The Wiz

Though following such illustrious Wizard of Oz predecessors as the stage version of 1903 and the screen version of 1939, The Wiz was an original concept with an all-black cast, a new rock score, and dialogue that made the fairytale relevant to modern audiences. It still, however, told the same basic story about Dorothy (Stephanie Mills), the little girl from Kansas who is blown by a tornado into Munchkinland in the Land of Oz, meets the Scarecrow (Hinton Battle), the Tinman (Tiger Haynes), and the Lion (Ted Ross) on the Yellow Brick Road, defeats the evil witch (Mabel King), and has an audience with the supposedly all-powerful Wizard (Andre De Shields). Though the Wiz is a phony, he does convince Dorothy that she can do anything she wants if she just believes in herself. The idea for The Wiz originated with producer Ken Harper who had to surmount myriad problems in guiding the show to Broadway. After almost shutting down the musical in Baltimore, he replaced director Gilbert Moses with Geoffrey Holder (also the costume designer) in Detroit, and posted the closing notice on opening night in New York. But a concerted publicity and advertising campaign —plus favorable audience reaction — helped produce a real miracle, and The Wiz went on to a four-year run. It also spawned two touring companies that traveled for three years. The 1978 movie version featured Diana Ross, Michael Jackson , Nipsey Russell, Ted Ross, Lena Horne, and Richard Pryor.

Music

Charlie Smalls

Lyrics

Charlie Smalls

Book

William F. Brown