Backstage at the Straz Center in Tampa, it is 45 minutes to show time, and actress Christine Dwyer is getting painted green.
No, she’s not the Hulk.
Or Shrek or Fiona.
She is Elphaba, the other most famous green person in the world.
But many people know her character by another name: The Wicked Witch of the West.
The fast-approaching show is the blockbuster Grammy and Tony-Award winning musical Wicked.
And Elphaba, portrayed by Dwyer, is the star!
"The first couple of times I did it, it was really weird, and I didn't recognize myself,” explained the Massachusetts native, “and now I feel like most of the time I look in the mirror, I am painted green.”
It takes about 20 minutes for Dwyer to become Elphaba, the most misunderstood woman in a Broadway musical.
If you are wondering how the green stays on Dwyer’s skin, a powder helps to set the make-up and stop any accidental transfer to other actors!
Wicked is set in the time before Dorothy and Toto landed in Oz. Elphaba is an earnest and neglected girl, who’s green hue makes her unwelcome at her new school.
"She's kind of an outlet for a lot of people I think who have felt different or who have felt like an outcast," lamented Dwyer.
Dwyer says it is the youngest audience members who are the most moved: “They realize someone who may be perceived as a little different can really make a huge difference in the world.”
Wicked is playing at the Straz Center through January 27.