A Magical Afternoon with Wicked at the Millennium Centre in Cardiff
Saturday was one of those unforgettable afternoons, filled with drama, laughter, and a bit of green magic! Cardiff’s Millennium Centre was the venue, and the show? Wicked! Anna had been looking forward to this for months and I was joining her for a new experience as I knew nothing at all about the show. We drove to Carfiff on Saturday morning, stopping off at the factory outlet in Bridgend to charge the car, do some shopping and have a lovely lunch at Mowgli’s.
We then had an easy drive into Cardiff, parked in a multi-story car park right next to the Millennium Centre and headed into the lively theatre that was buzzing with excitement with fellow theatre-goers. It was nice to see Anna’s excitement as we queued for a coffee before heading up the steps and through the maze of corridors to our seats.
As the lights dimmed and the first strains of music filled the air, the stage came alive with color, transporting us to the land of Oz. As well as knowing nothing about Wicked which dives into the backstory of the iconic characters from The Wizard of Oz, I have also never seen the Wizard of Oz. Annna had given me a quick Wizrard of Oz 101 prior to the show so I at least knew a little bit about it, but I think there were some ‘in jokes’ and references that were somewhat wasted on me.
The story follows the journey of Elphaba, the green-skinned, misunderstood “wicked” witch, and Glinda, her popular, bubbly counterpart. The performances were fantastic with some powerful singing from all of the cast. Anna had made me listen to the Defying Gravity song before the show so I at least recognised that one. I was watching Anna as much as the show though just to see her reactions as she was loving it.
We had fairly average-priced seats for the Millennium Centre but still had a great view. The architecture alone is worth a trip—those iconic words on the outside walls, “In These Stones Horizons Sing,” have become a favourite symbol of Cardiff. If you haven’t seen Wicked yet, add it to your list—it’s well worth the experience, especially in such a stunning venue.
After the show, we headed back to the car to get our bags and then to the adjacent Premier Inn where we had a room for the night. We then headed out and walked around the Plaza that was sparkling with lights in the dark night and explored the various eateries. We plumped for Signor Valentino for an Italian dinner and then headed back to our room for the night.
I headed out for a run before sunrise in the morning, giving Anna some time to snooze. I went along the Coast Path so was on ground I’d covered before. I headed across the waterfront barrage, up over the headland into Penarth and then along the seafront where dawn broke as a gaggle of cold-water dippers clad in dry-robes were about to get into the murky brown waters. I headed up along the next headland and then after about 4 miles turned around and headed back the way I’d come. This time I could see where I was going and the dippers were in the water. I had to stop at the barrage as the gates opened to let some boats through and then headed back to the hotel for a shower and a big breakfast.
It was now time to head home. We went via a little aquarium shop near to Swansea that was on a dodgy-looking indutrial estate. It didn’t look like much from the outside, but the fish and the service were good so it was worth the little detour.
All in all a nice cultural break in the Capital – I have a feeling Anna will be booking some more visits to shows at the Millennium Centre for us soon.
