Noblesville students prepare for ‘Wicked’ star’s visit
NOBLESVILLE, Ind. (WISH) — Broadway performer Jessica Vosk is coming to Noblesville High School this weekend, and all of central Indiana is invited.
The “Wicked” star is coming to town to teach a master class for theater students and hold a public concert, “A Wicked Evening with Jessica Vosk,” at the school’s auditorium.
“It’s really amazing to think that somebody of this caliber is coming to Noblesville,” said Susan Nieten, theater teacher at Noblesville High School, “and not just doing the concert, because that’s exciting, but working with the students and being able to hear them sing, give them feedback, coach them.”
“I was astounded. I was so excited. I was probably the second person to sign up for the workshop,” said Marissa Tappy, 17, a senior at NHS with aspirations to major in theater in college.
“I’m just really grateful that she’s willing to come here and work with us, and I just want to hear what she has to say,” said Ben Elliott, 18, also a senior with career theater goals. “Going into that next step and going into college for musical theater — that’s what I need to know.”
Vosk played the lead role “Elphaba” in the Tony award-winning musical “Wicked” last year, in their traveling company. In fact, she says her first performance with the cast was in South Bend, so she’s excited to return to the Hoosier State.
Nieten explained the school’s speech coach had an opportunity to meet Vosk backstage after a performance of “Wicked” and was impressed by her energy.
“Then he (the speech coach) saw something on, I believe Facebook, where she was advertising that she was doing master classes and so he reached out and said, ‘Hey what would it take to get you to Noblesville?’” said Nieten.
“And he came to me and I said, ‘OK, sure let’s get Jessica Vosk and go for it, why not?’ and then it became more real and I was like, ‘Yeah we can do this.’”
Vosk spoke with 24-Hour News 8 from her New York apartment Friday before her flight to Indianapolis International Airport. She explained she hopes the master class will help Noblesville High School students learn what a real audition is like, while still providing helpful feedback and encouragement.
While she will focus on vocal performance and acting ability in Sunday’s class, Vosk says she also hopes to help students understand acting theory and the power behind it.
She explained how she felt in her role of Elphaba, the misunderstood green-skinned Wicked Witch of the West. She is bullied onstage in the first act and said that really widened her perspective on how people with difference are treated.
Vosk says acting can do that: put you in someone else’s shoes and make you a more open-minded, well-rounded person. She grinned and said she’s excited to meet the students and the crowd Sunday night for her performance.
You can pick up tickets to “A Wicked Evening with Jessica Vosk” through the page on Eventbrite or at the door Sunday night. The show begins at 8 p.m. and costs $10.