97th Oscars: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo set the stage on fire with their livewire performances

Los Angeles:  It was a night to remember at the Oscars as singer-songwriter Ariana Grande and actress-singer Cynthia Erivo brought Oz to the Oscars, kicking off the 97th annual ceremony with a magical musical medley from ‘The Wizard of Oz’, ‘The Wiz’ and ‘Wicked’.

After a tribute to Los Angeles, which is recovering from devastating wildfires, Grande took the stage to perform a heartwarming rendition of ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ from 1939’s classic ‘The Wizard of Oz’ before Erivo wowed the crowd with ‘Home” from the 1975 musical ‘The Wiz’, reports ‘Variety’.

The two Academy Award nominees then joined forces, and hands for ‘Defying Gravity’, the showstopper at the end of the first act of ‘Wicked’.

As per ‘Variety’, Grande (whose sparkly dress was adorned with a ruby red slipper) briefly stepped aside to let Erivo (wearing a strapless white gown decorated with florals) belt out her character’s famous battle cry. Once Erivo hit that impossibly high final note, audiences leapt to their feet and embraced the leading ladies with a standing ovation.

It’s safe to say the celebration of ‘Oz’, on stage and screen, was “pop-u-lar” in the room at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.

The wickedly talented Grande and Erivo star as the perky, pink-loving Glinda and green-skinned Elphaba in ‘Wicked’, which chronicles the first act of the long-running Broadway sensation.

In addition to box office riches, the musical adaptation is nominated for 10 Academy Awards, including best picture, actress for Erivo and supporting actress for Grande.

Other musical performers for this year’s ceremony included Queen Latifah, Doja Cat, Blackpink member and ‘The White Lotus’ cast member Lisa and British singer Raye. In a break from tradition, this year’s Oscars ceremony does not include performances of nominees for best original song.

–IANS