The ‘Wicked’ star delivered an unforgettable performance, and two striking gowns, at the Oscars. “We wanted it to be a tribute to the beautiful women and witches who have come before us,” Grande says.

It’s ironic that in a year when Anora (a wildly explicit, mordant comedy about a sex worker) swept the board at the Academy Awards that the overriding theme of red carpet dressing should be so demure.

Ariana Grande paid tribute to the “Wizard of Oz” roots of “Wicked” in the sweetest way at the Oscars on Sunday night. Grande opened the awards with a tear-jerking rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” in a dazzling red dress designed by Schiaparelli.