Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo’s powerful Wicked performance stuns Oscars crowd

Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo delivered a stunning Wicked Oscars performance.

With a passionate homage to the film adaptations of Oz, “Wicked” stars Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo kicked off the Oscars with a performance of “Defying Gravity” from their nominated picture.

Grande appeared wearing a glittering red dress that evoked Dorothy’s ruby slippers as she sang “Over the Rainbow” from “The Wizard of Oz” following a montage of iconic on-screen Los Angeles scenes that paid homage to the recent fires. Thereafter, Erivo joined the stage and sang “Home” by “The Wiz.”

After Grande came back for “Defying Gravity,” Erivo’s forceful war cry brought it all home. They received a standing ovation and roars from the audience. Michelle Yeoh, their co-star, was seen crying on camera.

Despite being practically attached throughout the movie’s promotional tour and naturally harmonizing on screen, Grande and Erivo have rarely performed live together. At the 2024 Met Gala, they performed a duet of “When You Believe,” which won an Oscar for the 1998 movie “The Prince of Egypt.” Stephen Schwartz, the composer of “Wicked,” wrote the ballad that Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston famously recorded.

Erivo and Grande, who are nominated in the main and supporting actress categories, respectively, are among the ten Oscar nominees for “Wicked,” a prequel to “The Wizard of Oz” that centers on the figure of the Wicked Witch of the West, also known as Elphaba.

The film is the highest-grossing nominee, finishing fifth at the 2024 global box office, barely ahead of fellow nominee “Dune: Part Two,” despite not being a front-runner for best picture. Audiences who may not have seen, say, “The Brutalist,” which has been rather challenging to watch as it gradually expanded its theatrical release, are probably drawn in by the inclusion of a performance from “Wicked” in the ceremony.

The film “Wicked,” which was directed by Jon M. Chu, became a sensation due in part to the surge of goods and viral moments it produced. Consider the interview when a reporter informed Erivo and Grande that the words to “Defying Gravity” were “holding space.”

The fact that Grande and Erivo appeared on the show serves as a hint that they might return the following year. Only the first act of the Broadway musical that serves as its inspiration is covered in “Wicked.. “Wicked: For Good,” the sequel, is scheduled for release in November.