Since Elphaba is an advocate for the sentient animals of Oz, Tazewell incorporated the patterns of the natural world into her costumes. "I started looking at fungus, mushrooms and trees.

From dreaming under Ohio stars to reimagining Oz, Paul Tazewell became the first Black man to win a costume design at the Oscars.

As Paul Tazewell was conceiving design ideas for "Wicked," mushroom gills served as an unlikely inspiration for Elphaba's black dress. The costume designer had stumbled across a documentary about ...