Kristin Chenoweth
(born July 24, 1968) [1] is an American singer, musical theatre, film, and television actress and author. Some of her best-known roles have included her role as Sally Brown in Broadway's You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown
, her role as Glinda in Broadway's Wicked
, and her role as Annabeth Schott in television's The West Wing
. She most recently appeared in the role of Olive Snook on the ABC dramedy Pushing Daisies
for which she received two Emmy Award nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy. Chenoweth is also the face of Jude Frances jewelry.
Chenoweth has a distinctive speaking voice. In FHM
's March 2006 issue, she compared her voice to that of Betty Boop.
Chenoweth is a classically trained coloratura soprano, and well known for her skilled singing technique and artistic interpretations. She has a vocal range of four octaves. [2] Chenoweth is able to sing the note "F6" (1396.913Hz), also known as "F above High C". [3]
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KRISTIN CHENOWETH TICKETS
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Early life
Adopted at birth,
Kristi Dawn Chenoweth
grew up in
Broken Arrow,
Oklahoma. Her lineage includes one-quarter
Cherokee ancestry. Her vocal ability and talent were realized at a young age, performing songs for local churches. A highlight of her childhood was a special solo appearance at the
Southern Baptist Convention national conference at the age of 12. She performed the song "I'm Four Foot Eleven and I'm Going to Heaven" for an audience of approximately 40,000 delegates.
[4] [5]
Chenoweth attended
Oklahoma City University, where she was a member of
Gamma Phi Beta (Beta Omicron) Sorority. She earned a degree in
musical theatre and a master's degree in
opera performance, studying under voice instructor
Florence Birdwell. Professor Birdwell has trained other notables such as
Miss America 1981
Susan Powell and three-time Tony nominee
Kelli O'Hara. It was Birdwell who suggested to Chenoweth that she add an "n" to her first name, reasoning that the name "Kristin" was perhaps more classically suited for an opera singer. While at OCU, Chenoweth won the title of "Miss OCU" and went on to win second runner-up in the
Miss Oklahoma pageant in 1991. For a period of time, she performed on stage at
Opryland USA.
Chenoweth won a number of competitions, including a "most talented up-and-coming singer" award in the
Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions, which came with a full scholarship to
Philadelphia's
Academy of Vocal Arts. Two weeks before school started, she went to New York City to help a friend move. While there, she auditioned for the
Paper Mill Playhouse's production of the musical
Animal Crackers
and got the role of Arabella Rittenhouse. She turned down the scholarship and moved to New York to do the show and pursue a career in musical theatre.
[6] She is .
Career
Theatre
Chenoweth made her
Broadway debut in a production of
Molière's
Scapin
starring
Bill Irwin, followed in the spring of 1997 by the
musical Steel Pier
by
John Kander and
Fred Ebb, for which she won a
Theatre World award. The following season, she appeared in the
City Center Encores! production of the
George and
Ira Gershwin musical
Strike up the Band
and the
Lincoln Center Theatre production of
William Finn's
A New Brain
. She has performed several times on the radio program
A Prairie Home Companion.
During the 1998–1999 season, she performed in the Broadway revival of
You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown
as the title character's little sister,
Sally, a character that was not present in the original production. (That character replaces the obscure
Peanuts
character
Patty, not to be confused with
Peppermint Patty.) The production won Chenoweth the
Tony,
Drama Desk, and
Outer Critics Circle Awards as the season's Best Featured Actress in a Musical. She then starred in the Broadway comedy
Epic Proportions
, followed by appearances in
ABC's
television adaptation of the musical Annie
(as Lily St. Regis), and in the leading role of Daisy Gamble in the City Center Encores! production of
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
.
In 2003, Chenoweth performed songs from her album
Let Yourself Go
in concert for Lincoln Center's 5th American Songbook. She also performed in City Center Encores! 10th Anniversary Bash. In London, she was involved in
Divas at Donmar
for director
Sam Mendes, then appeared in the Actor's Fund Benefit Concert of the musical
Funny Girl
in
New York City.
In October 2003, she returned to Broadway in
Wicked
, the musical about the early years of the witches of
Oz. She was nominated for a
Tony Award as
Best Leading Actress in a Musical for her performance as Glinda. After playing Glinda for nine months (not including the years leading up to the Broadway run where she played the role in all of the show's workshops), Chenoweth left
Wicked
on 2 2004-07-18}} along with co-stars
Joel Grey and
Norbert Leo Butz. Chenoweth was replaced by
Jennifer Laura Thompson.
