Yes. The flying monkeys have a theme. This plays in No One Mourns the Wicked right after the third iteration of the Witch’s Theme. Both in the musical and in the movie, this theme is played when we see flying monkeys flying (or just walking) across the screen or stage.

This is the first iteration of the motif that we hear in No One Mourns the Wicked.

Transcribed with Sibelius Ultimate. Playback generated by Noteperformer 5.

Of course, this motif changes slightly to match the chords that fall under this theme, but the general structure remains the same. Even when it changes to a slightly different theme, we can still recognize the theme and we still think of the flying monkeys.

Here, we’ve just changed the top note to a C instead of a B, which, with the following F# a tritone below, creates more tension than before, further warning us that like the Wicked Witch, the flying monkeys are creatures to look out for. The staccato markings further create a sense of tension and warning in the theme, which only reinforces the message that the monkeys are dangerous animals.

The message that this theme sends to the audience is to look out for the flying monkeys; they’re dangerous creatures that want to hurt us and we need to avoid them at all costs. Whenever we hear this theme, we think of the monkeys and we immediately begin to look around for them, wondering if they’re going to hurt our main characters.

Of course, this theme is only one of the incredible themes that Schwartz has written for “Wicked,” and I can’t wait to explore how this theme’s connotations change over the course of the plot and how others themes influence it. Stay tuned!