Something Bad (Commentary)

"Something Bad" is a number that, in the show, can be something that

You sort of fly through, but in this one, it's important to

Understand the animal story because it is what Elphaba discovers

That is darker here at Shiz. It's gonna be her motivation to go

See the Wizard. It's gonna be the thing she wants for herself more

Than de-greenifying herself, so we have to really land it. And so
This relationship with, um—with Dillamond is very important, so we
Beefed up how they meet, how they interact, and so we made it so
That it wasn't just Dillamond singing about it, that it was this
Sort of secret messages within his quarters, that actually his
Quarters wasn't just a place he lives, but it was a living record
Of what's happening at Oz. We get to see that this is a problem that'
S been growing and that's all on the record, and she realizes it'
S bigger than she even thought from the very beginning, and that this
Is a problem that no one can help, um, except for maybe the Wizard

We're doing this bad thing and it's—it'll always sound like a person
Doing a goat impersonation, um, so they were toying with the idea
Of blending in a real goat sound, but it is a person playing a goat
So why can't it be—you know, suspend your disbelief, and can't it be
A person doing a goat sound? But that's kind of fun to think about