Aside from the unbelievably shocking horrors found splattered across pages of USA Today, Chicago herself is currently going through some thangs. We’ve got a police department in shambles, a mayor few trust, and a list of evils some known and some yet to be discovered, if not hidden forever. What we all need is a break. For many, The Wiz Live! on NBC Thursday night was the perfect respite.
The Wiz is a spectacular retelling of the classic Wizard of Oz. New life is brought to the story with a mostly black cast that sing and dance and joke around in the same way its audience is singing, dancing, and joking any given day. That self-awareness is what makes The Wiz so much fun. It’s not full of itself. It knows who it is and who’s watching it. That was true in the ’70s just as much as it was last night. This isn’t a wide-eyed, naive story so doused in sugar that it comes off creepily detached. This version, instead, is more for today and more for everyone — no matter who you are. Code: It’s not just for black people.
Many of us grew up with both versions simultaneously lodged into our cognizance. Usually, however, one makes us feel more at home than the other.
Speaking of Home…
Twitter was made for moments like this. While swimming in nostalgia, folks in Chicago and the rest of the country bonded over emotions tweet by tweet, until Dorothy finally sang Home. Some were shady, some were clever, some were just grasping for a way to encapsulate the moment.
From the jump we knew it was coming for our lunch money, wigs, and edges. No one was disappointed.
https://twitter.com/tylerperry/status/672586761655177217
https://twitter.com/afrobella/status/672589064474873857
https://twitter.com/MrArvinger/status/672617546701475840
https://twitter.com/cbo523/status/672585986040311810
https://twitter.com/TheSkorpion/status/672599255811547137
https://twitter.com/chancetherapper/status/672614121590956032
Then we remembered the music.
https://twitter.com/cthagod/status/672601862009417728
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672622565379084288
https://twitter.com/TeenVogue/status/672605097596198912
https://twitter.com/giphy/status/672605119020728321
https://twitter.com/Bel_Grimel/status/672599009752539136
It was all so CURRENT tho!
https://twitter.com/TeeJayTheArtist/status/672610113606258688
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672598785550368768
https://twitter.com/brokeymcpoverty/status/672599538235023360
https://twitter.com/kswills/status/672607799961108485
https://twitter.com/LyricOpera/status/672601311976808449
https://twitter.com/AfricasExplorer/status/672601722850775042
Chicago came through.
https://twitter.com/_MYCC/status/672600722932936704
https://twitter.com/VerySmartBros/status/672615661898760192
https://twitter.com/Casey_Vee/status/672622651291000834
Mary and The Queen did their thing.
https://twitter.com/Seantaneous/status/672609627247366146
https://twitter.com/MinaSays/status/672605824997552128
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672609450264535040
https://twitter.com/BuzzFeedFashion/status/672605425108459521
https://twitter.com/JarettSays/status/672616385332121600
We learned a lot…
https://twitter.com/BelleUnplugged/status/672604222563737600
https://twitter.com/BroadwayBlack/status/672583890339545089
https://twitter.com/Cirque/status/672611687304941568
https://twitter.com/tamikanewhouse/status/672615519195897857
https://twitter.com/NBCBLK/status/672613107009744896
…and laughed a lot too.
https://twitter.com/vulture/status/672605223941206016
https://twitter.com/CourtneyCymone/status/672603995215499268
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672617369039011840
https://twitter.com/SkylerHenry/status/672618570048774145
https://twitter.com/cocoabutterbf/status/672618557864148992
https://twitter.com/rolandsmartin/status/672620004886597633
https://twitter.com/chescaleigh/status/672598809235558400
Um, but where was Toto?
https://twitter.com/_CallMeLola/status/672614344769871872
And I know you saw that dash of milk in the Emerald City coffee.
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672601388615081984
In the end, it was all over too soon.
https://twitter.com/leauxmichelle/status/672622672455553024
A huge thank you to NBC and the entire cast of The Wiz Live! We’re all so grateful.
https://twitter.com/MadameNoire/status/672625749577310210
https://twitter.com/Chicagoings/status/672621618158370816
https://twitter.com/KishaHugh/status/672625688420069377