The Wiz

For other uses, see The Wiz (disambiguation).

The Wiz
The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"
215px Original Cast Recording
Music	Charlie Smalls Timothy Graphenreed Harold Wheeler George Faison Luther Vandross
Lyrics	Charlie Smalls Zachary Walzer Luther Vandross
Book	William F. Brown
Basis	The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Productions	1974 Baltimore 1975 Broadway 1978 Film 1984 Broadway Revival 1984 West End 2006 San Diego 2006 the Netherlands 2009 New York City Center Encores! 2015 Live Television 2016-17 Broadway
Awards	Tony Award for Best Musical Tony Award for Best Original Score Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics

The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz" is a musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown. It is an urbanized retelling of L. Frank Baum's classic 1900 children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of Oz in the context of modern African-American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974 at the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre in Baltimore, Maryland and moved to the Majestic Theatre with a new cast on January 5, 1975.

The 1975 Broadway production won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. The musical was an early example of Broadway's mainstream acceptance of works with an all-black cast. The musical has had revivals in New York, London, San Diego and the Netherlands, and a limited-run revival was presented by Encores! at New York City Center in June 2009. A big-budget film adaptation of the same name was released in 1978 and has since become a cult classic. A live television production of the stage show, The Wiz Live!, was broadcast on NBC on December 3, 2015, with an encore presentation on December 19 of the same year.

Auditions and Broadway

The idea for the musical originated with producer Ken Harper. He replaced the original director, Gilbert Moses, with Geoffrey Holder in Detroit during out-of-town tryouts.

The original Baltimore cast included Renee Harris as Dorothy, Charles Valentino as the Scarecrow, Ben Harney as the Tin Man, Ken Prymus as the Cowardly Lion, and Butterfly McQueen as the Queen of the Field Mice. Only Harney would remain in the Broadway cast, but in a much smaller role. Harris stayed on as understudy for the role of Dorothy, as did McQueen for the role of Addaperle.

The musical opened on January 5, 1975 at the Majestic Theatre, with Geoffrey Holder as director and the following cast:

• Stephanie Mills as Dorothy
• Hinton Battle as the Scarecrow
• Tiger Haynes as the Tin Man
• Ted Ross as the Lion
• Dee Dee Bridgewater as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South
• André De Shields as the Wizard
• Mabel King as Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West
• Clarice Taylor as Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North
• Tasha Thomas as Aunt Em
• Ralph Wilcox as Uncle Henry
• Phylicia Rashad as a Munchkin
• Victor Willis as Uncle Henry (replacement), The Wiz (understudy), The Lion (understudy), Tin Man (understudy)

After drawing mixed critical reviews, producer Ken Harper considered closing the show after its Broadway opening night. One source attributes its turnaround success to a publicity campaign that included a TV commercial featuring the cast singing "Ease On Down the Road," a song that proved so popular that it was released as a single recorded by the disco group Consumer Rapport; The single hit the Billboard Soul Singles chart, peaking at #19 and the Hot 100, peaking at #42.

William F. Brown, who wrote the book, gave a more specific explanation in 1993: "20th Century-Fox, the show's major investor, put in another $100,000 to keep it going and everyone agreed to royalty cuts until the production's cost—about $1.1 million—was recouped....By the eighth week, we were selling out."

The Broadway production moved to The Broadway Theatre on May 25, 1977, and closed on January 28, 1979, after four years and 1,672 performances.

Along with other musicals including Purlie (1971) and Raisin (1974), The Wiz was a breakthrough for Broadway, a large-scale big-budget musical featuring an all-black cast. It laid the foundation for later African-American hits such as Bubbling Brown Sugar, Dreamgirls and Duke Ellington's Sophisticated Ladies.

