This is why it’s even more poignant than you may imagine that Ariana Grande would go to her hometown for a full day just to watch “Wicked” with her nonna.

When Ariana Grande and her grandmother, Marjorie Grande, often known as “Nonna,” went to see the original stage production of Wicked in 2003, it was the first time she had ever seen the phenomenon.

“My chemistry as a person permanently altered,” Ariana, who was only ten at the time, previously told People, adding that she could divide her life into “two chapters: before and after seeing Wicked.”

You’ve certainly heard that Ariana plays Glinda in the show’s movie adaptation, which came out last week, unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few months.

Since it was initially revealed that she had been cast in the film back in 2021, the actress has made no secret of how meaningful this part has been to her, and her emotional connection to Wicked has been clear.

In a stunning full circle moment, the celebrity disclosed on Monday that she had taken a plane back to her hometown of Boca Raton, Florida, for a single day in order to see the movie with Nonna in the theater where she spent her childhood.

It is believed that Nonna was unable to travel to any of the formal premieres throughout the world because she turned 99 last month.

 

Ariana posted pictures of herself and her brother, Frankie Grande, with their Nonna on her Instagram story. She also disclosed that her boyfriend and co-star, Ethan Slater, was with them.

Ari posted, “Flew to Boca for a day to watch with Nonna at the movie theater I grew up going to every weekend, Cinemark 20 in Boca,” tagging Ethan and Frankie in the post.

“Thrilled to report when the sugar glider had her drum solo, Nonna exclaimed loudly: ‘oh I LOVE that,'” Ariana wrote, tagging Wicked’s director, Jon M. Chu, in a snapshot she shared of herself and Nonna holding hands in matching pink sweaters while watching the movie with interest.

She also shared a video of Nonna watching Ariana’s incredible rendition of “Popular,” appearing overcome with joy and passion.

“This was one of the most special moments in my life,” Frankie wrote when he republished one of Ariana’s articles on his personal social media profile. I will treasure it and remember it till I am 99 years old.

Fans are feeling quite moved by the entire situation, particularly as it was brought up that Nonna is old enough to recall the release of the first Wizard of Oz in 1939.

For background, Wicked is based on Gregory Maguire’s 1995 book Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West and is a precursor to The Wizard of Oz.

 

People expressed their awe on X at the possibility that Nonna might have seen the original film as a teenager and been unaware that her own granddaughter would eventually be a part of the same universe.

 

“What’s crazy to me is that Nonna was born in 1925, fourteen years before the Wizard of Oz was released, so she’s been around long enough to witness the land of oz welcoming both Judy Garland and her grand daughter 😭,” reads a popular tweet in response to the family’s positive movie outing.

 

More than 2 million people have viewed this post, and it has received over 100,000 likes, retweets, and replies from people who have responded to it.

The following tweet has received over 220,000 likes: “Ariana Grande’s grandmother was born in 1925.” When the Wizard of Oz came out, she would have been fourteen years old. The thought of experiencing that fanfare as a teenager and not knowing that your own granddaughter would be starring in a Wizard of Oz film nearly a century later is absolutely astounding.

Oh no. I don’t know about you, but this is really making me feel something. Please share your feelings in the comments section below!