Chenoweth played
Cunegonde in a revival of
Candide
, directed by Lonny Price in 2004. Price's semi-staged concert production with the New York Philharmonic under conductor Marin Alsop, ran for four performances between 2 2004-05-05}} and 2 2004-05-08}}. The production featured Paul Groves as
Candide, Sir Thomas Allen as Dr. Pangloss,
Patti LuPone as the Old Lady, with choruses from both
Westminster Choir College and the
Juilliard School completing the performance cast, and was also broadcast on
PBS's
Great Performances. A performance of the rarely sung duet "We Are Women" between Cunegonde and the Old Lady was included in the production.
From December 14, 2006 to March 11, 2007, Chenoweth starred on Broadway in a production of
The Apple Tree
and received rave reviews for her performance. On 2 2007-01-19}}, she performed a solo concert at
The Metropolitan Opera in New York, only the third musical theatre star ever to present a solo concert at the Met, following
Barbara Cook and
Yves Montand.
[7] Chenoweth has also performed leading roles at the
Goodspeed Opera House and the
Guthrie Theatre, and she was chosen by the late
Jerome Robbins as the guest soloist in his
West Side Story Suite of Dances
at
New York City Ballet.
Chenoweth hosted the 52nd Annual Drama Desk Awards on 2 2007-05-20}}.
[8]
Chenoweth played Elizabeth in the pre-Broadway workshop in
Mel Brooks'
Broadway adaptation of his film
Young Frankenstein
, however, due to her
Pushing Daisies
commitments, she was unable to appear in the production. Similarly, in 2008 she had been scheduled to reprise her role as Cunegonde in an
English National Opera production of
Candide
, but she had to pull out because of the resumption of filming.
She appeared in
Jerome Kern
and
Oscar Hammerstein II's
Music in the Air
for its short semi-staged running from February 5-8, 2009.
[9] Chenoweth had been scheduled to return to The Metropolitan Opera in 2010 to play Samira in
John Corigliano's opera
The Ghosts of Versailles
after being invited by general manager
Peter Gelb to perform.
[10] Although expected to sell-out, the Metropolitan was ultimately forced to cancel the opera because of
Ghosts
' exorbitant production costs, and the company's budget limitations due to recent economic conditions.
[11]
Television and film
In television, Chenoweth starred in a short-lived
sitcom,
Kristin
, for NBC that ran for six episodes (13 were filmed). It was a mid-season replacement in 2001 that co-starred
Jon Tenney. Beginning in the sixth season (2004–2005) of
The West Wing
, Chenoweth had a recurring role playing media consultant
Annabeth Schott, and became a main cast member in the show's seventh and final season (2005-2006). She performed "
For Good," a song she had sung in
Wicked,
at the memorial service for her friend and
West Wing
costar
John Spencer.
Chenoweth was a part of
ABC's
An American Celebration
at
Ford's Theatre with
Kelsey Grammer,
NBC's Salute to the Olympic Winners, The
Kennedy Center Gala honoring
Julie Andrews, and an episode of
Frasier
on NBC. She also starred as Marian Paroo in the ABC television production of
Meredith Willson's The Music Man
, opposite
Matthew Broderick.
Chenoweth appeared in
Nora Ephron's 2005 film version of
Bewitched
. The film's star,
Nicole Kidman, had attended a performance of
Wicked
and was so impressed with Chenoweth's charisma and stage presence that Kidman asked Ephron to cast Chenoweth in the film. Chenoweth got the part of Maria Kelly, Kidman's character's best friend.
[12] [13] [14] [15]
In 2006, she appeared in five films including
The Pink Panther
,
RV
,
Stranger Than Fiction
,
Running with Scissors
and
Deck the Halls
. Chenoweth also appeared as Mr. Noodle's Sister Ms. Noodle in ''
Sesame Streets
Elmo's World'' television series alongside
Michael Jeter and
Bill Irwin.
In February 2007, Chenoweth co-hosted on an episode of
The View
and was invited back after performing a song from
The Apple Tree
on the show. She was also featured briefly in the first season finale of
Ugly Betty
. In fall 2007, she became a member of the cast of the
ABC show
Pushing Daisies
. The comedic drama is the story of Ned, a man who can bring the dead back to life. Chenoweth plays
Olive Snook, a co-worker and neighbor of Ned's who is in love with him. In the show, she has sung numerous times, doing a take on "
Hopelessly Devoted To You", a duet with Ellen Green for "
Birdhouse in Your Soul", Eternal Flame, and Candle on the Water with a group of male singers. Chenoweth sang in the second episode of season one.
[16] She received an
Emmy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 2008 for her role as Olive in
Pushing Daisies. On February 24, 2008 Chenoweth sang "
That's How You Know" from the film
Enchanted
[17] at the
80th Academy Awards in the
Kodak Theater. She also voiced Rosetta the garden fairy in the Tinkerbell film.
Chenoweth appeared in the 2008 holiday romantic comedy film
Four Christmases
, playing the sister of
Reese Witherspoon's character.
