Ariana Grande, who has dominated pop music for over a decade, recently opened up about her desire to return to her roots in musical theater. In an interview on the Las Culturistas podcast (Nov. 6), the 31-year-old superstar shared her passion for the stage, revealing that she sees acting playing a larger role in her future career.
While Ariana’s music career continues to soar with her latest album Eternal Sunshine still on the charts, the artist expressed her longing to reconnect with musical theater, the world where she first found fame. “It is my heart,” she said, recalling her beginnings in the musical 13: The Musical and her iconic role as Cat Valentine on Victorious.
Grande made it clear that she will always be a pop artist and will continue to release music, but she hinted at stepping back from the pace of her past decade, focusing instead on acting. “I’m always going to make music, I’m always going to go on stage, I’m always going to do pop stuff, I pinky promise. But I don’t think doing it at the rate I’ve been doing it for the past 10 years is where I see the next 10 years,” she explained.
The star also shared how therapeutic acting has been for her, particularly as she works on her role in Wicked — the highly anticipated film adaptation of the hit Broadway musical. “Reconnecting with this part of myself who started in musical theater, and who loves comedy, and it heals me to do that — finding roles to use these parts of myself and put them in little homes and characters and bits and voices and songs,” she added.
Ariana’s comments come just weeks before the release of Wicked on Nov. 22, where she stars alongside Cynthia Erivo and Jonathan Bailey. Despite her chart-topping success in pop, it’s clear that Broadway still holds a special place in her heart. Whether she’s on stage or in the recording studio, Ariana Grande’s next chapter is sure to be just as exciting as the last.
