MILWAUKEE \u2014 Being cast as Dorothy in \u201cThe Wiz\u201d made as much sense as following the yellow brick road for Phoenix Assata LaFreniere.<\/p>\n
The musical has been rooted in her life since she was a kid.<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2018The Wiz\u2019 has been a big part of my life for like the whole thing because as a child I watched the movie and everything, and me and my mom sing all the songs together and I\u2019ve known all the songs literally forever\u2026\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
But one song from the show has held a special place in her heart \u2014 \u201cHome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pre-Broadway Production of “The Wiz,” featuring Deborah Cox as Glinda & Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy in “He’s The Wiz.” (Jeremy Daniel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Phoenix Assata LaFreniere, who recently took over the role of Dorothy in “The Wiz.” (Courtesy of Broadway Across America\/The Wiz)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The magic of that song became even more real for LaFreniere in a moment that can only be described as fate.<\/p>\n
Fresh off a spring 2025 graduation and spending her days working at a gym, LaFreniere gathered with her family over the holidays in December. Like any other year, karaoke was a big part of the festivities.<\/p>\n
LaFreniere often sung with her mother, who is a singer herself. This year, the request from the crowd was to sing the song, \u201cHome,\u201d one that had become a tradition for her mother to perform.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo me and my mom sang \u2018Home\u2019 together over the holidays in front of my whole family and then a couple weeks later, I got cast [as Dorothy] to do exactly that on stage, which is so crazy and like written-in-the-stars moment,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Now, she gets to share a song that\u2019s been influential to her life with people around the country on her debut Broadway tour.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s so beautiful and it\u2019s about like finding love and finding light in everyday things because the journey that Dorothy goes on is that she\u2019s having a hard time with her life and finding her purpose and she\u2019s having relationships, like hard relationships with her family and friends,\u201d LaFreniere said, reflecting on the song that has shaped her life.<\/p>\n
She said the song tells you that even if you\u2019re going through hard times, you know it\u2019ll be OK because you\u2019re home.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s a message that can translate for anyone. And I think that\u2019s why the song always meant so much to me, even as a kid, was just because it was like, \u2018Oh my gosh, like this is so true, like home is where the heart is,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Pre-Broadway Production of “The Wiz,” featuring Alan Mingo Jr. as The Wiz. (Jeremy Daniel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Being able to explore Dorothy, a character that\u2019s been used time and again in what LaFreniere calls the \u201cOz multiverse,\u201d has been a fun reflection.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that\u2019s one that has been so exciting for me, getting to play her, is that I\u2019m like discovering things that remind me of myself or remind me of a younger version of myself; she just has so much joy and curiosity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
LaFreniere said while she was learning the show, someone told her that Dorothy\u2019s superpower was to make anyone feel on top of the world. That\u2019s stuck with her in her rendition.<\/p>\n
Pre-Broadway Production of “The Wiz,” featuring Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy & Melody Betts as Aunt Em in “The Feeling We Once Had.” (Jeremy Daniel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cHer main goal in life is to lift other people up and lift herself up, and she\u2019s so good at getting people out of like sadness or despair and reminding them that like you can do this and I can do this,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
The Dorothy role in \u201cThe Wiz\u201d has some big shoes to fill, something LaFreniere doesn\u2019t take lightly.<\/p>\n
She remembers admiring Diana Ross in the film version released in 1978, specifically her vocals.<\/p>\n
\u201cHer vocals are so iconic, especially to me, because I grew up with the movie,\u201d she said, adding that\u2019s one thing she adopts in her portrayal.<\/p>\n
As for the original Broadway actress in the role, Stephanie Mills, LaFreniere said she admired her youth and sweetness, something she also takes into her performance.<\/p>\n
Something that sets \u201cThe Wiz\u201d apart from the original \u201cThe Wizard of Oz\u201d story is the way it retells the story in the context of African-American culture, from an all-Black cast to its score jam-packed with soul, gospel, rock, and 70s funk.<\/p>\n
Pre-Broadway Production of “The Wiz,” featuring Avery Wilson as Scarecrow in “You Cant Win.” (Jeremy Daniel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
LaFreniere said the music makes you want to dance in your seat.<\/p>\n
Representation on stage is also back of mind as LaFreniere greets fans at the stage door.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery day I\u2019m still shocked that people want my autograph and want to take pictures with me because I\u2019m like what is happening right now, especially little Black girls that, it gets me so deeply, they\u2019re the sweetest every and they\u2019re always so shy to talk to me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Pre-Broadway Production of “The Wiz,” featuring Phillip Johnson Richardson as Tinman. (Jeremy Daniel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
The whole experience feels surreal to LaFreniere and though she\u2019s only a few stops into the tour, she\u2019s already fully embraced the show\u2019s themes of family, friendship, love, joy \u2014 and that \u201cwe are more alike than we are different.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe whole show is about finding people that you\u2019ve never seen before, being in worlds you\u2019ve never seen before, being in situations you\u2019ve never been in before and finding how to get out of them and still being light and still finding joy and friendship and relationship \u2014 it just makes you feel good because they all go on this journey of discovering themselves, finding pieces of themselves that were lost and realizing that it was within them the whole time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n