Tag: WEAR

Ariana Grande has been very open about the fact that playing Glinda was her absolute dream role.

She wanted the part so badly that she lobbied for it for a full decade before it ever started casting. 

‘I had been chasing [producer] Marc Platt down for about 10 years, wondering when this movie was going to happen, when I would have the opportunity to audition,’ she told People. 

In order to put good juju towards her dream, Ariana – who recently visited a children’s hospital, began asking herself, ‘What underwear would Glinda wear today?’ 

‘As soon as I heard that maybe in a few months they might start seeing people, I was like, “Great! Now’s the time I’m starting,”‘ Grande said.

When it was time for her to audition she sang some of Elphaba’s songs as well as No One Mourns the Wicked and Popular.

‘Weirdly, strangely, I sang for both [Glinda and Elphaba],’ Grande said. ‘I don’t know why — I think we all kind of knew why I was going in, and it was for Glinda.

‘I love Elphaba, but you know,’ she added.

Director Jon M. Chu also appears in the video clip and admits he was both well aware that Ariana had been saying she wanted the role for years and he had no intention of casting her in the role of Glinda.

‘In my head, I was like, “We’re never giving this to Ariana Grande. That’ll take over the movie — [it’ll be] about Ariana Grande.”‘

He changed his mind quickly once he saw what Granda could do. 

‘Every time she came in, she was an Ari that I’d never seen before. And every time she left, she was the most interesting person,’ he added.

And Ariana wasn’t kidding when she said she’d been preparing to play Glinda for many years. 

Over the weekend, Ariana re-shared a clip from Voices of Gold of herself at age 14 in 2008 singing The Wizard and I, which is sung by Cynthia Erivo’s Elphaba.

The clip was filmed during her time as a student at Broadway Artists Alliance, which provides professional training for promising young musical theater performers in the heart of New York City.

The post, which was split with a clip from the new blockbuster movie adaptation of the Broadway show, was captioned: ‘At 14 years old, @arianagrande was already dreaming of Oz, singing The Wizard and I like she was meant to be there.

‘Fast forward 17 years – now 31 – she’s officially Glinda in the Wicked movie, soaring through Defying Gravity with @cynthiaerivo. Talk about a glow-up worthy of the Emerald City.

‘This reel is your reminder that dreams don’t just come true – they defy gravity. Watch Ariana’s journey from teenage dreamer to actual star of Wicked.’

‘How’s that for a full-circle moment? Also, who else is suddenly emotional about life goals?’ the caption added.

Ariana herself commented on the post with a simple teary-eyed face emoji, and fans were quick to share their thoughts too.

‘This role was her dream, I am so happy for her,’ one person wrote, while another said, ‘Such a full circle moment for her.’

A third person commented: ‘Beautiful voice then and now,’ and a fourth said: ‘Her baby face omg the cutest.’

Someone else posted: ‘Dreams come true,’ and another fan added: ‘Ari was destined for greatness.’

And during a recent appearance on The Late Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, the host  couldn’t resist mentioning a tweet of Ariana’s from December 2011.

‘I’m so happy for you, I found a tweet that you put out in 2011 by the way,’ he told her, before reading out her throwback post.

The tweet read: ‘Loved seeing Wicked again… amazing production! Made me realize again how badly I want 2 play Glinda at some point in my life! #DreamRole.’

As the live studio audience gave a round of applause, Jimmy told Ariana: ‘You did it, come on!’ as the singer smiled and replied: ‘That’s so sweet.’