We sent a photographer down to the AMC theater at L.A.'s iconic shopping center The Grove Friday night ... and, ya gotta see the wickedly good outfits fans are wearing to the movie.

Looks like half of the audience is embracing Barbie pink while the other half is putting together their best grunge and punk ensembles ... channeling Glinda and Elphaba's distinct vibes.

While many dressed in theme, don't expect to see a litany of witch's hats or a lot of green face paint ... these outfits are more about style inspired by the flick instead of a faithful dress-up to match Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo.

It's a lot like the outfits the two women wore on the red carpet for premieres before the flick hit theaters ... witch-chic, if you will.

"Wicked" is lighting up the box office, BTW ... racking up a reported $46.7 million between previews and opening night -- and, it's looking at a $117 million opening weekend according to some estimates.

Plus, fans and critics love it ... with critics giving it an 89% and fans a 97% on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.