The Wizard and I – simplified

The Wizard and I

Idina Menzel , 2003. Cynthia Erivo, 2024.

Writer: Stephen Schwartz

Label: Decca Broadway

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Did that really just happen?

Have I actually understood?

This weird quirk I’ve tried

to suppress or hide

is a talent that could

help me meet the Wizard,

if I make good.

So I’ll make good…

When I meet the Wizard,

once I prove my worth,

and then I meet the Wizard,

what I’ve waited for since, since birth.

And with all his Wizard wisdom,

by my looks, he won’t be blinded.

Do you think the Wizard is dumb?

Or like Munchkins so small-minded?

No, he’ll say to me

”I see who you truly are,

a girl on whom I can rely.”

And that’s how we’ll begin

the Wizard and I…

Once I’m with the Wizard

my whole life will change.

‘Cause once you’re with the Wizard

no one thinks you’re strange.

No father is not proud of you,

no sister acts ashamed.

And all of Oz has to love you

when by the Wizard

you’re acclaimed.

And this gift or this curse

I have inside,

maybe at last,

I’ll know why.

When we are hand in hand

the Wizard and I.

And one day,

he’ll say to me “Elphaba,

a girl who is so superior,

shouldn’t a girl

who’s so good inside

have a matching exterior?

And since folks here

to an absurd degree

seem fixated

on your verdigris,

would it be all right by you

if I de-greenify you?”

Of course that’s not important to me.

All right, why not”,

I’ll reply. Oh,

what a pair we’ll be

the Wizard and I.

Yes, what a pair we’ll be

the Wizard and

Unlimited,

my future is

unlimited.

And I’ve just had a vision almost like a prophecy.

I know,

it sounds truly crazy,

and true, the vision’s hazy.

But I swear,

someday there’ll be

a celebration throughout Oz,

that’s all to do with me!

And I’ll stand there with the Wizard

feeling things I’ve never felt.

And though I’d never show it

I’d be so happy,

I could melt.

And so it will be

for the rest of my life,

and I’ll want nothing else

’til I die.

Held in such high esteem,

when people see me

they will scream.

For half of Oz’s favorite team,

the Wizard and I.