Additional casting has been announced for the 2024 Broadway engagement of “The Wiz.”
Deborah Cox will play Glinda and Melody A. Betts will take on the two roles of Aunt Em and Evillene. (In both previous Broadway productions, the roles of Aunt Em and Evillene were played by two different actors.)
Cox was last seen on Broadway in the 2013 revival of “Jekyll & Hyde.” Prior to that, she appeared in “Aida,” replacing in the title role. As a recording artist, she has released six studio albums with a seventh on the way.
Betts’ credits include the Broadway and national touring productions of “Waitress,” the 2015 tour of “The Sound of Music” and “Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert.”
Both Cox and Betts will also play their respective parts in the national tour of “The Wiz,” which, as previously announced, precedes the Broadway engagement.
Cox and Betts join a Main Stem cast that includes the previously announced Wayne Brady in the role of “The Wiz,” Kyle Ramar Freeman as the Lion, Phillip Johnson Richardson as the Tinman and Avery Wilson as the Scarecrow. The production will be directed by Schele Williams and choreographed by JaQuel Knight. Casting is by Tara Rubin.
“The Wiz” is being produced by Kristin Caskey, Mike Isaacson, Brian Anthony Moreland and Ambassador Theatre Group.
