‘The Wiz’ Producers Kandi Burruss & Todd Tucker Would Love To Give ‘Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome’ The Broadway Musical Treatment Next: “It Would Be Crazy”

Even though Kandi Burruss will not return for Season 16 of The Real Housewives Of Atlanta, the actor/singer/mogul hasn’t slowed down at all. In addition to her work on Showtime’s The Chi (returning May 10) and the running of her Atlanta restaurant empire, Burruss and her producing partner, husband Todd Tucker, have returned to Broadway with a revival of The Wiz, the beloved 1975 musical adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s children’s novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Given the success of their previous Broadway productions, Thoughts of a Colored Man and The Piano Lesson, Burruss and Tucker are the perfect pair to bring The Wiz to a new generation of theatergoers.

“The Wiz is definitely a classic,” said Burruss. While Burruss may be an avid fan, Tucker has the honor of having seen the original Broadway production as a child. “As a kid, even though I was so little, I still remember Stephanie Mills [the original Dorothy],” said Tucker. Seeing the show now as an adult offered Tucker a different experience. “When I [first] saw The Wiz, I thought, ‘oh, it’s this fairy tale, this girl’s trying to get home,'” said Tucker. “When I watch it now, I can see my daughters in Dorothy.”

For Burruss and Tucker, The Wiz is truly a family affair. In addition to their eldest daughters, Riley Burruss and Kaela Tucker, joining them for the opening night festivities of The Wiz, the couple took their youngest children—8-year-old Ace and 4-year-old Blaze— to see the show as well. “They were tuned up,” recalled Tucker with a laugh. Burruss agreed and add: “Our show is just a party. It is going to make you want to get up on your feet.”

Burruss and Tucker stopped by the Page Six studio to talk about The Wiz, what movie they’d like to give the Broadway musical treatment to, and how they also would have loved to have had a second season of Kandi & The Gang.

DECIDER: In your illustrious Broadway producing career, The Wiz is the first musical you are tackling. What made you want to get involved with this revival?

TODD TUCKER: The Wiz is a classic.

KANDI BURRUSS: Yeah, The Wiz is definitely a classic. It’s my favorite musical of all time. Our producing partner Brian [Anthony Moreland] came to us and said, “Hey guys, what y’all think about redoing The Wiz?” And I was like, “For sure.”

TT: It was a no-brainer.

What makes producing a musical like The Wiz different from producing a straight play like The Piano Lesson and Thoughts of a Colored Man?

KB: The difference is the music and the sound. Day to day, we’re constantly talking about the sound man. Like, “what is he doing?” “Is the music too loud or is the music not loud enough?” We needed the beat to be banging.

TT: The choreography and the movement too. There was just so much more going on.

KB: Yeah, the technical side of the production required a lot of thought, simply because everybody’s singing. We had to make sure that the performers can hear themselves sing in addition to the people in the venue.

TT: Vocally, they must be on point, every time.

KB: There is no, “Oh, my voice isn’t right today.” You better get it together.

The Wiz means so much to so many people. Do you remember the first time you saw The Wiz, either on-stage or on video?

KB: When was the first time you saw The Wiz?

TT: I saw the original production as a kid. Even though I was so little, I still remember Stephanie Mills. I was a little scared though.

KB: We brought our 4-year-old and our 8-year-old, Ace and Blaze, to see The Wiz and they loved it. They were up dancing.

TT: They were tuned up!

KB: Our new version of The Wiz is funnier than the original. In addition, with the music and the dancing we’ve got going on, our show is just a party. It is going to make you want to get up on your feet.

Was it important to share The Wiz and its legacy with your children?

TT: Definitely. When I saw The Wiz as a kid, I thought, “oh, it’s this fairy tale, this girl’s trying to get home.” When I watch it now, I can see my daughters in Dorothy. They’re going through life, meeting people as they go. They’re meeting scarecrows and lions out there [laughs].

KB: That’s a good point.

Speaking of your daughters, Angelina Jolie’s daughter Vivienne is her assistant on The Outsiders musical. Did Riley and Kaela ever show any interest in helping with The Wiz?