National tour and later revival

The musical toured the US in 1976 and during the tour, Kenneth Kamal Scott (then billed as "Kamal") replaced Andre DeShields as the Wiz, Ren Wood was cast as Dorothy but departed the tour after playing only a couple of cities because during the show's engagement at the Ahmanson Theatre in Los Angeles, the 19-year-old performer was recruited for a featured part in the movie production of Hair. Renee C. Harris (who was in her very early 20s) took over as the tour's Dorothy and continued leading that company for a couple of years playing many engagements in cities across the country. At this time, the production also featured Ben Harney as the Tin Man and Ken Prymus as the Lion. Prymus was known to audiences for his featured role in the movie MASH for singing "Suicide is Painless." Both men were subsequently featured in other Broadway shows and were as replacements in the Broadway production of Ain't Misbehavin'. Harney also went on to originate the leading role of Curtis in the Broadway debut of Dreamgirls. When Harris eventually departed the company, the tour continued with Deborah Malone in the role of Dorothy. There was also a second national touring company which was a scaled down production.

A revival ran on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre from May 24, 1984, through June 3, 1984, closing after 13 performances and 7 previews. Directed by Geoffrey Holder, the cast featured Stephanie Mills as Dorothy. It then ran in London at the Lyric Hammersmith from December 11, 1984, through February 2, 1985. A planned 2004 Broadway revival was not produced. Kenny Leon is planning a Broadway revival for the 2016-2017 season following the live production on NBC.

In August 2015, George Faison presented The Wiz: A Celebration in Dance and Music, performances of the original songs and choreography in honor of the Broadway hits 40th Anniversary at Summerstage in New York City. A number of members of the original Broadway cast returned for this celebratory run. Actress Phylicia Rashad, a munchkin and swing in the original production, co-hosted the performance with George Faison. André De Shields reprised his original role as the Wiz; Dee Dee Bridgewater, Tony Award winner for her role as Glinda reprised this original role; and Ebony Jo-Ann, who played Addaperle in the Broadway revival of the production reprised her role as well. Singer-songwriter Wallace Gary joined the cast as the Scarecrow. Damien L. Sneed acted as the musical director and conductor of The Wiz: A Celebration in Dance and Music.

From 1996-97 there was a US concert version tour with Tasha Scott as Dorothy, Grace Jones (Evillene), Peabo Bryson (The Wiz), and CeCe Peniston as Glinda. The cast also featured Tony Terry as the Tin Man. Romelda Benjamin also played Aunt Em.

Other productions

J.C. Williamson Theatres Limited Australia, Melbourne and Sydney, January–October 1976; starring Andrea Frierson (Dorothy), Victor Willis (Tin Man), Freddie Paris (Lion), Chuck McKinney (The Wiz), Robert Ellis (Scarecrow). Upon his return from Australia in late 1976, Victor Willis joined the cast of the original Broadway production of "The Wiz."

Flymonkey Productions (London, UK) ran two shows. The first one was in 2000 which received great reviews and a second was run the following year in 2001 receiving exceptional reviews from the London press. Both productions were run at the Hackney Empire. The 2001 show was particularly notable because it was the last show to be performed at the Hackney Empire before the theatre closes its doors for refurbishment. Both shows were directed by Jamie Hinde; musical director Steve White (both shows); production manager Andy Barnes (both shows); choreography by Suzannah Howlett (2000) and Juliet Vibert (2001, also appeared as a dancer in both shows). The production starred Tamsier Joof (both shows); Rustie Lee (both shows); Sharon D. Clarke (2000) and Kat of MTV (both shows).

A production ran at the La Jolla Playhouse, San Diego, from September 26, 2006, through November 12, 2006, receiving good reviews and extending its run by three weeks. It was directed by Des McAnuff, who, with Harold Wheeler, orchestrator of the original Broadway version, revised the musical for contemporary audiences. It starred Nikki M. James (Dorothy), E. Faye Butler (Evelline) and David Alan Grier (The Wiz), and featured sets by Robert Brill.

Dodger Productions holds U.S. rights to revive The Wiz, while Joop Van den Ende's Stage Entertainment holds the European rights. Stage Entertainment mounted a full-scale production at the Beatrix Theater in Utrecht, Netherlands, in 2006. The production was directed by Glenn Casale and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast and featured sets by David Gallo.

