The musical is an interesting genre. It obviously lacks a certain level of realism — it’s not everyday that you see someone spontaneously burst into dance and song. Sure, music can tap into deeper wells of emotion than mere words, but communication through song can, in some ways, remove one from reality. Yet this vehicle works perfectly for Wicked; the story is set in the imaginary land of Oz, but the characters’ emotions are authentically human. The set and costume design were gorgeous, though they sometimes border on creepiness — pale-faced people wearing a lot of makeup, dressed in gregarious costumes, and dancing around a witch with green skin isn’t exactly the recipe for a fun dream.

For me, the most memorable character was Glinda (played by Megan Hilty in the performance I saw). Though she was ditzy almost to the point of being annoying, she was downright hilarious. It was also refreshing to see a female character provide comic relief. Musically, Wicked isn’t Les Miserables, but it executed its scores well, and the lyrics were sharp and funny without being too cheesy. Overall, it was a fun musical, but the creepiness factor makes me hesitant to recommend it to the young ones.

To many, “Christian rap” is an oxymoron. For the most part, I agree: Christian artists tend to be sanitized knock-offs of their secular counterparts, especially when it comes to rap and hip-hop. After all, how can rap be “cool” without going all gangsta on you? Right?

Actually, no. John Reuben proved to me that rap can be fun and intellectually stimulating without using a single swear word. And he does it while having fun, and it shows: zany goofy sound bytes are layered into songs throughout the album, much to the my and Chanlee’s delight. My favorite is “Soundman,” where John uses a sample reminiscent of 60’s psychedelic rock.

I bought this album three years ago, and after the first listen I thought I probably wouldn’t like it very much. Turns out this is one of my favorite albums.