Ne-Yo, Common, and Elijah Kelley Join The Wiz Live!

According to Deadline, NBC's The Wiz Live! has added three more members to its star-studded company. R&B singer Ne-Yo joins the cast as the Tin Man, rap artist Common will play the gatekeeper to Oz, and Elijah Kelley (Lee Daniels' The Butler) takes on the role of the Scarecrow.

As previously announced, the three join a cast starring Queen Latifah (the Wiz), Mary J. Blige (Evillene), David Alan Grier (Cowardly Lion), Stephanie Mills (Aunt Em), Orange Is the New Black star Uzo Aduba (Glinda), Glee's Amber Riley (Addaperle), and newcomer Shanice Williams, who takes on the leading role of Dorothy for the live broadcast.

Tony winner Kenny Leon (A Raisin in the Sun) will stage the live production, which is based on Charlie Smalls and William F. Brown's Tony-winning stage version. Four-time Tony winner Harvey Fierstein (Kinky Boots) will contribute new material to Brown's book. Craig Zadan and Neil Meron serve as executive producers, with Universal Television producing.

The Wiz, a retelling of L. Frank Baum's classic Wizard of Oz stories, opened on Broadway in 1975 and won seven Tonys including Best Musical and Best Score. A 1978 film version starred Diana Ross and Michael Jackson. It was last seen in New York in a New York City Center Encores! Summer Stars revival in 2009, with a cast led by Ashanti, Orlando Jones, and Tony winner LaChanze.

The live television broadcast of The Wiz, hitting the airwaves December 3, serves as the precursor to a Broadway revival, coproduced by Cirque du Soleil's new stage theatrical division, in the 2016-17 Broadway season. The telecast follows The Sound of Music and Peter Pan in NBC's annual series of live musical presentations.