City Center's Encores! Summer Stars series production ran June 12 through July 5, 2009. The production was directed by Thomas Kail and choreographed by Andy Blankenbuehler. It starred Ashanti as Dorothy, Tichina Arnold as Evillene, Dawnn Lewis as Addapearl, Joshua Henry as the Tin Man, James Monroe Iglehart as the Lion, Orlando Jones (succeeded by Colman Domingo) as The Wiz, and LaChanze as Aunt Em and Glinda.

A major British revival of The Wiz was mounted in 2011 by Birmingham Rep in a co-production with the West Yorkshire Playhouse. This production was directed by Josette Bushell-Mingo, with choreography by Paul J. Medford.

The first German-speaking production will be produced in Linz/Austria in the new Musiktheater Linz. The production will be directed and choreographed by Kim Duddy.

The Fiddlehead Theatre Company, in the historic Strand Theatre in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood, mounted a production, directed by Stacey Stephens, Fiddlehead Theatre Company's Associate Producing Artistic Director, in February 2015.

After the success of The Wiz Live producers announced that the tentative plan is to revive the show using the live version for the 2016-2017 Broadway season.

Plot

Prologue

Dorothy is seen with her Aunt Em, Uncle Henry, and dog, Toto, on their farm in Kansas. She expresses her desire to get away from the farm life and see distant lands. Aunt Em and Uncle Henry urge her to stay, telling her that she has everything that she could ever want here at home ("The Feeling We Once Had").

Act I

A tornado hits and lifts the farmhouse, with Dorothy inside, right up into the air ("Tornado"). It comes to rest with a bump in the middle of an emerald green field covered with flowers. There she is met by the Munchkins who are all dressed in blue, and Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North, who tells her that her house has fallen on Evamean the Wicked Witch of the East and killed her, freeing the Munchkins from her evil powers. Dorothy, distressed and confused, wants only to return to Aunt Em, Uncle Henry, and Toto in Kansas, and Addaperle decides her best bet is to go and see the great and powerful Wizard of Oz ("He's the Wizard"). She gives her the Witch of the East's silver shoes, and tells her not to take them off before she reaches home, for they hold a very powerful charm.

Dorothy sets off down the yellow brick road, full of doubt and fear at what lies ahead ("Soon As I Get Home"). Stopping to rest by a cornfield, she is startled when a Scarecrow hanging on a pole strikes up a conversation with her ("I Was Born the Day Before Yesterday"). He tells her of his longing for brains so that he can be like other people, and she invites him to accompany her to see if Oz can help him ("Ease On Down the Road #1").

The yellow brick road leads them into a great forest where they discover a man made of tin, rusted solid. They oil his joints ("Slide Some Oil To Me") and he tells them how, to prevent him from marrying a servant girl, the Wicked Witch of the East put a spell on his axe so that it began to cut off parts of his body. Each time it happened, a tinsmith replaced the missing part with one made of tin until he was entirely made of it. The one thing the tinsmith forgot was a heart, and the Tin Man has longed for one ever since ("What Would I Do if I Could Feel?"). Dorothy and the Scarecrow invite him on their journey to see the Wizard with the hope that he may give him one ("Ease On Down the Road #2").

The yellow brick road leads them into a dark jungle where they are attacked by a large lion ("I'm a Mean Ole Lion"), but are unharmed because he is a coward. When he learns where they are going, he asks if he may accompany them to ask the Wizard for some courage. They agree and the trio becomes a quartet ("Ease On Down the Road #3"), but face a new danger when they are attacked by half-tiger, half-bear creatures called Kalidahs ("Kalidah Battle"). After a great fight and harrowing escape, they stop by the road to rest. The Lion is embarrassed by his cowardice in the battle, but is comforted by Dorothy's kind words ("Be a Lion").

