Cynthia Erivo’s ‘Wicked’ Manicurist Helped With Elphaba’s ‘Transformation’

Cynthia Erivo’s nail artist, Shea Osei, deserves a round of applause.

Erivo, 37, took to Instagram on Tuesday, November 26, to praise the manicurist who worked her magic on Erivo’s hands during Wicked and the movie’s press tour.

“Meet my dear friend @shadesofshea_, who I’ve known and have been working with since I was 16!! 💚,” she captioned a post of her dressed up as Elphaba, as Osei touched up her nails. “She was the first person I thought of when we decided to have Elphaba’s nails grow and change throughout the films, in tandem with her personal transformation.”

Erivo continued: “Even while heavily pregnant in the process, Shea came onto this journey with me determined. Whenever you see my hands, it’s her work that you’re seeing. For the final premiere and press tour finale, it was important to me to work again with Shea.”

Shea, who has created majestic manicures for Erivo, replied to the actress in the comments section, “Cynthia, I love you. Thank you for firstly being my friend but also trusting me to be a part of this amazing journey with you.”

She added, “You believe in not only me but also my craft. You always, ALWAYS trust the process when it comes to us creating nail magic.”

Ariana Grande, who played Glinda in the film, added that Osei’s work was “extraordinary.”

When she wasn’t on screen, Erivo donned stunning crystal nail art during the press tour. Most recently, she donned an exquisite design featuring green crystals, black polish, pearls, silver rhinestones and more for the Wicked photocall in London. She let the nail art speak for itself, pairing the mani with velvet black fingerless gloves and a Schiaparelli gown.

This isn’t the first time Erivo’s nails have been a topic of discussion on the Wicked press tour. Earlier this month, Dax Shepard asked how she uses the bathroom during an episode of the “Armchair Expert” podcast.

“When you’re wiping your butt—” Shepard, 49, started, as Erivo interrupted, “I knew you would ask that question. Everybody asks that question!”

“Nobody uses just their fingers to wipe their backside. You use tissue,” she explained.

Shepherd then asked, “Does the tissue go on the fingernails?” to which Erivo replied, “Pads of the fingers.”

Erivo is truly the queen of bewitching long nails.