Cynthia Erivo as Elphaba in “Wicked”.Photo:Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures
Giles Keyte/Universal Pictures
The Oscar nominee and her costarAriana Grandeopted tosing live on the setof the new musical movie, Erivo, 37, as Elphaba, and Grande, 31, as Glinda. But Erivo’s vocals were challengedeven more when she decided to perform her own stunts, including flying over Oz during the film’s pivotal musical number “Defying Gravity.”
At a post-screening discussion at the DGA Theatre in New York City earlier this month, Erivo explained that she put herself through “rigorous training” to “make sure that her body was prepared."
“I had an amazing vocal coach who just helped me find the breath I needed in order to do it. Because usually if you’re singing something like that, that needs a lot of force, that needs a lot of sound. Usually you need the ground to push off of,” she explained.
“But when you don’t have it, you have to find it somewhere else. And so it was about replacing the ground with literally the air and my non-existent diaphragm, because I was in a corset.”
Cynthia Erivo in “Wicked”.Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
The actress admitted there was “a real learning curve” for her, but she was “really determined” since she “really wanted to do the song justice.”
“I just did everything in my power that I could,” she said. “I endured whatever bruises and chafing and whatever it was necessary to. … I wanted to make sure that I could experience both what flight felt like and what it felt like to sing that song, in one. And I hope it was worth it.”
Cynthia Erivo in “Wicked”.Universal Studios
Universal Studios
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In a recent promotionalvideo, Erivo is heard saying, “I knew going into this that stunts were to be needed, and I knew that I wanted to do my own stunts. I wanted to do the work.”
The Tony winner confessed that singing in the air with a corset was “a really strange sensation” because she had to learn “to shift the way” she breathes “in order to sing.”
Along with changing her breath work, the singer said on theSentimental Menpodcast thatshe refused to use the bathroom for up to 12 to 14 hoursat a time during long production days. Although she says it was “probably a terrible idea,” she didn’t want to deal with the process of putting on her costume and harnesses to film stunts.
“There’s too many layers,” she said, revealing that there were “two or three different harnesses for different stunts” and she wore them over her corset and costume when used.
Wickedis in theaters now.
source: people.com
