Ariana Grande's Journey to Becoming Glinda in Wicked

MsMojo

She's come a long way! Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re exploring how Ariana Grande worked to “Break Free” from her pop star persona and become totally Glindafied for the “Wicked” movie adaptation.

Transcript

00:00It is my heart's desire to become a sorceress."

00:04Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're exploring how Ariana Grande worked to break free from

00:09her pop star persona, and become totally Glinda-fied for the Wicked movie adaptation.

00:14I have never wanted something as badly as I did this."

00:20Back in 2011, Ariana Grande put it out into the universe that playing Glinda in Wicked

00:25was her dream role.

00:26She also told KidNation that while Elphaba has some great songs, she's Glinda through

00:31and through, and even gave us a glimpse of what that might sound like.

00:35In an interview with Zach Sang, she shared that as a kid, she loved Glinda's bright,

00:47bubbly, and comedic personality, but now she resonates more with the character's conviction.

00:52Well about ten years after sharing her dream with the world, she hopped on a video call

00:56with director Jon M. Chu, who made it all come true.

01:10While most of us know Grande as a Nickelodeon star or from her music career, her roots actually

01:15go back to Broadway, where she played Charlotte in the musical 13 when she was just a little

01:19older than that herself.

01:21But really, Grande's been in the theater world practically forever, from local productions

01:25to belting out show tunes in the car.

01:38She once called theater, quote, her soul, her heart, and has shown that love for the

01:42stage throughout her career.

01:44According to Chu, Grande went full fangirl on the production, making sure that the parts

01:49of the show she knows will mean everything to the fans aren't forgotten or left out.

01:53But just going back to her overall love of musicals, apparently she reached out to the

01:58Hairspray Live team to ask for a chance to audition.

02:11As we know, she ended up playing Tracy's best friend Penny Pinkleton and starring alongside

02:15OG Glinda Kristen Chenoweth.

02:17That wasn't the first time these two met.

02:20Both performers have shared the story of how, when Ari was just a little girl, she

02:23got to go backstage at Wicked on Broadway, meet Chenoweth, and even sing for her.

02:37Chenoweth said she knew right then that this kid had something special.

02:40Fast forward several years, and there they are co-starring in Hairspray Live.

02:53Over the years, they stayed tight, with Chenoweth calling herself Grande's musical mama.

02:58That connection sure came in handy when Ari floated into Glinda's bubble.

03:01It's so sweet to see how emotional Chenoweth gets when talking about that full circle experience.

03:19She even handed Ariana the Glinda wand, literally and figuratively, giving her blessing to make

03:24the role her own.

03:26But before all that, let's rewind to her audition process.

03:44As any Wicked fan knows all too well, a movie adaptation of the musical has been dangled

03:48in front of us for what feels like forever.

03:51How long exactly?

03:52Well, Ariana, who'll be 31 when Part 1 of Wicked finally hits theaters, started chasing

03:57this role at just 20 years old.

04:04According to Chu, she auditioned for the upcoming movie five times.

04:07He also shared that she showed incredible dedication throughout the audition process.

04:12While he was initially hesitant to cast such a big pop star, she proved she was more than

04:16up to the task each time.

04:27He said, quote,

04:28Still, even though this was her dream role, she apparently was more than happy to coach

04:41and advise friends of hers who were up for the part, too.

04:44As for her own audition, she poured everything she had into giving herself the best shot.

04:56Like many auditionees, she shared that the process was long and intense.

05:00She spent about six months working with vocal coaches to get just the right sound and worked

05:04on breaking down everything the public thought they knew about her.

05:18She came into the whole experience as a blank slate, ready to be transformed into Glinda

05:23in her own right.

05:24In fact, she was so dedicated that she even had her fellow coaches on the voice breaking

05:28a sweat.

05:42As we said, she didn't want to step into this movie as Ariana Grande, international pop

05:46star.

05:47She knew that if any trace of her pop persona showed up in her Glinda, it might break the

05:51magic.

