Listen Live
97.9 The Box Featured Video
CLOSE
The Wiz Live

Source: NBC / Getty

The beauty of the internet is that a quick Google search can prevent you from sounding misinformed on social media. Unfortunately, that was lost on far too many white people, who shared their lack of knowledge about The Wiz on Twitter.

“I just learned there is a black version of The Wizard of Oz called “The Wiz” – how is this not racist?” wrote Twitter user @MJTM.

To give a little historical context, The Wiz originally debuted as a stage play in 1974 in Baltimore and then in 1975 on Broadway. The play purposely has an all-Black cast, as it is an adaptation of the children’s book from 1900, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the same book on which the all-White 1939 film, The Wizard Of Oz, is based.

The Broadway production, starring Stephanie Mills, made history and broke racial barriers, winning seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

In 1978, Diana Ross played the role of Dorothy in the film adaptation of The Wiz, which also starred Michael Jackson, Richard Pryor and Lena Horne.

There have been several more reprisals of the play including a short-lived 2009 run with Ashanti.

Regardless of the forty-year history of The Wiz, we find White people’s utter shock and bewilderment of the casting hilarious. Check out some of the racially insensitive tweets below.

Beauties, let us know your thoughts on the reboot, did you absolutely love it? Is there anything you would have changed?

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

And here’s the perfect response for the racist comments:

//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js

RELATED STORIES:

Check Out New Cast Photos From The Reboot Of ‘The Wiz’ Starring Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige and Ne-Yo

New Photos Of Mary J. Blige SLAYING Her Wicked Witch Costume For ‘The Wiz’

Confused People Are Shocked ‘The Wiz’ Has An All Black Cast  was originally published on hellobeautiful.com