‘The Wiz’ Makes Its Way Back to TV and Broadway

By Qimmah Saafir Mar 31, 2015

The beloved musical "The Wiz" is making its way back to TV and Broadway. In partnership with Cirque du Soleil, NBC will air a new version of the 1970s black adaptation of "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz" on December 3. Cirque du Soleil will then present it as a Broadway revival for the 2016-17 season.

After NBC scored nearly 19 million viewers for their airing of "The Sound of Music" in 2013, the chairman of the network, Robert Greenblatt, decided to make the live musical an annual tradition.

The original Broadway production of "The Wiz" opened in 1975 and received seven Tony awards. It was revived in 1984. The movie version starring Diana Ross, Lena Horne, Richard Pryor, Michael Jackson, Nipsey Russell and Ted Ross debuted in 1978.