sense, it showcases the problem with "fixing" disabled people. Which is why I agree with you about giving Nessa more interactions with her peers for more in-depth perspective of being disabled and humanizing her.
It’s about cause and effect.
Nessa and Elphaba are essentially two sides of the same coin. Nessa sheltered and spoilt rotten by her father who feels extreme guilt over making his wife take medication that caused deformities, yet Elphaba who essentially had an elixir also deform her body also is someone to be barely tolerated and shown contempt.
Both children were victims of circumstance beyond their control, yet both treated very differently under the same roof. Which in turn developed their personalities. Nessa was spoilt by her Dad through her childhood, in the end as an adult she expected to be fawned on by those in her company even if it’s against their will.
Essentially you could take Nessa out of that wheelchair and keep her personality traits and still have people treat her like she is helpless and pity her because her mother died so tragically, her personality would still be the same. And Elphaba essentially being indoctrinated in her from a young age by her father to look after her little sister would still react the same way.
This is how I read it too.
Of course she blames herself for Nessa's condition, it's been hammered into her since childhood.
Of course Nessa feels sorry for herself, bc of how their father treated her. If you've been treated like you're helpless, you're going to believe it. Elphaba does try to stop people from helping Nessa without permission, but some don't listen.
Also, I think dismissing her behavior in Act II as simply being bc of her disability leaves a lot out. Of course she clings to Boq. Her sister has been declared an enemy of Oz, and her father died, leading to her taking over his position. The two people she loved most are now gone. Of course she's not a mentally healthy individual.
And lastly, they live in a world of magic where talking animals can become mathematicians and work as nannies. I don't think it's shocking that someone raised to feel deficient bc she's wheelchair bound would ask her 'wicked witch' older sister to help her walk.
And lastly, Elphaba doesn't take care of Nessa just bc she's in a wheel chair. She does it bc she's her older sister. That's just sibling behavior
Very much a golden child and scapegoat situation, Elphaba is the scapegoat and Nessa is the golden child. Elphie blames herself for what happened to Nessa because her father blames her for everything.
i don't think galinda using her to pawn boq off was presented as good. it's in Dancing through Life, the song about how interested Galinda is in being shallow, careless, inconsiderate, and selfish. Her one-two abuse of nessa and elphaba BOTH getting misinterpreted as Goodness *requires* her actions there to be actually Wicked. and it's pointed out immediately both times--first by fiyero and then by the dressing room friends, that galinda is being malicious on purpose. but because she is The Good, when she does Evil it's misinterpreted as magnanimity even by Elphaba. and because Elphaba is The Wicked, she gets misinterpreted as Evil any time she tries to do Good. that contrast is central to the show themes reiterated in Popular and Wonderful... and it requires Galinda to be appropriately read by the audience as a huge bitch to Nessa
but man that act 2
I just saw the movie and stage tour back to back and the Monkeys Wings bit is a much different tone. onstage it's oh no for a minute until the monkeys have healed and then they don't apparently mind much. in the movie it's emphasized how horrible it is what happened to the monkeys. the monkeys are the only spell we see used before Nessa's shoes, they set the audience expectations for how the new spell will go with Nessa when elphaba starts doing it. i think the *physical* horrorshow with the movie monkeys is foreshadowing to us that in movie part 2, nessa's shoe spell will similarly be more overtly framed as a horrific mistake of elphaba's, just like the monkeys
While I agree with most of what you say, rewriting the musical at this point would probably cause more problems than solve them. Nessarose being able to walk via the shoes comes from the book in which, while not in a wheelchair, she has problems balancing when walking due to her lack of arms (her father being a Quadling caused this).
Personally I think the film has done a better job of giving her agency and the second part will continue to do so. I wonder if the depiction of Elphaba “curing” her will be more negative since we have seen multiple times that she does not want to be “helped” because of her disability. If Elphaba does it despite Nessa not wanting her to, it would bring even more conflict and drama to their relationship, and I like that.
Perhaps instead of Nessa being cured and Boq announcing he's going to leave her, Nessa could find out another way that Boq doesn't really love her and has been in love with Glinda the whole time and then try to put the spell on him. Elphaba would still need to be involved in a way, so she can still feel like she let Nessa down in No Good Deed. There was a deleted scene that revealed that Elphaba knew Boq didn't have genuine feelings for Nessa. Maybe she either told Nessa the truth thinking that it was better for her to know, or forced Boq to tell her?
I think this is a really wonderful video essay that brings up a lot of excellent points about disability representation in wicked, and the harmful tropes it uses in telling its narrative and the ways that the movie version could potentially improve upon these shortcomings. I do agree with one of the other comment about, their interpretation of descent into evil, being more tied to her and distaste, and hurt surrounding people viewing her as an object of pity as opposed to who she is as a person, and I think that if the movies go that direction will also giving Nessa the depth that she deserves, that would be amazing.