Seeing a green glow in the distance, they continue their journey to the Emerald City, and wander into a field of poppies who blow opium dust on them. Not being made of flesh, the Scarecrow and Tin Man are unaffected, but Dorothy and the Lion begin to become disoriented and drowsy. Dorothy recalls that the Munchkins warned her of the dangerous poppies, and runs from the field as fast as she can with the Scarecrow and Tin Man behind her. The Lion is overcome by the dust and begins to hallucinate ("Lion's Dream"). He is dragged from the field and returned to his friends by the Field Mice who police the area.

Marching up to the gates of the beautiful Emerald City, they are met by the Gatekeeper who insists they must all be fitted with a pair of green tinted glasses that are locked on to prevent their eyes from being blinded by the dazzling sights. They enter the city and look about in awe at the richly dressed people that inhabit this magnificent place ("Emerald City Ballet"). The haughty and condescending people laugh and ridicule this odd party for wanting to see the Wizard until they see that Dorothy is wearing the Witch of the East's silver shoes. The quartet is shown right into his palace.

Once in the throne room, they are assaulted by a great show of lights, smoke, and pyrotechnics as the Wizard appears in several forms before them ("So You Wanted To See the Wizard"). They each plead their case to him, the Tin Man doing so in song ("What Would I Do If I Could Feel?"). The Wiz agrees on one condition: they must kill Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West. Dorothy and her companions sink to the floor in tears as their goals seem farther off than ever.

Act II

Evillene rules over the yellow land of the west, enslaving its people, the Winkies. She is evil, power hungry to get what she wants ("Winkie Chant/Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News"). Seeing Dorothy and her odd friends approach, she sends her Winged Monkeys to kill them ("Funky Monkeys"). They dash the Tin Man against rocks until he can no longer move and rip the straw out of the Scarecrow also leaving him helpless. Seeing Dorothy's silver shoes, they dare not harm her. They carry her, Toto and the Lion to Evillene's castle instead. While searching for a way to get the powerful shoes from Dorothy, she forces her and the Lion to work doing menial chores. She takes delight in torturing the Lion and Toto before Dorothy. Angered by this, Dorothy picks up a bucket of water and throws it at her, and she melts until there is just a wet, gold cap on the floor. Her spell on the Winkies is lifted, and they show their thanks by restoring the Scarecrow and Tin Man to top condition, and reuniting the five friends ("Everybody Rejoice").

Returning to the Emerald City, they see the Wizard (now a booming voice that seems to come from the very air). He reneges on his promise, and the Lion knocks over a screen in anger. Behind it stands a bewildered man who claims to be the real Wizard ("Who Do You Think You Are?"). He shows them the elaborate mechanical effects used to create his illusions, and tells them that he is really a balloonist from Omaha who traveled to Oz by accident when his hot air balloon drifted off course. The people of Oz had never seen such a sight and proclaimed him Wizard. Not wanting to disappoint them, he assumed the role and had a great city built. He then had everyone in it wear green glasses, and in time, the people came to believe it was green.

The Quintet confronts the Wizard on his deceptions, but he points out that the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion already have the things they seek as shown in their behavior on the journeys they have made ("Believe In Yourself"). They remain unconvinced, so he creates physical symbols of their desires and they are satisfied. He proposes that Dorothy and Toto can return to Kansas the way he came, and offers to pilot her in his hot air balloon. He addresses the citizens of the Emerald City in person for the first time in many years, telling them of his imminent journey, and leaving the clever Scarecrow in charge ("Y'all Got It!"). Just as his speech reaches its climax, the balloon comes free from its moorings and rises quickly into the air, taking Dorothy's hopes of getting home with it.