KB: Well, Riley and Kayla are doing their own thing right now. They did come to hang out with us on opening night and they love the show. Riley is about to graduate from NYU next month. She only has a few weeks of class left.

TT: So, we need her to stay focused.

KB: Yeah, stay focused [laughs].

TT: Kaela is working in TV production, so she’s always, “I got to travel here to do this and that.”

KB: But they’re here when we need them.

There are so many talented actors making their Broadway debut in The Wiz. Were you conscious of casting newcomers to give them the opportunity to shine in a starring role?

KB: Definitely. My main thing during casting was to find super talented people whose vocals were beyond amazing. I would say casting Nichelle Lewis as Dorothy was obviously a conversation because she’s a new face. Overall, we thought it was very important to give an opportunity to new talent. Vocally and performance wise, she deserves it.

In addition to Nichelle, Avery Wilson, who plays Scarecrow, is another first timer on Broadway. He’s phenomenal. As someone from the R&B urban music world, I’ve always admired Avery as a vocalist. This is a really cool opportunity for him to show people that he can act and dance too.

TT: He’s a triple threat.

KB: He was doing toe touches the other day that I didn’t know he could do.

You’ve also got a couple prolific stage veterans in Wayne Brady and Deborah Cox. Were they the Wiz and the Glinda you always imagined?

KB: Yes, I was super excited to lock them both in. First of all, Deborah has an amazing voice. I’ve been listening to her for years, and I also love the work that she’s already done on Broadway. For her to be able to bring that experience to our show is great. Wayne Brady is my fellow The Masked Singer winner! He and I both have that in common, which is pretty cool. To see him bring all his talent to the stage has been great.

There are so many musicals based on movies on Broadway right now. The Outsiders, The Notebook, and Moulin Rogue to name a few. What movie do you think should get the Broadway treatment next?

KB: I like sci-fi, so I could see Aliens on stage.

TT: Nobody wants Alien vs. Predator on stage.

KB: Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome on stage would be crazy. Could you imagine? The costumes would be awesome! You can have somebody sing “We Don’t Need Another Hero” by Tina Turner.

TT: Wait, don’t put that that idea out there, somebody might take it.

KB: Can you not imagine? Do you remember the outfit that Tina Turner wore in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome? I can see it now!

Now that we’ve decided on your next Broadway project, I want to talk about some of your past Bravo projects. Kandi’s Wedding and Kandi’s Ski Trip just dropped on Peacock. Are you excited for fans to revisit these past series?

KB: I think it’s really cool.

TT: Do we get a residual check for that? It’s a different platform.

KB: Unfortunately, you don’t get residuals in reality TV.

TT: I don’t think Peacock was involved when we signed that contract. I’m about to look into that one.

KB: It’s really cool thought. Our anniversary always falls on our kids’ spring break. We were in Orlando with our kids and another family on our ten-year anniversary. The couple we were with were celebrating 11 years of marriage that same week, and they wanted us all to watch their wedding anniversary video. Now, they can go and watch ours on Peacock. Todd doesn’t like it though.

TT: No, I love the wedding episode. All the stuff that we had to go through to get to the altar is not easy to watch. If people missed it before, they can now really understand our journey.

KB: It was a lot of drama.

I was a big fan of Kandi & The Gang. Would you like to have gotten another installment of the series?

KB: You know what, they really should have done a season two of old Kandi & The Gang. I personally felt like that show was one of the most cool, honest, and fun shows on Bravo.

TT: Inclusive too. I think it was a good representation of Atlanta, our family, and just the everyday craziness of that restaurant.

KB: Yeah, but it was funny too. Yes, you had your drama, but the show offered a lot of laughter and hilarious moments. Since you’re on Peacock watching our other shows, go back and watch Kandi & The Gang too!

Can you tease what we would have seen on a potential season 2?

KB: You would have gotten to see everybody’s growth. Dom’Unique [Variety] is a dancer who was in The Color Purple movie. Melvin [Jones] is a now a top chef at a big steak house. I would’ve loved for people to continue to see the journey of the people on the show. Kandi & The Gang won’t be the last time you see a lot of these people.

The Wiz is now playing at the Marquis Theater through August 18