“The Wiz” debuted in 1974 at the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre, back when Baltimore was well known as a tryout town for theater productions headed to Broadway. It went on to win seven Tony Awards, some of them the first ever won by African Americans.
Next month the musical will return to the city where it began, when a new production opens at the Hippodrome Theatre, the first stop on a national tour that’s headed to Broadway in 2024.
On Monday, producers and theater managers offered a preview of the new show, which will run at the Hippodrome from Sept. 23 to 30 to start its 2023-2024 season.
Ron Legler, president of the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center, home of the Hippodrome, announced that ticket sales have been so strong that another performance has been added, an evening show on Sept. 24 to supplement the previously-scheduled matinee that day. In addition, 900 students from around Maryland will get to see a dress rehearsal.
“Baltimore’s heart is in this show,” Legler said. “It’s part of who we are.”
“The Wiz” is the first production to take advantage of a new state tax credit program that the Maryland General Assembly authorized in 2022 to encourage theatrical production companies to launch national tours and set pre-Broadway runs in Maryland theatres such as the Hippodrome at 12 N. Eutaw St. The program went into effect on July 1, 2022.
Before “The Wiz” opens, Legler said, the cast and crew will spend four to five weeks in town for rehearsals and other technical work. They’ll arrive starting this month, benefitting local hotels, restaurants and other businesses.
Maryland’s First Lady, Dawn Moore, came to the preview and said she and Gov. Wes Moore plan to see the show at the Hippodrome. She also invited the cast to visit the Governor’s Mansion while they’re in town.
“’The Wiz’ is my favorite. It is my absolute favorite,” she said. “I thank you all for bringing it to Baltimore, where it started.”
Based on ‘The Wonderful Wizard of Oz’
Like the 1939 motion picture “The Wizard of Oz,” “The Wiz” is based on L. Frank Baum’s children’s book, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.” “The Wiz” took Baum’s classic tale and transformed it into an all-Black musical, following the journey of a young Black girl transported to a distant land and trying to get home.
After getting a tryout in Baltimore, “The Wiz” opened on Broadway in 1975 to widespread acclaim. Its seven Tony Awards included Best Musical, Best Original Score, Best Featured Actor in a Musical (Ted Ross), Best Featured Actress in a Musical (Dee Dee Bridgewater), Best Choreography (George Faison), and, in a Broadway first, Best Direction of a Musical and Best Costume Design (Geoffrey Holder).
“Ease on Down the Road” became the show’s break-out single. The original production ran for four years, first at The Majestic Theatre and later at The Broadway Theatre, 1,672 performances in all. It was revived on Broadway in 1984, reopening for a month-long run at the Lunt-Fontaine Theatre.
A 1978 film adaptation starred Diana Ross, Ted Ross, Mabel King, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell and Lena Horne, and it marked Quincy Jones’ first collaboration with Michael Jackson. In 2015, NBC adapted the show for “The Wiz Live!”, with stars including Amber Riley, Mary J. Blige, Queen Latifah and original cast member Stephanie Mills as Aunt Em. It’s been performed by local theaters, universities and high schools.
Brian Moreland, one of the producers of the new show, said the story has universal appeal.
“The show is a milestone in African American culture,” he said on Monday. “Whether you saw it on stage starring Stephanie Mills, whether you saw the movie starring Diana Ross, whether you saw it at a local community theater or a church or a university, “The Wiz” has a cultural touchstone for everyone. Everyone has a home that they’ve come from or that they want to go to, and everyone has a journey that they are either on or seeking, something they want. And that’s what “The Wiz” provides. It’s a safe space, a soft landing, a home for all of us.”
Schele Williams, the show’s director, said it opened her eyes in 1978 when she was growing up and saw a performance at Memorial Hall in Dayton, Ohio, with a young African American playing Dorothy.
“I sat with my mother and I saw a little Black girl on stage, and that told me that my dream was possible,” Williams said. “I saw people that looked like me. I heard music that spoke to my soul. I saw dancing unlike anything I had seen our bodies do. It was an invitation to belong on the American stage, and that has never left me.”
Williams decided to pursue a career in the theater and even played Dorothy along the way.
“Of all the credits that I have, the most important one to me was in 1989, when I played Dorothy in ‘The Wiz’ in high school,” she said. “It is the show that changed my life, literally changed the trajectory of my life.”
Williams now has two daughters of her own, aged 12 and 13, and is thinking what the show will mean for them.
“This generation deserves ‘The Wiz,’” she said. “It is a show that creates community, belonging. It is a show filled with joy. It’s a show that celebrates Black excellence.”
‘Reimagined revival’
The new production has been described as an “entirely reimagined revival” and a “dynamite infusion of ballet, jazz, and modern pop.”
Cast members announced so far include Alan Mingo Jr. (Kinky Boots, Doom Patrol) as the Wiz; recording artist Deborah Coxas Glinda; Baltimore native Melody A. Betts as Aunt Em and Evillene; Kyle Ramar Freeman (A Strange Loop) as the Lion; Phillip Johnson Richardson (Sharper) as the Tinman, and Avery Wilson (The Voice) as the Scarecrow. Richardson and Wilson will be making their Broadway debuts. The role of Dorothy has been cast but the performer’s name hasn’t been announced.
The book is by William F. Brown. Music and lyrics are by Charlie Smalls. The choreographer is JaQuel Knight (Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies,” Black is King).
Also working on the production are Joseph Joubert (music supervision, orchestrations and music arrangements); Allen René Louis (vocal arrangements, music arrangements), and Derek Dixie (dance music arranger) and TV host Amber Ruffin, providing “additional material.”
The design team will include scenic design by Hannah Beachler (Black Panther, Beyoncé’s Black is King and Lemonade), costume design by Sharen Davis (Ray, Dreamgirls), lighting design by Ryan O’Gara (Thoughts of a Colored Man), sound design by Jon Weston (Parade) and wig design by Mia Neal (Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom).
In addition to Moreland, producers include Kristin Caskey, Mike Isaacson, Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker.
The incentive of tax credits
Modeled after a state program designed to encourage movie producers to film in Maryland, the state’s tax credit program for theater producers provides up to $2 million in refundable tax credits for eligible productions, with a maximum of $5 million in tax credits awarded per year. The enabling legislation was co-sponsored by Maryland State Senator Guy Guzzone and Maryland State Delegate Vanessa Atterbeary.
Legler said two other productions will be taking advantage of the state tax credits to launch tours at the Hippodrome next season but he can’t provide details yet.
After Baltimore, “The Wiz” will travel to 12 other American cities before beginning a limited engagement on Broadway in 2024. Additional “Emerald Cities” on the pre-Broadway tour include: Cleveland, Ohio; Washington, D. C.; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Charlotte, North Carolina; Atlanta, Georgia; Greenville, South Caroline; Chicago, Illinois; Des Moines, Iowa; Tempe, Arizona; and San Diego, San Francisco and Los Angeles in California.
Other shows announced for the Hippodrome’s 2023-2024 season are Funny Girl (Oct. 24 to 29); Moulin Rouge! The Musical (Dec. 5 to 17); Mrs. Doubtfire (Jan. 30 to Feb. 4, 2024); Peter Pan (Feb. 20 to 25, 2024); The Book of Mormon (March 19 to 24, 2024); Mamma Mia! (April 16 to 21, 2024); Clue (May 7 to 12, 2024) and Beetlejuice (June 25 to 30, 2024).
Ticket information about “The Wiz” and other shows at the Hippodrome is available at BaltimoreHippodrome.com. Information about the national tour is at wizmusical.com.