There is a flash of light and Addaperle appears, suggesting that Dorothy ask Glinda, the Good Witch of the South, for help. She transports them to Glinda's palace in the red land of the south ("A Rested Body Is a Rested Mind"). Glinda is a beautiful and gracious sorceress, surrounded by a court of pretty girls. She tells Dorothy that the silver shoes have always had the power to take them home, but like her friends, she needed to believe that fact before it was possible ("If You Believe"). She bids a tearful goodbye to her companions, and as their faces fade into the darkness, she thinks about what she has learned, gained and lost ("Home"). She takes Toto in her arms then taps the heels of the silver shoes together three times, and as aunt Em appears and Dorothy runs to hug her aunt, she knows that she is back home at last ("Finale").

Motion picture and television

Motown Productions acquired the film rights to The Wiz in 1977, and signed Stephanie Mills in anticipation of having her star as Dorothy in the film adaptation. Motown singer and actress Diana Ross asked Motown CEO Berry Gordy to cast her instead, but he declined, feeling that the then-33-year-old Ross was far too old for the part. However, she contacted Rob Cohen of Universal Pictures, who offered to have them finance the film if she were to play Dorothy, at which point he acquiesced.

The resulting film version of The Wiz also starred former Motown star Michael Jackson as the Scarecrow, Nipsey Russell as the Tin Man, Richard Pryor as the Wizard, jazz singer Thelma Carpenter as Miss One (the name "Addapearle" was not used for this production) and Lena Horne as Glinda. Ted Ross and Mabel King reprised their roles of the Cowardly Lion and Evillene from the Broadway production. Sidney Lumet served as director, working with screenwriter Joel Schumacher (who used none of Brown's stage script) and music supervisor Quincy Jones. The film was a critical and commercial failure, performing poorly at the box office and severely panned by critics, who branded the casting of Ross instead of Mills as Dorothy a disastrous blunder.

In 1998, following their TV-movie production of Cinderella (1997), producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron began pre-production on a TV-movie adaptation of The Wiz for The Wonderful World of Disney, which was to star a then-unknown Anika Noni Rose as Dorothy. The project fell through due to Universal still having the film rights to adaptations of The Wiz, and the production was shelved. The O.Z., a hip-hop re-adaptation of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with an all-Black cast that was to use original music rather than adapt The Wiz, was then planned by FOX and director Chris Stokes in the early 2000s. With Queen Latifah, Patti LaBelle, Busta Rhymes, and Little Richard among its planned cast, the telefilm ultimately went un-produced; FOX instead became a co-producer on The Muppets' Wizard of Oz (2004), starring Ashanti as Dorothy.

Eleven years later, following the production of two live musicals for NBC – The Sound of Music Live! (2013) and Peter Pan Live! (2014), Zadan and Meron announced The Wiz Live! as their next production (NBC, by this point, having purchased Universal Studios). NBC's live performance of the stage show aired on December 3, 2015. Stephanie Mills, who originated the role of Dorothy on Broadway, played Aunt Em. An open casting call for the role of Dorothy took place on June 6, 2015. In July 2015, Queen Latifah was cast as the Wiz and Mary J. Blige was confirmed to play the role of Evillene. In addition, Beyoncé was offered to play Glinda, but no deal was made. The following month, David Alan Grier was cast as the Cowardly Lion, and newcomer Shanice Williams was chosen to play Dorothy. Uzo Aduba played Glinda and Amber Riley portrayed Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North. Other principal cast-members included Elijah Kelley as the Scarecrow, Ne-Yo as the Tin Man, and Common as the Bouncer, the gatekeeper of the entrance to Emerald City.

Cast

Leads

Role	Voice part	Broadway (original)	1978 film	1984 Broadway revival	2009 City Center Encores!	2015 telecast
Dorothy Gale	Alto with strong belt	Stephanie Mills	Diana Ross	Stephanie Mills	Ashanti	Shanice Williams
Scarecrow	Tenor	Hinton Battle	Michael Jackson	Charles Valentino	Christian White	Elijah Kelley
Tin Man	Baritone	Tiger Haynes	Nipsey Russell	Howard Porter	Joshua Henry	Ne-Yo
The Lion	Baritone	Ted Ross		Gregg Baker	James Monroe Iglehart	David Alan Grier
Aunt Em	Mezzo Soprano	Tasha Thomas	Theresa Merritt	Peggie Blue	LaChanze	Stephanie Mills
Glinda	Alto	Dee Dee Bridgewater	Lena Horne	Ann Duquesnay		Uzo Aduba
The Wiz	Tenor	André DeShields	Richard Pryor	Carl Hall	Orlando Jones	Queen Latifah
Evillene	Alto	Mabel King		Ella Mitchell	Tichina Arnold	Mary J. Blige
Addaperle	Mezzo Soprano	Clarice Taylor	Thelma Carpenter	Juanita Flemming	Dawnn Lewis	Amber Riley

