No Place Like Power

INTRO – (Piano, solo female)

DOROTHY (soft, intimate):

I was just a girl with a ribbon in my hair,

Chasing little dreams in the Kansas air.

Then the sky turned dark, and the wind turned wild —

Now I’m not that simple child.

Is wicked born… or made somehow?

And who decides what matters now?

VERSE 1 – Women

ELPHABA (controlled fire):

You see green skin, you call it sin,

Before I even dare begin.

You mark me wrong, you name me threat —

But I’m not finished yet.

GLINDA (bright, polished edge):

Goodness shines in polished shoes,

With perfect smiles and careful views.

But crowns can slip, and halos crack —

What if white is hiding black?

NESSA (earnest, rising):

They’ll say “Wicked Witch of the East,”

Like I was born a beast.

But I was just a sister unseen,

Fighting to be queen.

MADAME MORRIBLE (smooth, calculating):

Storms don’t gather by mistake,

They form because of choices made.

Prophecy is shaped by will —

And I decide what’s written still.

(Drums begin to pulse)

PRE-CHORUS

DOROTHY (growing stronger):

I don’t know who’s wrong or right —

ELPHABA (harmony under):

But I won’t vanish from your sight —

GLINDA (above harmony):

If truth must stand against the night —

ALL WOMEN:

Then let it rise!

CHORUS – FULL CAST

FULL CAST:

Who decides what’s wrong or right?

Who controls the story we write?

Is it magic? Is it might?

Or who survives the fight?

CALL & RESPONSE:

MALES: Power!

FEMALES: Truth!

MALES: Courage!

FEMALES: Proof!

ALL:

When the curtain falls tonight,

We rise, we ignite —

No place like power in the light!

(Brass punch)

VERSE 2 – Men

WIZARD (showman charm):

Pay no mind to smoke and flame,

Every miracle needs a name.

Give them spectacle and sound —

And they won’t look down.

SCARECROW (hopeful):

If I only had the mind

To see the truths we leave behind —

TIN MAN (aching warmth):

If I only had a heart

We wouldn’t tear ourselves apart —

COWARDLY LION (vulnerable strength):

If courage lives inside my roar,

Why am I still afraid of more?

PRE-CHORUS 2 – Overlapping

ELPHABA (belt building):

I won’t bow — I won’t break —

GLINDA (counter melody):

Every choice is one we make —

NESSA (urgent):

Let them tremble when I wake —

DOROTHY:

I just want my home to take me back —

MADAME MORRIBLE (low):

History bends… along my track.

(Big drum build)

CHORUS – BIGGER

FULL CAST:

Who decides what’s wrong or right?

Who survives the shifting fight?

Is it written in the sky?

Or who they choose to vilify?

ENSEMBLE STACKS:

Power! Truth! Courage! Proof!

ALL:

When the curtain starts to fall,

We stand, we call —

No place like power after all!

BRIDGE – Drop to Piano & Strings

DOROTHY (soft):

I never meant to spark a flame…

ELPHABA (gentle harmony):

Neither did I…

GLINDA (whispered):

But here we stand…

NESSA (aching):

They’ll remember me in black —

Wicked Witch of the East — no turning back.

MADAME MORRIBLE (ominous):

Legends rise… when truth goes slack.

(Silence beat)

KEY CHANGE

(Drums explode. Brass punches upward.)

FINAL CHORUS – FULL BELT, OVERLAPPING

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