HOLLYWOOD: The Oscars gala traditionally features performances of all the tracks nominated for best original song — this year, the ceremony on Sunday bucked norms, but musical numbers still punctuated the show.
Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo opened the star-studded gala with a tribute to Los Angeles — which recently suffered devastating wildfires — that also celebrated their Oscar-nominated roles in the blockbuster film “Wicked.”
In a glimmering red dress and shoes nodding to Dorothy’s magic slippers, Grande belted a touching version of the classic ballad “Over the Rainbow” from 1939’s “The Wizard of Oz” starring Judy Garland.
Erivo then joined to deliver a soaring rendition of “Home” from “The Wiz” — both “The Wizard of Oz” and 1978’s “The Wiz” are tales about the fantastical land of Oz that “Wicked” also riffs on.
Grande and Erivo ultimately brought the audience to its feet with the film’s hit song “Defying Gravity,” which brought some attendees, including co-star Michelle Yeoh, to tears — especially thanks to Erivo’s chills-inducing climax.
Later in the show came a James Bond medley, a celebration of the film franchise that just controversially came under the creative control of Amazon MGM Studios.
The Oscar stage turned Bond set featured a dance number led by “The Substance” star Margaret Qualley — who is a trained dancer.
Lisa — a member of the K-pop group Blackpink — descended from the ceiling to sing Wings’ “Live and Let Die” from that 1973 film.
And Doja Cat literally dripped in diamonds to sing Shirley Bassey’s “Diamonds Are Forever,” before an orchestra joined Raye to close the performance with a cover of Adele’s “Skyfall.”
Mick Jagger popped by to present the prize for best original song, which went to “El Mal,” the track off “Emilia Perez” written by Clement Ducol, Camille and the film’s director Jacques Audiard.
“We wrote ‘El Mal’ as a song to denounce corruption,” Camille said onstage. “We hope it speaks to the role music and art can play, and continue to play, as a force of the good and progress in the world.”
Before presenting the award, Jagger joked that “the producers really wanted Bob Dylan to do this — Bob didn’t want to do it because he said the best songs this year were obviously in “A Complete Unknown” — the film about Dylan.
“Bob said, ‘You should find somebody younger,’” the Rolling Stone frontman quipped.
Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg presented a tribute to the late Quincy Jones, the composing titan who orchestrated the sounds of the music and film worlds for more than 50 years.
“Quincy was love lived out loud in human form, and he poured that love out into others and into his work,” Winfrey said.
Latifah then brought disco to the Academy Awards with a performance of “Ease on Down the Road” — yet another nod to the world of Oz — from the musical film adaptation of “The Wiz,” which Jones worked on.
Host Conan O’Brien added in his own song and dance after his opening monologue, poking fun at the show’s reputation for trudging along at a glacial pace.
“I Won’t Waste Time!” he sang.
The show ultimately clocked in at nearly four hours.
