Elphaba
{{Short description|Fictional character from Wicked}}
{{Redirect|Elphie|people and with fictional characters with similar names|Elfi}}
{{Infobox character
| franchise = The Wicked Years
| image = Myra - Elphaba.jpg
| image_size =
| caption = Myra Ruiz as Elphaba in the musical theatre version of Wicked, Brazil 2016
| first = Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West (1995)
| creator = Gregory Maguire
| based_on = {{based on|Wicked Witch of the West|L. Frank Baum}}
| portrayer = {{Plain list|
}}
| full_name = Elphaba Thropp Third Descending
| nickname = Elphie
Fabala
| alias = Wicked Witch of the West
Fae
Sister Saint Ælphaba
Auntie Witch
| family = Oscar Diggs (biological father)
Melena Thropp (mother)
Frexspar The Godly (step-father)
Nessarose Thropp (half-sister)
Sheltergod "Shell" Thropp (half-brother)
Rain (granddaughter)
| significant_other = Fiyero Tigelaar
| children = Liir Thropp (son)
| religion = None (atheist)
| nationality = Ozian Munchkinlander of American descent
}}
Elphaba Thropp ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɛ|l|f|ə|b|ə|_|ˈ|θ|r|ɒ|p|audio=LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-Elphaba.wav}}) is the protagonist of Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, the novel's musical theatre adaptation, and the musical's two-part film adaptation, Wicked (2024) and Wicked: For Good (2025). She is a reimagining of the Wicked Witch of the West from L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
In the Baum novel, the Witch is unnamed and little is explained about her life; Wicked creates a backstory for her and explores the world of The Wizard of Oz from her perspective. Elphaba is modeled after Margaret Hamilton's portrayal in the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz: green-skinned, clad entirely in black and wearing a tall peaked hat. Maguire formulated the name "Elphaba" from the pronunciation of Baum's initials—"L.F.B.". In-universe, she is also nicknamed "Elphie", mostly by Galinda Upland.
Characterization
As Winnie Holzman observed in an interview with Playbill, "It was Maguire's brilliant idea to take this hated figure and tell things from her point of view, and to have the two witches be roommates in college, but the way in which their friendship develops – and really the whole plot – is different onstage."{{Cite news |first=Michael |last=Buckley |title=Stage to Screens: A Chat with Wicked Nominee and TV Veteran Winnie Holzman |date=June 6, 2004 |url=http://www.playbill.com/features/article/86583.html |work=Playbill |access-date=November 8, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071121164650/http://www.playbill.com/features/article/86583.html |archive-date=November 21, 2007 }} Schwartz justified the deviation, saying "Primarily we were interested in the relationship between Galinda – who becomes Glinda – and Elphaba...the friendship of these two women and how their characters lead them to completely different destinies."{{cite web|url=http://www.musicalschwartz.com/wicked-script.htm |title=Wicked – Script |access-date=November 8, 2007 |publisher=MusicalSchwartz.com }} In addition to this change in focus, other major plot modifications include Fiyero's appearance as a scarecrow, Elphaba's survival at the end, Nessarose using a wheelchair instead of being born without arms, Boq having a continuing love interest for Glinda – and eventually becoming the Tin Woodman instead of Nick Chopper, the complete cutting of Elphaba's years in the Vinkus, the deletion of Liir's birth, Fiyero not having a wife and children, and Doctor Dillamond not being murdered.{{Cite book | author=Maguire, Gregory | title=Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West | publisher=ReganBooks | year=1995 | isbn=978-0-06-039144-7 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/wickedlifetim00magu }}
Portrayals
The role was originated on Broadway and the West End by Idina Menzel, who won the 2004 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical.
Cynthia Erivo portrayed Elphaba in the 2024 film adaptation of the musical's first act, for which she was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress, and will reprise the role in the 2025 adaptation of the second act. Karis Musongole played the character as a child in the first film.{{cite web |last1=Hall |first1=Margaret |date=15 May 2024 |title=15 Swankified Easter Eggs in Wicked's Official Trailer |url=https://www.playbill.com/article/15-swankified-easter-eggs-in-wickeds-official-trailer |website=Playbill |access-date=1 June 2024}}
References
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Oz}}
{{Wicked}}
{{Wicked films}}
Category:Literary characters introduced in 1995
Category:Fictional characters with precognition
Category:Oz (franchise) witches
Category:Characters in American novels of the 20th century
Category:Female characters in film
Category:Female characters in musical theatre
Category:Female literary villains
Category:Fictional characters incorrectly presumed dead
Category:Fictional characters who use magic
Category:Oz (franchise) characters