Judy Garland’s Daughter Reacts To Ariana Grande’s ‘Somewhere Over The Rainbow’ Rendition – HuffPost

Ariana Grande’s performance at the Academy Awards sent Judy Garland’s daughter somewhere over the rainbow. Garland, who portrayed Dorothy in the iconic 1939 film “The Wizard of Oz,” famously sang “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” before being transported to the land of Oz.Grande’s Sunday night rendition of the song did Garland justice, according to Lorna Luft, daughter of the cinema icon. Grande opened the awards show with “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” followed by Cynthia Erivo singing “Home” from 1978′s “The Wiz.” The two “Wicked” co-stars concluded their performance with a duet of “Defying Gravity” from the film.On Monday, Luft shared a heartfelt message in an Instagram Story screenshotted by People. In it, she thanked Grande, Cynthia Erivo and the Academy “for honoring my mother’s memory so beautifully.”Luft added that she and her family are “very grateful.” During her performance, Grande also honored the “Wizard of Oz” origins of “Wicked” with a fashion statement. The radiant red dress she wore, designed by Daniel Roseberry, included a literal ruby slipper on the back. The “Thank U, Next” singer had another major fan rooting for her, too. In a video posted to Instagram on Monday, her brother, Frankie Grande, was seen hosting an Oscars watch party, dubbing the event, “The Gay Super Bowl.” As his sister began singing, an emotional Frankie Grande, eyes brimming with tears, exclaimed, “Oh my God, oh my God.” We’re bringing you the exclusives, scoops and hot takes on the news all your friends are talking about. Join our loyalty program to support our work and go ad-free.You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We won’t back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can’t do it without you.For the first time, we’re offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you’ll join us.You’ve supported HuffPost before, and we’ll be honest — we could use your help again. We won’t back down from our mission of providing free, fair news during this critical moment. But we can’t do it without you.For the first time, we’re offering an ad-free experience to qualifying contributors who support our fearless journalism. We hope you’ll join us.Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.In a caption, he called it the “best opening” to an Oscars “ever! Of all time!”By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Source: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/judy-garland-ariana-grande-wicked-oscars_n_67c73afbe4b060015d57bc51