'The Wiz' to open on Broadway in March

Wayne Brady will star in the latest revival of the seven-time Tony Award-winning musical, which just launched a national tour prior to its New York opening.

Ease on down to Broadway! A revival of The Wiz will begin performances this spring at the Marquis Theatre. The first performance is March 29, and opening night is April 17.

The announcement of the New York production comes as The Wiz opened its pre-Broadway national tour in Baltimore, Maryland — where the Tony Award-winning original 1975 production premiered — last night.

The Wiz is an all-Black retelling of The Wizard of Oz, infusing it with jazz, pop, ballet, and Black cultural influences. The show features a book by William F. Brown and a Tony Award-winning score by Charlie Smalls and others, including Luther Vandross. The 2023 revival features additional material by Amber Ruffin, also represented on Broadway with Some Like It Hot.

Schele Williams directs the 2023 production, which features choreography by JaQuel Knight, scenic design by Hannah Beachler; costume design by Sharen Davis; lighting design by Ryan J. O’Gara; sound design by Jon Weston; projection design by Daniel Brodie; wig design by Charles LaPointe; makeup design by Kirk Cambridge-Del Pesche; music supervision, orchestrations, and music arrangements by Joseph Joubert; vocal and music arrangements by Allen René Louis; and dance music arrangements by Adam Blackstone.

Who is in The Wiz Broadway cast?

As previously announced, the Broadway cast of The Wiz stars Wayne Brady as The Wiz alongside Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy, Deborah Cox as Glinda, Melody A. Betts as Aunt Em and Evillene, Kyle Ramar Freeman as the Lion, Phillip Johnson Richardson as the Tinman, and Avery Wilson as the Scarecrow.

The ensemble includes Maya Bowles, Shayla Alayre Caldwell, Jay Copeland, Allyson Kaye Daniel, Judith Franklin, Michael Samarie George, Collin Heyward, Amber Jackson, Olivia Jackson, Christina Jones, Polanco Jones, Kolby Kindle, Mariah Lyttle, Kareem Marsh, Anthony Murphy, Cristina Rae, Matthew Sims Jr, Avilon Trust Tate, Keenan D. Washington, and Timothy Wilson.

The Wiz Broadway cast carries over from the national tour.

Photo credit: The Wiz in Baltimore. (Photo by Jeremy Daniel)