The Wiz Will Head to Central Park Before NBC; Phylicia Rashad to Host Concert with Andre De Shields & More

Before it heads to the small screen in NBC’s live telecast, The Wiz will ease on down to Central Park. On August 12, SummerStage will present The Wiz: A Celebration in Dance and Music at Rumsey Playfield. The concert performance will be hosted by Tony winner (and alum of the original production) Phylicia Rashad. Several fellow members of the original and revival casts will take part, including Tony winner Dee Dee Bridgewater and nominee André De Shields.

Bridgewater will reprise her Tony-winning turn as Glinda. De Shields, a Tony nominee for The Full Monty and Play On!, takes on the title role, which he played in the original 1975 production. He is also set to appear in the Broadway-bound Gotta Dance!. The cast will also include Inaya Day as Dorothy (Day understudied the role in the national tour of the revival), Ebony Jo-Ann, reprising her role of Addaperle from the 1984 revival and singer-songwriter Wallace Gary as the Scarecrow. Additional casting will be announced later.

The show, featuring a score by Charlie Smalls and a book by William F. Brown, follows the familiar L. Frank Baum story of Dorothy and her adventures in Oz, but with a rock-filled revamp. Smalls' soulful score includes show tunes that have transcended the divide between theater and mainstream pop culture, including “Ease on Down the Road,” “No Bad News” and “Home.”

The Wiz Live! will air on NBC on December 3. Stephanie Mills, who originated the role of Dorothy, will play Aunt Em. No further casting has been announced so far. Kenny Leon will direct, and the production will feature additional book material by Harvey Fierstein.

SummerStage will also present a one-night-only concert featuring the full cast of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on August 3. The cast, led by Chilina Kennedy as Carole King, will perform several classic hits that can be heard in the musical.