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The Wiz
''The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical "Wonderful Wizard of Oz"'' is a Musical theatre, musical with music and lyrics by Charlie Smalls (and others) and book by William F. Brown (writer), William F. Brown. It is a retelling of L. Frank Baum's children's novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' (1900) in the context of contemporary African-American culture. It opened on October 21, 1974, at the Morris A. Mechanic Theatre in Baltimore, and moved to Broadway theatre, Broadway's Majestic Theatre (Broadway), Majestic Theatre with a new cast on January 5, 1975. The 1975 Broadway theatre, Broadway production won seven Tony Awards, including Tony Award for Best Musical, Best Musical. It was an early example of Broadway's mainstream acceptance of works with an all-Black cast. It has had revivals in New York, London, San Diego, and the Netherlands, and a limited-run revival was presented by ''Encores!'' at New York City Center in June 2009. A big-budget The Wiz (film), film adaptation of the same ...
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The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz
''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is a children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. It is the first novel in the Oz series of books. A Kansas farm girl named Dorothy ends up in the magical Land of Oz after she and her pet dog Toto are swept away from their home by a tornado. Upon her arrival in Oz, she learns she cannot return home until she has destroyed the Wicked Witch of the West. The book was first published in the United States in May 1900 by the George M. Hill Company. In January 1901, the publishing company completed printing the first edition, a total of 10,000 copies, which quickly sold out. It had sold three million copies by the time it entered the public domain in 1956. It was often reprinted under the title ''The Wizard of Oz'', which is the title of the successful 1902 Broadway musical adaptation as well as the classic 1939 live-action film. The ground-breaking success of both the original 1900 novel and the 1902 Broadway ...
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Charlie Smalls
Charlie Smalls (October 25, 1943 – August 27, 1987) was an American composer and songwriter, best known for writing the music and lyrics for playwright William F. Brown's 1975 Broadway musical ''The Wiz'' and the 1978 film version of the same name. Career A musical prodigy, Smalls attended the Juilliard School at age 11 in 1954, staying until 1961. He wrote the song "From Me to You" for Hugh Masekela's 1966 album ''Hugh Masekela's Next Album'' and a song for John Cassavetes's 1968 film ''Faces'' called "Never Felt Like This Before." Smalls appeared in the tag scene of the "Some Like It Lukewarm" episode of ''The Monkees'', which aired on March 4, 1968, chatting at a piano with singer Davy Jones. After graduating from the High School of Performing Arts, Smalls toured as a member of the New York Jazz Repertory Company before beginning work on ''The Wiz''. An African-American urbanized retelling of L. Frank Baum's ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'', ''The Wiz'' was adapted into ...
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Majestic Theatre (Columbus Circle)
The International Theatre was a theatre located at 5 Columbus Circle, the present site of the Time Warner Center in Manhattan, New York City. History Designed in 1903 by John H. Duncan, the architect of Grant's Tomb, it was built at a time that Columbus Circle was expected to become a theatre district. Initially named the Majestic Theatre, the venue seated about 1,355 and hosted original musicals and operettas, including '' The Wizard of Oz'' and '' Babes in Toyland'', and some plays. It was renamed Park Theatre in 1911, opening with ''The Quaker Girl'', and it again presented plays, musicals, and operettas. In early 1913 it showed the world's first full-length color drama feature film, '' The Miracle''. The Shuberts, Florenz Ziegfeld, and Billy Minsky, in succession, owned the house but did not find success there. In 1923, it was purchased by William Randolph Hearst, renamed the Cosmopolitan Theatre, and played movies. The name was changed to the International Theatre in 19 ...
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The Wiz Live!
''The Wiz Live!'' is an American television special that aired live on NBC on December 3, 2015. Produced by Craig Zadan and Neil Meron, it is a performance of a new adaptation of the 1975 Broadway musical ''The Wiz'', a soul/ R&B reinterpretation of L. Frank Baum's 1900 novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz''. The broadcast is performed live from Grumman Studios in Bethpage, New York. This adaptation of the musical combines aspects of both the Broadway play and its 1978 film adaptation. Cast and characters Main * Shanice Williams as Dorothy Gale * Elijah Kelley as the Scarecrow / Sticks the Farmhand Man #3 * Ne-Yo as the Tin-Man / John the Farmhand Man #1 * David Alan Grier as the Cowardly Lion / Robert the Farmhand Man #2 * Mary J. Blige as Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West * Queen Latifah as the Wiz * Amber Riley as Addaperle, the Good Witch of the North * Uzo Aduba as Glinda, the Good Witch of the South * Stephanie Mills as Auntie Em / Emily Gale * Common as The Bouncer / ...
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Mabel King
Mabel Elizabeth King (née Washington; December 25, 1932 – November 9, 1999) was an American actress and singer. She is known for her role as Mabel "Mama" Thomas on the ABC sitcom ''What's Happening!!'' from its premiere in 1976 until the end of its second season in 1978. King is also known for portraying Evillene the Witch, a role she originated in the stage musical ''The Wiz'' and reprised in Sidney Lumet's 1978 film adaptation. She recorded on the Rama Records and Amy Records labels. Early life King was born Mabel Elizabeth Washington in Charleston, South Carolina, the daughter of Rosalie Washington and Joseph Washington on Christmas Day 1932. She was raised in Harlem, New York where she eventually became a gospel and nightclub singer. Career Stage work She did not start acting until her mid thirties, in 1966, when she played the role of Maria in the national touring play of ''Porgy and Bess''. The following year she played the role of Ernestina in the Broadway musical ...
