Posted by | Ray Cornelius
So you didn’t get a chance to see The Wiz Live last Thursday night? Well don’t fret, NBC will air an encore performance of the special on December 19 at 8 p.m. and is also releasing a DVD on December 22 just in time for the holidays!
The DVD features the dazzling three-hour show as well as the NBC special, The Making of The Wiz Live, with a behind-the-scenes look of producing the live television event.
The Wiz Live proved to be ratings gold for NBC averaging a 3.4 rating, 11 share in adults 18-49 and pulling in over 11.5 million viewers. It was the network’s best Thursday average in total viewers, excluding sports, since September 2014, and nearly tripled NBC’s best 18-49 Thursday average, excluding sports. It was also NBC’s highest-rated night for any night of the week, excluding sports, in 11 years, since November 2004.
In addition to the The Wiz Live! on DVD, the previously unreleased Diana Ross album, Diana Ross Sings Songs from The Wiz, a rare 1978 recording that features Ross singing every role from the classic movie musical, is out now via all digital retailers.
NBC’s musical television production of The Wiz Live! stars Queen Latifah as The Wiz, Mary J. Blige as Evillene the Wicked Witch of the West, Ne-Yo as the Tin Man, and David Alan Grier as the Cowardly Lion. Staying true to the groundbreaking Broadway show that put a vivid urban spin on the land of Oz, this fresh new trip down the yellow brick road also stars Common as the Royal Gate Keeper, Elijah Kelley as the Scarecrow, Uzo Aduba as Glinda the Good Witch of the South, Amber Riley as Adapperle the Good Witch of the North, Stephanie Mills as Auntie Em, and newcomer Shanice Williams as Dorothy.
Stay tuned…
