119 - Helen Woolf on Wicked, Emergency Covers & Performing As A New Mum

119 - Helen Woolf on Wicked, Emergency Covers & Performing As A New Mum

May 12, 2026 · 33 min · Episode 119

About this episode

Amber Davies interviews Helen Woolf about her experiences in theater, motherhood, and the challenges of performing as a new mum.

On this episode of Call To Stage , we're joined by the gloriously warm, funny and brilliantly candid Helen Woolf. Helen has become one of the most beloved Glinda's in the history of Wicked , accumulating an extraordinary six contracts with the show across more than a decade — including the first UK Tour and multiple West End runs — before bringing her time with the show to a close alongside Lucy St. Louis, playing the role over 1,000 times in total. Her career also includes performing in the West Side Story Arena Tour, as well as concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, Cadogan Hall, Royal Festival Hall and many more. On this episode of Call To Stage , Amber and Helen talk about the long and winding journey to landing Glinda, the terrifying reality of being thrown in at the deep end as an emergency cover in week one of the first UK Tour, and the extraordinary experience of attending the Wicked film premiere surrounded by an array of Glinda's past and present. There are also brilliant stories from the bubble as well as a deeply honest and moving conversation about the realities of returning to eight shows a week as a new mum and why the industry urgently needs more job-sharing options…

People in this episode

Host: Amber Davies

Guest: Helen Woolf

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Wicked, West Side Story

Places: Royal Albert Hall, Cadogan Hall, Royal Festival Hall

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