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Ted Ross
Theodore Ross Roberts (June 30, 1934 – September 3, 2002) was an American actor who was probably best known for his role as the Lion in ''The Wiz'', an all-African American reinterpretation of ''The Wizard of Oz''. He won a Tony Award for the original 1975 Broadway production and went on to recreate the role in the 1978 film version which also starred Diana Ross (no relation), Michael Jackson, Richard Pryor, Nipsey Russell, and Lena Horne. Ross went on to appear in many films from including the role of Bitterman in the classic ''Arthur'' and on the television sitcoms ''Benson", "The Jeffersons'', '' What’s Happening Now", "The Cosby Show" and'' its spin-off ''A Different World''. His final role was in the 1991 movie ''The Fisher King .'' Biography Ross was born in Zanesville, Ohio, but his mother, Elizabeth Russell, a nightclub singer in the 1920s and 1930s, moved the family to Dayton when young Ross was seven. He loved the clubs on West Fifth Street—Dayton's answer to ...
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The Wiz (film)
''The Wiz'' is a 1978 American musical adventure fantasy film directed by Sidney Lumet and produced by Rob Cohen. A reimagining of L. Frank Baum's classic 1900 children's novel ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' featuring an all African-American cast, the film was loosely adapted from the 1974 Broadway musical of the same title. It follows the adventures of Dorothy, a shy, twenty-four year old Harlem schoolteacher who finds herself magically transported to the urban fantasy Land of Oz, which resembles a dream version of New York City. Befriended by a Scarecrow, a Tin Man and a Cowardly Lion, she travels through the city to seek an audience with the mysterious Wiz, who they say is the only one powerful enough to send her home. Produced by Universal Pictures and Motown Productions, filming took place in Queens, New York from October to December 1977, with a cast starring Diana Ross, Michael Jackson (in his feature film debut), Nipsey Russell, Ted Ross, Mabel King, Theresa Merritt, Th ...
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New York City Center
New York City Center (previously known as the Mecca Temple, City Center of Music and Drama,. The name "City Center for Music and Drama Inc." is the organizational parent of the New York City Ballet and, until 2011, the New York City Opera. and the New York City Center 55th Street Theater) is a 2,257-seat Moorish Revival theater at 131 West 55th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, one block south of Carnegie Hall. City Center is a performing home for several major dance companies as well as the Encores! musical theater series and the Fall for Dance Festival. The center is currently headed by Arlene Shuler, a former ballet dancer who has been president since 2003. The facility houses the 2,257 seat main stage, two smaller theaters, four studios and a 12-story office tower.New York Times, March 17, 2010, pg C1, "City Center Is to Start Renovations", by Robin Pogrebin Architecture The building's design is Neo-Moorish and features elaborate ...
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Encores!
Encores! is a Tony-honored concert series dedicated to performing rarely heard American musicals, usually with their original orchestrations. Presented by New York City Center since 1994, Encores! has revived shows by Irving Berlin, Rodgers & Hart, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Leonard Bernstein, and Stephen Sondheim, among many others. Encores! was the brainchild of Judith Daykin, who launched the series shortly after becoming Executive Director of City Center in 1992. Besides initiating Encores!, Daykin is credited for turning City Center from a rental hall into a presenting organization. The series has spawned nineteen cast recordings and numerous Broadway transfers, including Kander and Ebb's ''Chicago'', which is now the second longest-running musical in Broadway history. Videotapes of many Encores! productions are collected at the Billy Rose Theater Collection of the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. The series was led by artistic director Ja ...
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Netherlands
) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherlands , established_title2 = Act of Abjuration , established_date2 = 26 July 1581 , established_title3 = Peace of Münster , established_date3 = 30 January 1648 , established_title4 = Kingdom established , established_date4 = 16 March 1815 , established_title5 = Liberation Day (Netherlands), Liberation Day , established_date5 = 5 May 1945 , established_title6 = Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Kingdom Charter , established_date6 = 15 December 1954 , established_title7 = Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, Caribbean reorganisation , established_date7 = 10 October 2010 , official_languages = Dutch language, Dutch , languages_type = Regional languages , languages_sub = yes , languages = , languages2_type = Reco ...
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San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth most populous city in the United States and the county seat, seat of San Diego County, the List of the most populous counties in the United States, fifth most populous county in the United States, with 3,338,330 estimated residents as of 2019. The city is known for its mild year-round climate, natural deep-water harbor, extensive beaches and parks, long association with the United States Navy, and recent emergence as a healthcare and biotechnology development center. San Diego is the List of municipalities in California, second largest city in the U.S. state, state of California, after Los Angeles. Historically home to the Kumeyaay people, San Diego is frequently referred to as the "Birthplace of California", as it was the first site vi ...
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London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major settlement for two millennia. The City of London, its ancient core and financial centre, was founded by the Romans as '' Londinium'' and retains its medieval boundaries.See also: Independent city § National capitals The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.The Greater London Authority consists of the Mayor of London and the London Assembly. The London Mayor is distinguished fr ...
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