Kandi Burruss & Todd Tucker Join THE WIZ Producing Team

Kandi Burruss, the Tony Award® and Emmy Award®-nominated, and Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter, actress, entrepreneur, alongside Todd Tucker, will join the producing team for an all-new production of The Wiz. The Wiz will launch a national tour in Fall of 2023 in Baltimore, MD before returning to Broadway for a limited engagement in the 2023/24 season.

In a statement, Burruss and Tucker said, “We are thrilled to be part of The Wiz. The songs, choreography, costumes, everything about The Wiz is epic!”  They continued, “We have always said we want to help open the doors of theatre to all people. Theatre has the power to influence and inspire people to create change through art, and that is what we all need now. Art can heal and art can change you. It has changed us. So, come on and ease on down the road with us!”

Featuring a book by William F. Brown and a Tony Award-winning score by Charlie Smalls (and others), director Schele Williams (The Notebook, revival of Disney’s Aida), award-winning choreographer JaQuel Knight (Beyonce’s “Single Ladies,” Black is King), additional material by Emmy-nominated writer and TV host Amber Ruffin (“The Amber Ruffin Show,” “Late Night With Seth Meyers”), Joseph Joubert (music supervision, orchestrations, & music arrangements), and Allen René Louis (vocal arrangements, music arrangements) are conjuring up an Oz unlike anything ever seen before.  A dynamite infusion of ballet, jazz, and modern pop will bring a whole new groove to easing on down the road. 

The Wiz design team will include scenic design by Academy Award-winning Hannah Beachler (Black Panther, Beyonce’s Black is King and Lemonade), costume design by Emmy Award-winning and two-time Academy Award-nominated Sharen Davis (Ray, Dreamgirls), lighting design by Barrymore Award-winning Ryan J. O’Gara (Thoughts of a Colored Man), sound design by Jon Weston (Parade) and wig design by Academy Award-winning Mia Neal (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom).

The Wiz will launch its national tour in the Fall of 2023 in Baltimore, MD, home of the 1974 world premiere of the musical, September 23-30, 2023. Following its run at the Hippodrome Theatre, the tour will slide into Emerald cities across the country before it begins its limited engagement on Broadway in the Spring 2024.

Tickets are currently available exclusively as part of season subscription packages and group sales in each tour city. Fans can now sign up for an email newsletter with up-to-date information as well as follow The Wiz on social media channels.

Based on L. Frank Baum’s children’s book, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, The Wiz takes one of the world’s most enduring (and enduringly white) American fantasies, and transforms it into an all-Black musical extravaganza for the ages.

The Wiz premiered on Broadway in 1975 and became an instant sensation, going on to win seven Tony Awards including 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, and “Home” has since become a bona fide classic. That original production ran for four years (first at The Majestic Theatre and later at The Broadway Theatre) – and 1,672 performances – on Broadway. A 1978 film adaptation starred Diana Ross, Ted Ross, Mabel King, Richard Pryor and Lena Horne, and marked Quincy Jones’ first collaboration with Michael Jackson.

Casting, to be announced, is by Tara Rubin Casting. 

Kandi Burruss & Todd Tucker

(Producers). Todd Tucker and Kandi Burruss-    Tucker are TV's favorite power couple. Kandi is a Tony Award® and Emmy Award®-nominee and Grammy-winning singer/songwriter; actor; producer of television, film and the Broadway stage; as well as a successful entrepreneur and restauranteur. She was the first female to be named ASCAP's Rhythm and Soul songwriter of the year. Todd Tucker is the very definition of hard work and dedication. As a producer, restauranteur and entrepreneur he has made a name for himself globally. Together, the pair own a popular restaurant group and run a full-service production company while raising four beautiful children. Todd and Kandi are grateful for their extended family and the remarkable talents of The Wiz.

 Photo credit: Bruce Glikas