R&B Youngster Ashanti Gears Up For Starring In New York City Musical

Grammy-winning popular R&B singer Ashanti is prepping for her stage debut as Dorothy in Encores! The stage show will be organizing on Stars production of the Charlie Smalls-William F. Brown musical The Wiz at New York City Center.

The summer production, adds to Ashanti’s growing acting career, seeing that she has appeared on screen in “American Dreams” as Dionne Warwick, as well as “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “Coach Carter,” “Resident Evil Extinction,” “John Tucker Must Die” and “Bride & Prejudice.”

The singer, who won popularity by singing “The Way That I Love You” , acquired her first taste of a theatrical experience when she led a performance of Stephen Schwartz’s “Defying Gravity” from Wicked as part of the The Yellow Brick Road Not Taken concert on Broadway last fall. She also appeared as Dorothy in ABC’s “The Muppets’ Wizard of Oz,” a television special in 2005.

As the sources have reported, the production officially opens June 18.