DAZZLING and magical, Wicked will spirit you away to a world of witchcraft and wizardry.

Gregory Maguire’s story about the Wicked Witch of the West has seen the theatre set travel 13,000 miles from the USA and Canada to be on a Manchester stage.

But it has been worth it with spectacular lead performances from Emily Tierney as shallow Glinda the Good and Nikki Davis-Jones as Elphaba, the misunderstood ‘wicked’ witch.

Directed by Tony award-winner Joe Mantello, the Palace Theatre musical is about the duo’s unlikely friendship after meeting at Shiz University.

They both dream of meeting the Wizard of Oz but have very different reactions when their paths finally cross.

Tierney previously played Glinda in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Wizard of Oz and it showed – she was a natural.

Davis-Jones, who was in Mamma Mia: The Movie, also cast a spell on the audience as Elphaba.

She is the underdog and real hero of the untold story of Oz and everyone played along by cheering her throughout the performance.

Liam Doyle as Fiyero and Marilyn Cutts as Madame Morrible also deserve special mention but all the cast and crew were on top form.

You could see the passion they had for the story through their enthusiasm and attention to detail.

The set, including a clockwork dragon, the sounds, the songs and the special effects all added to the sense of enchantment.

Maguire’s story runs parallel to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, which was written more than a century ago by L Frank Baum.

There are plenty of clever crossovers, references and in-jokes for fans of Baum’s classic But the story also reveals that Elphaba was perhaps not so ‘wicked’ after all while potently exploring issues of discrimination.

Baum’s aim was to write magical stories to captivate and warm the heart and so he would probably be proud of this modern update to the world of Oz.

It will leave you bewitched.

Wicked is at Manchester’s Palace Theatre for a 10-week run. For tickets visit atgtickets.com/shows/wicked/palace-theatre-manchester or call 0844 8713019.