What we didnt realize was that Cynthia would be able to do these gymnastic movements and still sing perfectly.
It didnt faze her in any way, he marvels.
In fact, this was something I was well aware of.
Simon HayesGiles Keyte/Universal
Back in 2018, I was on the Chicago set of Steve McQueens movieWidows.
But Hayes was unaware of her athletic capabilities.
You dont seem to have that problem.
Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande walk the Golden Globes red carpet on January 05 (Getty Images)
And she said, Well, Ive been training for this.
Hayes says it was something extraordinary to observe.
The word Im looking for is unprecedented, the Oscar-winning craftsman declares.
Ive never seen anything like that before in 65 movies.
One young chap constantly asked intelligent questions.
PrincesPurple Rainwas all the rage at the time.
The cast included, famously, the marvelous Meryl Streep.
Is there any way we could go live?
It gave me the confidence to say, Yes, lets do it.
He smiles and says: And wouldnt it be Meryl.
And thats what is different aboutWicked.
you’re able to feel that this is the real performance, he says passionately.
Hayes won the Oscar for Best Achievement in Sound Mixing forLes Miserables.
Hayes is keen to point out that we didnt shootWicked: Part OneandWicked: For Goodas two separate movies.
We shot them as one big movie.
And we didnt shoot them in story order.
We shot them as we would one huge movie.
And Defying Gravity was one of the last scenes that was shot.
Also, filmingWickedbrought out the true meaning of cinema as a collaborative art form.
If we go live, these actors are making hundreds of tiny creative decisions every moment, Hayes explains.
And those creative decisions are what we hear.
There are patterns within these breathing.
Theres patterns within the effort within the voice that match what were seeing on the screen.
And it means that, as a cinema audience we buy it, we believe it.
Another factor, he continues, is the closeups.
Four months before the shoot, boom operator Arthur Fenn started collaborating with costume designer Paul Tazewell.
None of the costumes had been made by that point, but Tazewell shared his sketches.
It was really very early, but we started planning on how to mic these costumes, he adds.
Helman took it in stride and offered to paint out those microphones in post.
He had three boom operators on set at all times when Erivo and Grande sang.
We had three booms operating, and it just meant that Cynthia had complete and utter freedom.
Hayes had the whole crew wear special velvet covers over their shoes to keep noise levels down.
There was no music played through speakers on set.
So, effectively, we were making our own unplugged album as we were shooting , he says.
Hayes kinda had a hunch that she would and wanted to be fully prepared.
Now, wind, says Hayes, is the enemy of original performances.
It is the enemy of production sound.
And generally when you see wind on a movie set, it means that the vocals will be added.
Hayes went to see Paul Corbould,Wickeds legendary special effects supervisor.
I asked Paul, Can we kindly create silent wind?
And Cynthia looked at Jon and just said, Of course Im going live.
And we all just had a knowing glance.
He was so happy that wed all pulled it off.
No wonder she calls him the wonderful wizard of sound.
Hayess next film for release is DisneysSnow White, due in April.
UniversalsWicked: For Goodwill be released in theaters on November 21.
