Ariana Grande Lights Up The Land Of Oz In A Custom Glinda Gown By Vivienne Westwood

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA — Method dressing has discernibly become the ‘popular’ choice for actresses cementing their sartorial prowess in Hollywood.

But for Ariana Grande, who takes her first starring role in a feature-length film with the highly anticipated movie adaption of Wicked, this manoeuvre isn’t an attempt to relaunch her career as a leading lady through her proximity to a fashion house. Rather, it’s a testament to her devotion to her character, Glinda the Good Witch, and a veritable lesson in history.

Ariana Grande in custom Vivienne Westwood, inspired by Glinda’s costume from The Wizard of Oz. Credit: Instagram/@mimicuttrell/

Indeed, the multi-hyphenate sensation arrived on the red carpet in Sydney, Australia on November 3 to commence a global press tour in anticipation of the film’s arrival. Kicking off the world premiere in the literal Land of Oz, Grande honoured the rich legacy of the work’s material and dressed in a custom re-creation of the original Glinda gown from 1939’s The Wizard of Oz.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 03: Ariana Grande attends the “Journey Through Oz” Tour to celebrate the Australian premiere of “Wicked” at State Theatre on November 03, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Don Arnold/WireImage)

Originally worn by Billie Burke in one of the world’s first technicolour productions, Grande’s iteration was crafted by Vivienne Westwood and featured a near-identical silhouette. Almost as if she too had arrived by bubble, Grande was the epitome of a pop princess made anew in legions of pink blush tulle, a corset covered in peach starburst crystals and delicate sleeves that puffed at her shoulders and gathered at her wrists. 

American actors Judy Garland (right) (1922 – 1969) and Billie Burke (1885 – 1970) link hands, surrounded by Munchkins in a still from the film “The Wizard of Oz,’ directed by Victor Fleming, 1939. (Photo by MGM Studios/Courtesy of Getty Images)

Of course, as anyone who kept up with production would know, Grande has been dressing like she’s somewhere over the rainbow since casting was announced. Be it her vintage magenta Mugler gown for her sophomore Saturday Night Live hosting appearance, custom duchess satin Thom Browne dress at the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony or even the subtle appearance of pink ballet slippers in her mirror selfies, the 31-year-old had remained true to her part. 

To a certain degree, this devotion is a result of how meaningful the body of work is to her. In a recent interview on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, audiences were reminded of just how long Grande had been campaigning to portray the perky sorceress. The host read out a tweet shared by Grande in 2011 that read: ”Loved seeing Wicked again … amazing production! Made me realise again how badly I want 2 play Glinda at some point in my life! #DreamRole.”

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 03: Ariana Grande attends the “Journey Through Oz” Tour to celebrate the Australian premiere of “Wicked” at State Theatre on November 03, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Saverio Marfia/Getty Images)

But another element of her commitment to fully embodying the story of Wicked is how meaningful it is to a community of theatre patrons and cinephiles. For the uninitiated, Jon M. Chu’s two-part silver screen rendering of the Tony Award-winning Broadway production is a project that’s been twenty years in the making.

And with the source material, both Gregory Maguire’s 1995 revisionist companion to  L. Frank Baum’s turn-of-the-century children’s novel and the subsequent film, are works of great literary and cultural significance, it’s quite bewitching that Grande summarises the legacy of these characters all with a poof of pink fabric. 

Grande’s co-star, Cynthia Erivo, also followed suit by rendering her character, Elphaba, in wickedly delightful custom Louis Vuitton. The leads were also joined by their co-stars Jonothan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Marissa Bode and Ethan Slater. 

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 03: Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo attend the “Journey Through Oz” Tour to celebrate the Australian premiere of “Wicked” at State Theatre on November 03, 2024 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Don Arnold/WireImage)

Wicked follows the life and times of the Wicked Witch of the West as it revises the story of what happened before Dorothy and her little dog Toto blew in on a tornado from Kansas.

“I hope people watching become inspired to be more empathetic and be less judgemental of what we see,” Grande told the audience at the harbour city’s State Theatre of the film.

“There are so many layers to everything, and there is so much humanness and context that gets erased these days,” she added. “I hope [the film] inspires people to lead with more love and find someone like Elphaba who’ll pop their bubble someday.”

Wicked launches in Australian theatres on November 21, 2024. Until then, we’ll follow the cast continue to defy gravity on each stop of their globe-trotting world press tour and revisit the original cast soundtrack. Watch the trailer, below.