Tony and Emmy Award-winning singer and actress Kristin Chenoweth is one of the most versatile performers in the world. She has graced the Broadway stage, screen and television with her emotional and impactful performances. Chenoweth, best known for her popular performance as Glinda the Good Witch in the Stephen Schwartz mega-hit musical Wicked and for appearances on TV shows like The West Wing and Glee, is also a bestselling author.
Kristin Chenoweth spoke with WBGO's Doug Doyle about her upcoming NJPAC concert on March 9.
Chenoweth's legendary roles in Wicked and You're a Good Man Charlie Brown (Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical for her performance as Sally Brown) showed off her beautiful voice and witty humor. In the early rehearsals of Wicked, she would constantly crack up fellow cast members. Where did that ability to make people laugh come from?
"It definitely came from my mom. She doesn't know she's funny but she's really funny. My trick my whole life was to never tell her that she's funny, but just let her keep giving me material. I come from the South and I have six aunts. They are all funny. They all don't know it. I grew up with that. I definitely had led with my humor my whole life because why not? Life is so short. Comedy is something that comes naturally to me."
Chenoweth has a special surprise for the audience at NJPAC.
"I like to change up my show a lot because if you are a live performer why not? Honestly, Doug, concertizing is the thing that makes me the most happy. For this concert, I invited Stephen Schwartz to debut something new for the audience. We are reuniting and doing a show together. We've been working on that. It's just my opportunity to have fun with him. I always say Stephen Schwartz is not just a mentor. He's like a show business father. I never want to disappoint him. We are a good team. Here we are 20 years later working together again. He always is challenging me and that's personally who I want to keep in my life—the person who keeps challenging me."
Chenoweth says she always include songs from Wicked in her set list but she also plans on performing many of the tunes from her For the Girls record which is her homage to singer-songwriter women who have become a part of her musical DNA.
Chenoweth was apparently born to sing. Raised by her adoptive parents in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Chenoweth grew up attending her local church and, as a child, was so determined to sing, she joined the adult choir.
"They say when I was really little I would sing myself to sleep with the Wizard of Oz record. They would sit in the living room and say, 'Is it us or is she really good?' When I was about eight, I insisted on taking piano lessons from a beat-up old piano my dad was given. We didn't have a lot of money at the time. It really shaped my musical skills and by the time I was 12 they took me to Tulsa University and had me sing for the voice faculty because my piano teacher said I was really amazing.?
The Oklahoma City University grad earned her Master's degree in opera performance in 1992.
Her many talents have landed her roles on many popular television shows like the West Wing, Pushing Daises, The Good Wife and Glee.
One of the activities she enjoys the most is writing books. Her fourth book I’m No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts: Mini-Meditations for Saints, Sinners, and the Rest of Us is a self-reflective project for her.
"I have gone back in time and looked at my journaling which I started in the third grade. Thank goodness for words. Sometimes I need to vent. Words have allowed me to write music and writing books seemed like a natural progression for me. After A Little Bit Wicked did so well in 2009, I couldn't keep writing, but during COVID I decided to write I'm No Philosopher, But I Got Thoughts and that was very cathartic."
She also recently penned a children's book about adoption titled What Will I do with My Love Today?
Chenoweth married guitarist Josh Bryant in 2023.
In 2015, Chenoweth received a coveted star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame.
