BOSTON, MA.- Between 12 midnight on May 10, 2009 and 9:00 pm on May 21, 2009, fans of “WICKED,” author Gregory Maguire, and the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum far and wide can bid on a chance to win an exclusive “WICKED”-filled prize package through the Isabella Stewart Gardner Musuem and CMarket.com. In its first first online auction—available to bid on online at http://gardnermuseum.cmarket.com through May 21st at 9:00 PM—the Gardner’s “WICKED” prize package includes an exclusive opportunity to join author Gregory Maguire for a private, gourmet lunch for four alongside the museum’s lush interior courtyard garden, and learn more about the Gardner’s inspiring effect on his work. In addition, the winning bidder will receive four orchestra seats to any production of the musical Wicked in the world (with eight companies to choose from: in New York, San Francisco, London, Tokyo, Melbourne, Stuttgart, and two American touring companies), as well as autographed copies of all three of the books currently in The Wicked Years series: Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West; Son of a Witch; and A Lion Among Men—all of which have been New York Times bestsellers. Also included is a promised autographed volume of the fourth and final volume of The Wicked Years upon its publication in hardcover, several years hence.

Gregory Maguire is the award-winning author of four novels for adults and more than a dozen novels for children. His series The Wicked Years includes international bestseller Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, which has been adapted as a Tony-award-winning Broadway musical. Mr. Maguire spent time at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum as an Artist-in-Residence in 1994, during which time he worked with the museum’s education program and young children at the museum’s neighborhood partnership schools. Maguire remains a close friend of the Gardner, currently serving on the museum’s Board of Overseers.

The “WICKED” auction will be open for bidding online at http://gardnermuseum.cmarket.com beginning at midnight on the night of May 9th (officially, 12:00 am on May 10th) through Thursday, May 21st at 9:00 pm. Bidding will start at $2,500, and all proceeds from the auction will help to support arts programming at the Gardner. Additional information about the museum’s online auction is available to the public by contacting the museum at 617-391-3939.

The “WICKED” auction will be publicly announced at the museum’s annual benefit featuring remarks by Gregory Maguire and a performance by renowned violinist Joshua Bell on the evening of May 9th. The auction is also being promoted through “WICKED” social networking and fan sites including Facebook and Twitter and on the official Wicked (www.wickedthemusical.com) and Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (www.gardnermuseum.org) websites.