For a long time I have dreamt of seeing Wicked The Musical. It is long past the point where I could have seen it with the original Broadway cast (not just because that cast has finished but also because I have never yet made it to New York), but I was happy with the next best thing, seeing it in the west end.

I live in Scotland so it's a long way to the west end, a bit too long a journey to make just to see a show. So, my girlfriend and I made a week of it. We booked tickets way in advance for my next birthday. We went down a few days before, stayed at my mums and on the day of the show travelled to London by train. The journey was nothing special but it was made more exciting by the growing anticipation. We got the London, found the theatre, got something to eat and wondered around, and then we went for a cup of coffee before heading in.

Once at the theatre the anticipation continued to grow. We have both longed to see this show for a very long time. The anticipation was mixed with nerves, what if it wasn't as good as we thought it would be? What if the cast weren't quite right for the roles they'd been awarded? What if the props or the stage left us feeling disappointed? There were lots of ifs, but somewhere inside I knew it would all be fine. It had to be, I had looked forward to it for too long to be disappointed.

As it turned out, I was right; the show was amazing, as were the cast and the sets. Our seats were perfect front row of the balcony, centre stage. We could see the whole stage without straining and our view was not obscured by anyone sitting in front of us (I am quite short so have had that problem a lot).

Once in our seats the excitement continued to grow, we were finally here, finally going to see the show. We bought a program and read through while we were waiting for it to start. The principle characters at the time were being played by Rachel Tucker (Elphaba) and Louise Dearman (Glinda) - although for this specific performance Elphaba was being played by Nikki Davis-Jones. We read about the previous experience they all had and speculated on how good they would be.

At this point I would just like to explain that my girlfriend and I had different reasons for wanting to see the show and therefore different expectations. I own, have read and love to original novel by Gregory Maguire. My girlfriend knew more about the The musical through her friend that works in the theatre industry. We had both heard the soundtrack.

While waiting for the show to start we also took in every detail of the set, it was perfect, the great Time Dragon over head the towers at the side, i was getting more excited by the minute and couldn't wait for it to start...and then it did.

I do not want to give any spoilers here so I'm not going to go into too much detail. It was fantastic! Despite us both having different expectations, we both have the same opinion. I will say that if you have read the book, be prepared for some confusion as the musical does not follow the exact same story line, in fact parts of it are completely different. This was not a disappointment, in fact in some ways it was better, I didn't always know what was coming next. My girlfriend who had heard lots about the original Broadway cast had been worried that seeing it in London wouldn't live up to it. She too was not disappointed.

We both agree that it could not have been done better. The sets and props were well done, the costumes beautiful and cast very very talented. It was funny, it was sad, it was dramatic, and what else can you ask for in a musical. All the songs were done faultlessly and the cast seemed to have real chemistry with each other. I guess that comes from performing together regularly but it's an important thing.

At the intermission we couldn't help but talk excitedly about what we'd seen and what was still to come. The second act was just as good as the 1st and even more exciting from my point of view as there were more difference from the novel. Then it came to an end. It was finished. It was time to go home.

We left the theatre and went back to the station; we had a bit of time before we got our train so we went and got a cup of tea. All we could talk about was the show, how great it had been, how neither of us had been disappointed or felt let down. The best part of the whole show is the climax of the first act, Elphaba and Glinda singing Defying Gravity, it our favourite song from the soundtrack and it was done really well. The lighting, the performers the musical score - all were perfect.

In conclusion, this is an amazing show, no matter your reasons for wanting to see it, no matter your expectations, it is impossible to be disappointed by it. I would definitely go and see it again next time I'm down South, or if it ever comes to Scotland. It's worth both the cost of the tickets and traveling we did to get there.

This review can also be found on Ciao.