05:52So she gave a big old thank you next to the Ari we know, at least for now.

06:02If you've been a true Ariana stan from the start, you already know she's a master at

06:06reinventing herself.

06:08She first made her mark as the ditzy Cat Valentine on Victorious and its spinoff Salmon Cat.

06:13Then, as she transitioned into music, she owned her stage presence and wore her confidence

06:17and sexuality unapologetically.

06:27Now she's entering her Glinda the Good era, and we're all about to see a whole new side

06:31of her.

06:32We're not saying she went full method, but she's definitely given this role 120%.

06:47She talked about having complete tunnel vision and even going as far as getting another phone

06:51that was basically just for Chu and her co-star Cynthia Erivo.

06:54What's even more amazing is that she shared how this focus allowed her to set some much-needed

06:58boundaries in her life, letting her explore the character deeply and really savor the

07:03experience.

07:15So this was Ariana's big chance to show fans a side of her they probably hadn't seen before.

07:30To start the process, she decided to go all out with the most swankified makeover.

07:34She reportedly told the film's makeup artist, Frances Hannan, quote,

07:37"'I don't want to bring anything from my life into our film,' and was totally open to a

07:42complete reinvention.

07:43A big inspiration for her look came from the 40s and 50s, especially star of screen and

07:48style Grace Kelly.

07:50Hannan felt that the beauty and simplicity of that look would be perfect for Ari."

07:54Apparently, although Grande was fitted for a wig, her hair was also bleached.

08:00And if you know her history with the product, you'll know what a huge commitment that is.

08:04Reportedly, she also got a brow lift and had to keep her eyebrows matching her hair, lightening

08:09them with a powder roughly once a week.

08:20Something to pay attention to when you watch the movie is Glinda's hair length and hue.

08:24They are essentially reflections of her character's growth and development.

08:28Of course, you can't have the queen of a cosmetic empire without using at least some of her

08:32products.

08:34of that special Glinda sparkle.

08:44Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified

08:48about our latest videos.

08:51You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.

08:55If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.

09:00Now that she looks the part, what about her voice?

09:04Fans have noticed that since Ari started promoting the role, her voice has taken on a different

09:07register, sounding quite unlike what we remember.

09:10I trained every day with Nancy and with Eric to transform my voice, even.

09:14Like my singing voice, everything about me, I had to kind of deconstruct.

09:20She's worked hard to find that voice, and she's been quick to defend it.

09:23She pointed out that she hasn't seen male actors getting critiqued for fully committing

09:27to their roles.

09:28Oh, I saved you some space, by the way.

09:29Do you really think this is fair?

09:31I do not.

09:32I just promised a private suite.

09:34But thanks for asking.

09:36The only reason she feels the need to defend her choices at all is because she's incredibly

09:40proud of the work she's put into making Glinda her own, and she wants to cherish that.

09:44From my voice to my physicality and just sort of finding her and learning to how I could

09:53offer myself to her.

09:55Perhaps the sweetest part is that Glinda has really made her mark on Grande.

09:59Not to get all cheesy, but it sounds like Glinda will always be with her like a handprint

10:03on her heart.

10:04Glinda's journey of personal growth is something Ariana connected with deeply.

10:07My favorite thing about Wicked is that we can all identify pieces of ourselves within

10:13both Elphaba and Glinda.

10:14She shared that whenever she tried to go back to who she was before, she felt a pull towards

10:19her new self, saying, quote,

10:20I liked that feeling.

10:22I love believing in myself.

10:24Interesting.

10:25My brain got used to certain pieces of her.

10:27And then the other things I would like would really force you to look in the mirror.

10:30I think that's what I like so much about acting and what I missed so much because, you know,

10:36it's fun to be forced to look in the mirror in certain ways.

10:39Are you excited to see Ariana play Glinda?

10:41Tell us what you're hoping she'll bring to the role in the comments.

10:44It's good to see me, isn't it?

10:46Do you agree with our picks?

10:47Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.

10:50And be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.

Category

Transcript

Recommended