Women Today

Wicked opens tonight at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center and is an event my daughter and I have been looking forward to ever since it was announced that the play would be coming to the area.

A few weeks ago, I was fortunate enough to have an interview with one of the stars of the play, Donna Vivino who will play the green-skinned Elphba.

Vivino did quite a bit of acting as a child, even doing a Jell-O commercial with Bill Cosby, but put it aside in her later teen years and college. She picked things up again in her 20s, and shared what it's like to be one of the leads in the touring cast of a highly acclaimed show.

Here's an extended version of the story about Vivino that's appearing in this month's issue of Women magazine:

For some time after she takes her final bow, actress Donna Vivino finds that her ‘Wicked’ character sticks with her.

“I still always find remnants of (green makeup) in my ears and my hairline, I never really get rid of it,” says Vivino, who stars as the emerald-skinned Elphaba in the touring Broadway version of ‘Wicked’ playing at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center.

Green skin aside, Vivino sees plenty of similarities between herself and her character, a young, misunderstood young lady destined to become known as The Wicked Witch of the West.

“When I was growing up I preferred books to Barbies,” she says. “Elphaba is a very strong woman, and what I love about her is that she never apologizes for what she believes in.

“I don’t try to make her sympathetic, the script is written so well that I do what is written and it kind of takes care of itself,” Vivino says.

“Elphaba never apologizes for who she is, she never plays the victim. I never go out there thinking they’ll have to like me. I just tell the story and let the audience decide for themselves.”

“Wicked” is a prequel to “The Wizard of Oz,” telling of the unlikely friendship that forms between Elphaba and Galinda, who will become Glinda, the Good Witch of the North. Elphaba is particularly brave, as she challenges the wizard and doesn’t conform to what society sees as normal.

Elphaba is not afraid to take risks to do something that she knows is right, and Vivino knows a thing or two about taking chances herself.

The New Jersey native didn’t intend to pursue acting when she was studying at Columbia University, but said yes to an audition and found herself on Broadway in “Saturday Night Fever.”

“It was so random,” she says. “I think I auditioned for something when I was a teen once or twice and then got a call asking me to come in for ‘Saturday Night Fever.’ They needed girls with good voices, and I’m Italian so I think that helped. They were probably just going through files and saw my picture.”

Vivino had performed as a child, including a Jell-O commercial with Bill Cosby and “Les Miserables” on Broadway. Other pursuits took precedence during high school and college, but after “Saturday Night Fever” she pursued acting.

She wound up waiting tables for two years before landing a job as a comedy all-star in “Martin Short: Fame Becomes Me.” She impersonated stars such as Renee Zellweger and Britney Spears, and was in awe of the energetic Short.

“He puts us all to shame, “she says. “It felt like you just got on this train and went with it.”

Her other jobs have included voice work, such as ads for Clairol, Volvo and Barbie’s Potty Training Kelly. The 30-year-old has also taught master classes and workshops and before “Wicked” was in a touring production of “Hairspray.”

She’s also spent some time in Los Angeles, where she had some small television roles. The English major sees television writing as a possible future endeavor, but since November has been committed to life on the road.

“Wicked” is her second touring production, but her first as the lead, which brings additional demands and challenges.

“It takes a lot of discipline to stay healthy and get enough sleep,” she says. “I’m still figuring it out, but you do figure it out.”

The extra work is worth it for Vivino, who was impressed by “Wicked”’s strong female characters when she saw it onstage in New York.

“I was pretty blown away not just by the character but by the show as a whole,” she says. “It’s a great production and I wanted to be a part of it in any way I could.”

For “Wicked” ticket information, see www.foxcitiespac.com or call 920-730-3760.