Paul Tazewell was 16 years old and living in Akron, Ohio, the first time he designed costumes for “The Wiz.” It was a high school production, and much of the work happened in his family’s dining room.
He has been summoned back to Oz several times since that first show — a workshop here, an NBC broadcast there.
So when the director Jon M. Chu asked him to design the costumes for Universal’s long-awaited film adaptation of the Broadway musical “Wicked,” there was little learning curve to speak of.
A prequel of sorts to “The Wizard of Oz,” “Wicked” centers on two reluctant roommates at Shiz University: Galinda, an effervescent daughter of privilege who goes on to drop a vowel (that first “a”), and Elphaba, a green-skinned outcast who goes on to pick up a title (the Wicked Witch of the West).
Persons:
Paul Tazewell, Jon M, Chu, Oz
Organizations:
NBC, Shiz University, Galinda
Locations:
Akron , Ohio