Supporting Roles

Original Broadway Cast

• Uncle Henry/High Underling: Ralph Wilcox
• Tornado: Regina Bell-Dawley
• Royal Gatekeeper: Danny Beard
• Messenger: Carl Weaver
• Winged Monkey: Andy Torres
• Uncle Henry/High Underling: Victor Willis replacement

Songs

Act 1

1. "The Feeling We Once Had" – Aunt Em
2. "Tornado" - The Company
3. "He's the Wizard" – Addaperle and Munchkins
4. "Soon as I Get Home" – Dorothy Gale
5. "I Was Born On The Day Before Yesterday" – Scarecrow
6. "Ease on Down the Road" – Dorothy Gale and Scarecrow
7. "Slide Some Oil to Me" – Tin Man
8. "What Would I Do if I Could Feel?" - Tin Man
9. "Ease on Down the Road (Reprise)" - Dorothy, Scarecrow and Tin Man
10. "(I'm a) Mean Ole Lion" – Lion
11. "Ease on Down the Road (Reprise)"- Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man and Lion
12. "Kalidah Battle" - The Company
13. "Be a Lion" – Dorothy Gale and Lion
14. "Lion's Dream" - Lion and Poppies
15. "Emerald City Ballet (Psst)" - Company
16. "So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard" – Wizard

Act 2

1. "Entr'acte"
2. "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News" – Evilene and Winkies
3. "Funky Monkeys" - Company
4. "Wonder Wonder Why" – Dorothy Gale (only appeared in 1984 revival)
5. "Everybody Rejoice/A Brand New Day" – The Company
6. "Who Do You Think You Are?" – Dorothy Gale, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion
7. "Believe in Yourself" – Wizard
8. "Y'all Got It!" – Wizard and Company
9. "A Rested Body Is a Rested Mind" – Glinda and Company
10. "Believe in Yourself" (Reprise) – Glinda
11. "Home/Finale" – Dorothy Gale

All numbers composed by Charlie Smalls save for the following: "Tornado" is composed by Timothy Graphenreed and Harold Wheeler. "Emerald City Ballet (Psst)" is composed by Graphenreed and George Faison. "Everybody Rejoice/A Brand New Day" is composed by Luther Vandross.

Scoring for The Wiz calls for two keyboards, bass, guitar, drums, two percussionists, four woodwind players, horn, three trumpets, two trombones, violins, and cello.

Critical reception

In his review of the 1984 revival, Frank Rich wrote: "What made The Wiz surprisingly moving the first time around was that its creators found a connection between Baum's Kansas fantasy and the pride of urban black Americans. When Glinda, the good witch, musically instructed Dorothy to 'believe in herself,' she seemed to be delivering a broader inspirational message. The Wiz was hardly a great musical in 1975, but it had something to say, and it said it with verve and integrity. It's depressing to watch a once-fervent expression of black self-respect and talent be spilled on the stage as if it were a trunkload of marked-down, damaged goods."