I thought of a way to update the making Nessa walk scene that could work.
Nessa would feel like Elphaba cares more about ‘stupid Animals’ than her own family but the way she would word it would make Elphaba think Nessa hates being in her chair or Nessa implies Boq would only truly care for her if it wasn’t for the chair and does the spell to make her ‘walk’ or something.
The scene would imply it’s extremely painful for Nessa at all but the thought of being able to be with Boq overrides her pain.
Another option would be Elphaba opens the book to show Nessa there’s no way to help but the pages flip to a random spell and Nessa just says the words, because she could half understand it, and it causes her to ‘walk’ with much pain.
This would lead in perfect to the spell she does on Boq.
Edit: Thought of another one that could work that has Elphaba respecting her sister better: because the film made a point of Nessa wheeling off in a jealous rage when Boq was part of the group saying bye to Glinda going to EC maybe she’ll be trying to emulate Glinda’s appearance in the hopes of making him love her and when dressing like Glinda doesn’t work she’ll assume it’s because she needs to walk as well. When she asks Elphaba to help her and refuses the grimmorie could flip to a spell to give someone what they want most and Elphaba goes into a trance reading it. When she’s done she’ll see Glinda, only the features are off because it made Nessa look like how she pictures Glinda along with wearing the ruby shoes, though it fools Boq for a moment he instinctively knows it’s not Glinda and would’berate’ Nessa for trying to change who she is and says how he loves the real Glinda for who she is.
The spell would fade and we see the real Nessa, but now wearing the ruby shoes instead of silver, and angrily snatches the Grimmorie from Elphaba and butchers the spell because she now wants his love for Glinda gone, which causes his heart to vanish. The rest goes the same but this shows how jealous she is of Glinda and how desperate she is to get Boq to love her like she loves him even though he only has platonic love for her.
Hopefully either version makes it less ableist and more about how her desperation and jealousy to keep Boq.
I've got another idea on how they could change it. The conflict I've seen mostly stablish in the first part seems to be that Nessa is annoyed that Elphaba draws attetion to herself (despite the fact that she never wants to do it on purpose). So I think the confrontation could be more in the lines of "you get all the attetion, the magic, the chance to meet the wizard". Elphaba spell could try to make some of her magic go into the shoes to "even things out", it would also play into Nessa being jelouse of Glinda who at this point is the famous "Good Witch", so she'd had another reason to want the powers. It would help to explain why Nessa is able to read the book (since they also made the fact that Elphaba can read it a bigger deal than in the show), why Nessa calls herself the Wicked witch of the East and why the shoes magic allow Dorothy to go back to Kansas.
It's just an idea, we'll see what they end up doing.
Some people with mobility issues DO walk with mobility aids and physical therapy. "Disability" is not a monolith, it's not permanent for everyone.
I think you've missed the point. Somebody with a condition like Nessa's has close to a 0% chance of learning how to walk and is permanently disabled. When I speak about the "impossible cure" trope in the video I'm referring to these sorts of disabilities only. Although perhaps I could have gone into how Nessa's mobility issue is not the same as everybody else you may see in a wheelchair. As an ambulatory wheelchair user myself I'm quite aware that there are people with mobility issues who do walk.
*looks at your earrings*
Cosmo, Wanda, you aren't fooling anyone. I now know you have, FAIRY GODPARENTS!!!
In all seriousness this was a really good video with excellent points. Keep up the good work!
Some great points here that are good things to keep in mind but they've mostly been invalidated already, so I can add rebuttals having seen the movie since it appears this video was made without watching it.
It is made quite clear in the movie that people moving Nessa around without her permission is a bad thing, not something that is accepted. Someone pushing Nessa around despite her protest is even what sparks Elphaba's outburst that forces her to expose her magic. Boq in the movie (at least thus far) does not pursue Nessa out of pity, but rather because Glinda asks him to, and when Nessa calls him out on suspecting she's being pitied, he truthfully protests that assumption since it was not part of his reasoning. Him preferring Glinda has nothing to do with Nessa being in a wheelchair; he just happens to like Glinda and ends up with Nessa when he realizes Glinda isn't interested in him but Nessa is. Glinda is the only main character that expresses that condescending pity, and it is not portrayed as neutral or good, it is a flaw of Glinda's. Nessa is not ever cured - she is provided shoes that allow her to walk, which, while a far stretch of the imagination, are not so different in practical usage from the developing technology of functional prosthetics. You claimed her involvement was not integral to the plot, but I'm not sure how you can say that when her shoes are The Shoes that Dorothy steals. They need to be made important somehow and be on her feet when she's crushed, at a moment when there is not a wheelchair. All that said, Marissa Bode is a wheelchair user herself so I'm not worried and I'm sure her involvement will guarantee a careful portrayal of the situation.
She gets crushed by a house can u Imagine her until now wicked witch status being taken to omg they killed a disabled person 😅
Although in the universe of Oz, magic is real and it seems miracle cures are possible.
