Boq facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Boq |
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| Oz character | |
Boq with Dorothy, illustration by W. W. Denslow
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| First appearance | The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (1900) |
| Last appearance | Wicked (musical) 2003 |
| Created by | L. Frank Baum |
| Information | |
| Aliases | Tin Woodman (Wicked musical only) |
| Species | Munchkin (Human) |
| Gender | Male |
| Occupation | Farmer |
| Nationality | Munchkin |
Boq is a character who first appears in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. He is a small but important character. Later, he becomes a much bigger part of the story in Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. This book tells the story of Oz from a different point of view. Boq also plays a key role in the 2003 Broadway musical Wicked, which is based on Maguire's novel.
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Boq in the Oz Books
Boq is a Munchkin, one of the people who live in the eastern part of the Land of Oz. In some Oz stories, Boq helps Dorothy and her friends.
Boq in Dorothy of Oz
In the book Dorothy of Oz, Dorothy and her friends, like the Scarecrow and Tin Man, meet Boq in the Munchkin Village. Boq tells them that it has been raining a lot, and the famous Yellow Brick Road is damaged. He explains that the Wizard of Oz and the Good Witch of the North used magic to make the road special. After the rain stops, Boq joins Dorothy's group. They even meet the Queen of the Field Mice. The mice tell them that the constant rain has brought out the ghost of the Wicked Witch of the East. Once the road is fixed and the ghost is gone, everyone celebrates.
Boq in the Wicked Stories
Boq's story becomes much more detailed in the Wicked books and musical.
Boq in the Novel Wicked
In Gregory Maguire's novel, Boq is a friend of Elphaba (who later becomes the Wicked Witch of the West) when they are young. They go to Shiz University together. Boq helps Elphaba with her studies. He is also one of the characters whose thoughts we get to read in some parts of the book.
Boq becomes friends with other students. He has a crush on Galinda, another student, but it doesn't last. They become good friends instead. Later, Boq marries Milla, one of Galinda's classmates. They move back to Boq's farm in Munchkinland. Elphaba meets Boq again after a sad event, and he helps her find out about Dorothy.
Boq in the Musical Wicked
In the musical version of Wicked, Boq is interested in Elphaba's younger sister, Nessarose. However, he only spends time with Nessarose because he wants to impress Glinda, who he truly likes. Glinda, though, doesn't even remember his name!
Nessarose later becomes the governor of Munchkinland. She uses her power to make Boq her personal servant. When Boq tells Nessarose that he loves Glinda, Nessarose gets very angry. She tries to cast a spell on him from Elphaba's spell book, but she says it wrong. This causes Boq's heart to shrink and disappear. To save his life, Elphaba uses her magic to turn Boq into the Tin Woodman.
In the first Broadway show in 2003, Christopher Fitzgerald played Boq. In London's West End, James Gillan played the role.
Boq in Once Upon A Time
Boq also appears briefly in the TV show Once Upon A Time. In one episode, the Wicked Witch, Zelena, kills him by turning him into dust. She does this to find out who told Dorothy to return to Oz to fight her.