In their review of the 2006 La Jolla production, Variety wrote: "'The Wiz' remains a collage of contemporary slang and imagery, but La Jolla's is a multicultural collage in which Baum's themes speak to the broadest possible audience. Unquestionably, the humor and the heartbeat of the piece remain African-American at their source, but the overall effect is pluralistic and inclusive. In the truest and most positive sense of the phrase, McAnuff's show is color-blind. Every alteration from the 1975 original, inspired by the central multicultural concept, is salutary. Brown's almost wholly rewritten script is tart and funny at last. Smalls' score—supervised by musical director Ron Melrose and original orchestrator Harold Wheeler—sounds fresh and contemporary". The Wiz has been produced around the world; NYC productions include Little Radical Theatrics' production which ran July 19–21, 2015 in Pleasantville, NY.

Recording

The Wiz The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard Of Oz"
File:The Wiz (original cast recording - album cover).jpg
Cast recording by Various Artists
Released	1975
Recorded	1975
Genre	R&B, soul, pop
Length	45:03
Label	Atlantic SD 18137
Producer	Jerry Wexler
Singles from The Wiz The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard Of Oz"
"Tornado" Released: 1975

The Original Cast Recording for The Wiz was released in 1975 on the Atlantic label, produced by Jerry Wexler. While well received, the album omits several key songs from the musical that were not recorded for the album. The "Tornado" instrumental was released as both a 7" single and a 12" extended single, while the show's musical arranger Harold Wheeler co-produced a cover of "Ease on Down the Road" with studio group Consumer Rapport that became a charting single in 1975, peaking at #42 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Track list

Side one

1. "Prologue"
2. "The Feeling We Once Had" – Tasha Thomas
3. "Tornado" (instrumental)
4. "He's The Wizard" – Clarice Taylor
5. "Soon As I Get Home" – Stephanie Mills
6. "I Was Born On The Day Before Yesterday" – Hinton Battle
7. "Ease On Down The Road" – Hinton Battle, Stephanie Mills, Ted Ross, Tiger Haynes
8. "Slide Some Oil To Me" – Tiger Haynes
9. "I'm A Mean Ole Lion" – Ted Ross

Side two

1. "Be A Lion" – Stephanie Mills, Ted Ross
2. "So You Wanted To See The Wizard" – André DeShields
3. "What Would I Do If I Could Feel" – Tiger Haynes
4. "Don't Nobody Bring Me No Bad News" – Mabel King
5. "Everybody Rejoice" – Stephanie Mills and Company
6. "Y'all Got It!" – Andre De Shields
7. "If You Believe" – Dee Dee Bridgewater
8. "Home (Finale)" – Stephanie Mills

Awards and nominations

Original Broadway production

Year	Award	Category	Nominee	Result
1975	Tony Award	Best Musical		Won
		Best Book of a Musical	William F. Brown	Nominated
		Best Original Score	Charlie Smalls	Won
		Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical	Ted Ross	Won
		Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical	Dee Dee Bridgewater	Won
		Best Direction of a Musical	Geoffrey Holder	Won
		Best Choreography	George Faison	Won
		Best Costume Design	Geoffrey Holder	Won
	Drama Desk Award	Outstanding Musical		Won
		Outstanding Actress in a Musical	Stephanie Mills	Nominated
		Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical	Ted Ross	Won
			Hinton Battle	Nominated
		Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical	Mabel King	Nominated
		Outstanding Director of a Musical	Geoffrey Holder	Nominated
		Outstanding Choreography		Won
		Outstanding Music and Lyrics	Charlie Smalls	Won
		Outstanding Set Design	Tom H. John	Nominated
		Outstanding Costume Design	Geoffrey Holder	Won

See also

• The Wizard of Oz (adaptations)—other adaptations of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

External links

• The Wiz (1975) at the Internet Broadway Database
• The Wiz (1984) at the Internet Broadway Database
• The Wiz: a virtual coffee table book
• The Wiz plot and production information at GuideToMusicalTheatre.com
• Cast members discuss The Wiz, based on L. Frank Baum's Wizard of Oz an October 20, 1978 episode of WGBH's "Slices of Black Theatre"
• The Wiz collection, 1974-1979 Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, The New York Public Library.
• Charlie Smalls scores for The Wiz, 1974 Music Division, The New York Public Library.