Though isn't Nessa waking only due to enchanted glass slippers? Making them in effect a magic form of mobility aid?
That’s how I remember it. Also I believe the enchantment is actually to grant the heart’s desire of the wearer which is why those same slippers are later what allows Dorothy to wish herself home so technically the slippers don’t have to specifically allow Nessa to walk but could also do other things if she wanted
Marissa bode is going to make sure they make this character a correct portrayal of being a wheelchair user. I know it!
I disagree. Bode lacks the charisma required to stand out in a cast with Ariana Grande. She is invisible.
@@dolphmanity Well I disagree, but your comment is meaningless anyway since OP's point had nothing to do with that, they were saying that Marissa Bode is actually a wheelchair user, not just acting as one, so she would undoubtedly participate in advocating for herself and the accurate and respectful portrayal of a character in a wheelchair.
So you didnt really address this much but how would you maintain her antagonistic role in a non problematic way? Or is her being an antagonist inherently problematic and the wicked witch of the east should be changed?
I think they’ve pretty much confirmed Nessa won’t walk in “For Good”. Instead, Elpahaba will grant her more magical power…
Not sure how they portray it in the movie as I’ve yet to watch it but from what I recall in the book and stage show Nessa isn’t cured of her disability. The slippers are what allows her to walk but if she takes them off the magic stops working. It’s more like Elaphaba upgraded her mobility aid rather than curing her
That doesn't happen until act 2, which will be part 2 of the film, which hasn't released yet. But most of the criticisms in this video already don't apply to the movie.
Did you watch the movie before you filmed this?
This is great! Such a thorough examination with constructive feedback for the show. I hope they see this!
Her Villainy IS tied to her disability though- as a lot of folks' abusive behavior is in real life. That's her element in the deconstruction of different kinds of evil- abusive behavior as a result of social isolation. That's what BPD/NPD are- neurological responses to years of trauma. And are disabilities in and of themselves.
Great work, really love your videos
I think the book verison would have been a good 3rd point to compair against.
I follow you on instagram! Good to see you here in TH-cam too.
Nessarose, unable to walk in the book due to lack of arms due to her birth, bot because her fathers from Quadling country, to who ever put this out there its wrong. Nesserose has been treated both in the book and the stage show, and the movie as her fathers perfect pet, and the one who gets the most attention due to her being not green but a normal color, and also in a wheelchair in the musical, since it would be hard to depict an actor or actress without any arms or hands and just feet to work with. The book their father is not the mayor of munchkin land their great grand father and grand father and mothers family are the ruling mayors of Munchkinland, and their father is a man of the un-named God, man who spreads the word of the gospel. In the show he's the governor and is abusive to Elphaba which is not the case in the book. Like father passed down Nesseros in the book is very overly religious and uses it to become a tyrant after Elphaba refuses to take up being governor even though she's the oldest child of the Throp family. In the stage show Nesserose is just handed the position after their father dies, which I'm sure added to her stress and it didn't matter if she was in a wheelchair or not, ruling at such a young age and the way she was forced into it, would change anyone. She's more uptight in the show and upset and nasty in it, and I think that Bode brings out the book side to Nesserose I'm hoping we get the more ridged Nesserose in part two. She keeps the munchkins there so that Boq stays with her and can't leave, she would have done that anyway in a chair or not in a chair. The wheel chair yes they pity her and Elphaba tries to do stuff for her, but Glinda just sees her and just wants to get ride of Boq who is a pest, and its not her fault that Boq cant come clean to Nesserose about why he really is looking after her. Also you can have a wheelchair user seem to be walking in a film, allot harder to do on a Broadway stage. The character is written based on Gregory Maguires character, and writers have the write to write their characters the way they see them and want them to be in their story they are telling.
Here we go
This just seems like nitpicking or virtue signaling
I'd describe it as self-advocating for myself and other disabled folks who want the theatre industry to produce meaningful stories of lived experience, but go off, thanks for the engagement💁♀
Well by definition you are doing the same, love 😬👍
@@izzzyiztrashwith all due lоve and respect I used to think this whole obsessive “асtivism”/advocacy thing was соol and mеaningful until I matured a lot and realised that a lot of it is tremendously “еcho-chamber-y” and dоgmatic, closed off to any other pеrspectives, and sounds incredibly аnnoying and entitled to normal people (as in people just trying to live their lives). Just fyi
Having a disability myself I'd like it to be normalised when a disabled person says they'd like not to be disabled anymore.
No, it's not because I hate myself or because I want to "please society". It's because I would like things to be easier for me, because I would like to experience things that are out of my reach right now. Whenever I say this there is always someone telling me "there is nothing wrong with you, you can be happy just as you are" but at the same time I know they wouldn't want to be in my place...
She can work now
you know for a 3, you sure talk like people care what you think