June 9: Wicked Prompt

Wicked

She always went against type,
auditioning to play antagonists,
abandoning her good girl image
and putting on evil, channeling
every childhood fright—
Cruella de Ville clad
in Dalmation furs,
Cinderella’s stepmother,
the big bad wolf—
to climb inside each role,
a venomous, raspy-voiced,
chain-smoking vixen,
the other woman,
gun-totin’ outlaws’ moll
driving the getaway car.
Backstage, after final curtain,
she washed away the meanness
with her makeup, returning
to her gentle, loving self.
She never fended off fans
in the grocery store lines;
so sweet, no one recognized
her when she played herself.