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The two Wicked<\/em> films were filmed simultaneously \u2014 an impressive feat in and of itself for the entire crew, given the massive scope of the production.<\/p>\n But the second feature had one twist the first didn\u2019t \u2014\u00a0two new original songs, one each for its leading ladies.<\/p>\n More from Gold Derby<\/strong><\/p>\n So while Ariana Grande<\/strong> calls it \u201cthe privilege of a lifetime\u201d to originate a new song from Wicked<\/em> composer Stephen Schwartz<\/strong>, she also admits \u201cthere was a scary element\u201d to the prospect of debuting the new tune, \u201cThe Girl in the Bubble.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTo be trusted with that was all of the right kinds of nerve-wracking and also just such an honor,\u201d she said in a press conference with journalists on Sunday. \u201cBut what I love most about it is that it is such a narrative piece for [Glinda]. I’m so glad that we get to see her experience that moment of change, to make that choice, to begin the chapter of being truly good \u2014 not performing goodness, not a facade of goodness, but to put down the wand and actually become truly good.\u201d<\/p>\n The song gives Glinda a rare introspective moment, a chance to reflect on her past and present \u2014\u00a0which Grande appreciated. \u201cTo see that moment is a gift,\u201d she said. It also gave her a bit more range from a sonic perspective as well. \u201cI love that she’s singing a little bit differently in it. It’s like halfway through the song after she looks down the closet and sees all of her memories from easier, pure times, she really opens up and sings vocally in a way that sounds like her guard is down.\u201d<\/p>\n When it came to learning to perform the songs, Grande joked that she didn\u2019t need to do much since she\u2019s loved them since she was 10. \u201cThe thing that took the most work, when it comes to the music for me, was retraining my voice,\u201d she said. \u201cI have always had a higher range, but I’ve never had to sing operatically. Glinda does a coloratura soprano, and it’s operatic, it’s classical. I needed to spend a lot of time retraining the muscles of my voice to know how to do that and to create a rounder, more fuller, warmer vibrato and get there technically, so that it would sound legitimate. And I really wanted to have that ready before my first audition.\u201d<\/p>\n Grande went through extensive vocal training every day for months even before her first audition, \u201cso that I wouldn’t have to think about how the notes were going to come out in the room, and I could just honor the honesty of what’s happening in the scene,\u201d she said. \u201cAchieving the legitimate tone of a Glinda voice was a really fun homework assignment.\u201d<\/p>\n But beyond the technical voice skills, she also had to learn to bring the emotional truth to the role. \u201cI needed to be able to bring my own point of view and honesty,\u201d she said. That became even more important given the back-to-back schedule for the films, where they\u2019d be shooting part one Monday through Wednesday, and part two Thursday through Saturday. \u201cI just wanted to make sure that even in the first film, beneath the bubbly, shiny, perfect exterior, her \u2018bubble of privilege\u2019 as I like to call it, there’s a person underneath that has a lot of insecurities, a lot of little wounds that contribute to her need for all of that external validation.\u201d<\/p>\n Grande spent a lot of time with the script mapping out Glinda\u2019s moods with a color-coding system of sticky tabs. \u201cI would have a tab for each insecurity or emotional thing that was peeking through when she feels safe with a different color than when she feels like not chosen was a different color,\u201d she said. \u201cI just wanted to map it all out so that in my brain, I knew where everything was coming from before we got to set, so by the time we got there, thankfully that work was just in my system, and I could throw it away.\u201d<\/p>\n All that hard work and preparation paid off. Ultimately, \u201cI didn’t even know where I ended and she began\u00a0\u2014 it was like we were just one for a while,\u201d she said. \u201cIt’s a beautiful privilege to play a character that has so much light and so much darkness, and to finally be able to get to spend some more time with that darkness in this second film.\u201d<\/p>\n Grande credited director Jon M. Chu<\/strong>\u2019s vision with bringing the films to life so vividly \u2014 and said no one else could have done so. \u201cWho he is as a person is just as special and extraordinary as who he is as a visionary and as a director,\u201d she said. \u201cHe just has such an innate understanding of the human experience, what it feels like to be othered or made to feel like you don’t belong, and also what it feels like to watch that happen from the inside. He leads with so much empathy that I don’t think there was really a better person for this to tell the story. I think it was a part of his destiny.\u201d<\/p>\n She also appreciated that while he was a perfectionist who prepared meticulously for every shot, he also let his actors improvise. \u201cHe was just like, let’s catch butterflies and see what happens,\u201d she said. \u201cHe’s able to balance everything with such ease and grace and respect that everyone felt safe to give everything they had at all times.\u201d<\/p>\n The fan response has been overwhelming, Grande said \u2014\u00a0\u201c<\/strong>I’ve never experienced anything like it in my life.\u201d But one moment stands out for her: her interaction with Remington, the 4-year-old boy from the taping the Wicked: One Wonderful Night <\/em>special, who she brought on stage while she sang Popular<\/em>. \u201cI had no idea what he was going to do, if he was going to want to play along or not, but he was so cute, and just the perfect Elfie scene partner,\u201d she said.\u201dIt was really special. I will always cherish that.\u201d<\/p>\n Best of Gold Derby<\/strong><\/p>\n Sign up for Gold Derby’s Newsletter<\/a>. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook<\/a>, Twitter<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n