BroadwayBox continues our coverage of #Wicked15 today by breaking down Ariana Grande's performance of "The Wizard and I" on NBC's A Very Wicked Halloween special.
The outfit is cute. I could see that silhouette at the Oz Dust Ballroom.
And we switched to pink, which at first I thought, “oh, V. Glinda”, but then had to take my hat off to Winnie Holzman because pink does go good with green.
22 seconds in, and Ms. Ari has me after that “with all his wizard wisdom”.
Oh wow, it’s three-time Tony winner Alex Lacamoire at the keys. IBDB reminds me he co-arranged Wicked and then conducted and musically directed it. Oz alum everywhere.
Legit mood. This girl is all of us rn.
The cosplay kids in the audience are killing me. They are too cute!
52 seconds: Ok the number is picking up. Here comes a momentum.
Footage of me all four years of college to Shoshana bootlegs of this number.
She is nailing it. She is serving all the moments.
1:31: ok, now we’re getting to the heart of the song. Here we go.
Omg, that “so good inside” got the first 🙌 of this video.
2:03: I find myself really liking Ariana Grande in this performance. I feel like we are watching someone live out a dream, and it’s captivating and sweet.
I wish a GIF has audio because I would use this ad nauseam.
2:24: Now, this is the moment that separates the ladies from the girls.
2:37: That little “I know” done well might be my favorite part of an Elphaba’s “Wizard and I”.
When even your shadiest theatre friend admits Ariana could handle the film.
Ok, true tea. I just replayed that like 40-second section (2:33-3:08) at least four times before moving on.
Me at 2:55.
She goes for it! I love the wide smile across her face as she transitions into it. It’s poppy as hell right now (3:09), but I’m not mad about it. I’m LIVING. This is my new dream “Lipsync for your Life” track.
The live audience is having the exact same reaction I’m having at my desk. This is just a universal experience at this point.
That “team” at 3:33
That was absolutely epic. The moment of joy and relief on her face at the end is precious. I’m going to watch the whole the thing again, and probably have it on repeat all day.
