Emmy and Grammy-Winning Adam Blackstone Joins THE WIZ Creative Team

Emmy Award®-winning music director and Grammy Award®-winning writer, Adam Blackstone, has joined the creative team as Dance Music Arranger for the revival of The Wiz. The Wiz will launch a national tour on September 23, 2023 in Baltimore, MD before returning to Broadway for a limited engagement in the 2023/24 season.
 
"Joining The Wiz's creative team has been a very surreal moment. I remember watching the film on VHS daily for years, wondering how it sounded so incredible, how MJ transformed into the Scarecrow, and the score and orchestrations truly told a story all of its own,” said Adam Blackstone. 
 
Blackstone continued, “Fast forward to today, I get to musically partner with Terence Vaughn and reunite with my brother, super choreographer and creative director JaQuel Knight, and explore our own interpretation for a revival of this masterpiece. I am excited and look forward to this body of work changing lives, just like it did for me in the 80's!"
 
JaQuel Knight said, “So excited to usher in my good friend, the brilliantly talented Adam Blackstone, to the team. With over a decade of working beside each other on some of the biggest stages in the world, I’m so honored to have him and his team by my side on this journey to Broadway. The work he does is so important to culture. To have him translate the music in my head to a joyous audio experience…grateful is an understatement!”
 
Featuring a book by William F. Brown and a Tony Award-winning score by Charlie Smalls (and others), Blackstone joins the previously announced creative team for The Wiz including director Schele Williams (The Notebook, revival of Disney’s Aida), award-winning choreographer JaQuel Knight (Beyoncé’s “Single Ladies,” Black is King), additional material by Tony-nominated and 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 cast will include previously announced Wayne Brady to lead the production as The Wiz on Broadway in Spring of 2024, San Francisco (January 16 – February 11, 2024) at the Golden Gate Theatre, and Los Angeles (February 13 – March 3, 2024) at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre. Alan Mingo Jr. will star in the role of The Wiz in the following cities of The Wiz National Tour this fall, kicking off with the tour launch in Baltimore, including Cleveland, OH, Washington, DC, Pittsburgh, PA, Charlotte, NC, Atlanta, GA, Greenville, SC, Chicago, IL, Des Moines, IA, Tempe, AZ and San Diego, CA.
 
The cast will also feature Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy, Deborah Cox as Glinda and Melody A. Betts as Aunt Em and Evillene, Kyle Ramar Freeman as the Lion, Phillip Johnson Richardson as the Tinman, and Avery Wilson as the Scarecrow. The Wiz ensemble includes Maya Bowles, Shayla Alayre Caldwell, Jay Copeland, Allyson Kaye Daniel, Judith Franklin, George, Collin Heyward, Amber Jackson, Jackson, Jones, Jones, Kindle, Mariah Lyttle, Kareem Marsh, Anthony Murphy, Rae, Matthew Sims Jr, Avilon Trust Tate, Keenan D. Washington, and Timothy Wilson.
 
The Wiz design team will include scenic design by Academy Award-winning Hannah Beachler (Black Panther, Beyoncé’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), projection design by Daniel Brodie (Motown the Musical), wig design by Charles LaPointe (MJ the Musical) and make-up design by Kirk Cambridge-Del Pesche (The Piano Lesson).

The production will include ‘Everybody Rejoice’ music and lyrics by Luther Vandross, as well as the ‘Emerald City Ballet’ with music by Timothy Graphenreed.

Joining the producing team with Kristin Caskey, Mike Isaacson, Brian Anthony Moreland, Ambassador Theatre Group, Kandi Burruss and Todd Tucker are Elizabeth Armstrong, James L. Nederlander, Hudson/Mann, Cody Lassen/Matthew D’Arrigo, Independent Presenters Network, Amanda Dubois Productions/Ari Edelson, Dori Berinstein, Spencer Ross/Stephanie Cowan, Terry Schnuck/Gabrielle Palitz, Pippa Lambert/Alissa Norby, Gina Vernaci, Common, MC Lyte, Patty Baker, Marlene & Gary Cohen, Concord Theatricals, The Fabulous Invalid, Fakston Productions, Brian & Nick Ginsberg, Gabrielle Glore, Grove Entertainment, Haffner-Wright Theatricals, House Woods Productions, John Gore Organization, Kawana Entertainment, Willette Klausner, MMC Productions, Lamar Richardson, Runyonland Productions, Erica Lynn Schwartz, The Shubert Organization, Lu-Shawn Thompson, Lana Williams- Woods, The Araca Group, Blakeman-Robinson Entm’t/Ricardo Marques, Robert Tichio/Score 3, Best Yet Entertainment/Branden Grimmett, Dkim Caldwell/Mickalene Thomas, DMQR Productions, Jason Turchin, Epic Theatricals/Jeffrey Grove, Joel Glassman/Westin Hicks, Jamrock Productions/Sonya Houston, Sally Johnston/Ann Scott, Judith Manocherian/Theatre Nerd Productions, and Alan Seales/Gonzalez-Leiba Jr.
 
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. Additional information on tour cities, venues,
performance schedules and single ticket on sale dates is available at WizMusical.com. 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 Bridge-water), 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 clas-sic. 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 by: Tara Rubin Casting.
 
 

Adam Blackstone

(Dance Music Arranger) – on television, radio or at a live concert at your favorite stadium, the Adam Blackstone sound has certainly permeated your
eardrums. Blackstone is not only a multi-faceted bass player, musician, Emmy Award®-winning music director and Grammy Award®-winning writer, he is the musical mastermind behind the live shows of many of today's biggest artists.
 
Blackstone has served as the Musical Director for acts such as Justin Timberlake, Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, Maroon 5, and recently cultivated the Super Bowl 57 Halftime Show featuring Rihanna. As Music Director and on-screen personality, his expertise has shaped today's biggest shows including The Oscars, The Grammy Awards, NBA All Star Weekend, NBC's "The Voice," numerous BET, VH1 and MTV specials, the hit Fox show "The Masked Singer" and NBC's "That's My Jam."
 
Blackstone sits at the helm of BASSic Black Entertainment, LLC (BBE), a broad-based music service company that specializes in live music production, connecting musicians and studio production. In 2022, Adam released his debut album LEGACY, which reached #1 on multiple charts. The lead single, 'Round Midnight’ feat. Jazmine Sullivan, received a Grammy nomination for Best Traditional R&B Performance and was selected in President Barack Obama's favorite songs of 2022 playlist. Adam Blackstone's versatility and musical ability keep him on stages and screens across the world but his faith and family keep him on the ground as he continues to create his own musical LEGACY.

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