[18] She was also in the FOX "
Sit Down, Shut Up" as the voice of Miracle Grohe, a science teacher.
She also appeared on the Fox News Channel's 2008 special "A Fox and Friends Christmas", where she sang "Do You Hear What I Hear?" from her Christmas album
A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas
.
[19]
Chenoweth stars as a "suicidal prostitute" in the indie drama
Into Temptation
under writer-director
Patrick Coyle. The film was recently screened at the Newport Beach Film Festival.
[20] She also has been cast to star in a new
NBC David E. Kelley drama entitled
Legally Mad
and will play an attorney named Skippy Pylon. She recently finished shooting the pilot episode.
[21] However, NBC passed on the show.
Internet
On August 27, 2008, Chenoweth released a video with
funnyordie.com titled
Intervention with Kristin Chenoweth
.
[22] The video parodied
A&E's show
Intervention
, with Chenoweth starring as a singing, dancing interventionist. The song was composed by
Andrew Lippa, Chenoweth's frequent musical director and composer for her concert songs as well as the composer of "My New Philosophy", which she sang in the revival of
You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown
, and the lyrics were written by
Amy Rhodes, who also wrote the clip.
The video was shot in five hours in a room of a
Hilton Hotel.
[23] Chenoweth admitted that she was hesitant about performing the lyrics.
Upcoming roles
Category:Articles with sections that need to be turned into prose
- She will provide the voice of the title role for the upcoming Disney animated film Rapunzel
. [24]
- Chenoweth will play a live-action role in another upcoming Fox series, Glee
. She will be playing a talented former member of the glee club who returns to demonstrate her singing and performing technique. [25]
- Chenoweth will continue to lend her voice to the role of Rosetta for the rest of the three Tinker Bell films.
- Chenoweth will star in the Lifetime Original Movie, Twelve Men of Christmas
, which will premiere in December 2009 as part of Lifetime's annual "Fa La La La Lifetime" programming. [26]
- Chenoweth will play "a wedding extraodinator" in the Disney comedy You Again
. [27]
- She will star in the new Off-Broadway play Love, Loss, and What I Wore
which will play a twelve-week engagement at the Westside Theatre beginning September 21, 2009. [28]
- Chenoweth is scheduled to appear as a guest judge on the ninth season of American Idol
the week of August 28, 2009 in Orlando, Florida. [29]
Special events and appearances
Chenoweth and the cast of the Broadway musical
Wicked
performed the song "One Short Day" in the 2003
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
[30]
In the 2005
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Chenoweth performed the song "Oklahoma" while riding aboard the "Oklahoma Rising" float. The float was making the first of three annual appearances commemorating the state of Oklahoma's statehood centennial in 2007.
[31] [32]
She was the star performer of the opening ceremony of the 2007 Tournament of Roses Parade. She sang "Our Good Nature," an original composition written to coincide with the Oklahoma centennial celebration and the theme of the parade.
[33]
In the 2008
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, she performed the song "The Christmas Waltz" from her "A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas" album while riding aboard the "The Care Bears Winter Fun-Derland" float.
[34]
Personal life
Chenoweth has written a memoir about her life,
A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages
,
[35] describing her adoption, her turn in
Wicked
and her time in Hollywood. She has stated that the book is not a "tell all", and instead focuses on "how I got where I am so far".
[36] The book was released on April 14, 2009.
[37] The book spent two weeks on
The New York Times Best Seller List.
Chenoweth has spoken publicly about her faith; she describes herself as a "non-judgmental, liberal Christian".
[38] Raised as a
Southern Baptist, she later chose to have a personal connection to a faith that is not based in any one denomination. When in
California, she attends a non-denominational church in
Malibu. In New York, she attends a
United Methodist Church.
Chenoweth also has a large
gay fanbase, and was uninvited from a
Women of Faith
conference in September 2005 "due to her publicized and heartfelt beliefs that God is accepting of all people on earth," including homosexuals.
[39] [40]
Chenoweth released an album in April 2005 called
As I Am
, a mixture of
hymns and
contemporary Christian music, with
adult contemporary arrangements. To promote the album, she made an appearance on
The 700 Club
, an appearance that upset some of her gay fans.
[41] She later said she thought that the "
Pat Robertsons and
Jerry Falwells of the world are scary" and that she regretted appearing on the show.
[42]
Chenoweth was once engaged to actor
Marc Kudisch and previously dated virtuoso violinist
Joshua Bell and
Survivor
host
Jeff Probst.
She has dated and remains close friends with producer/writer
Aaron Sorkin. In Sorkin's
Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip
, the character of
Harriet Hayes bears significant resemblances to Chenoweth, and the relationship between the Christian Hayes and "East Coast liberal Jewish atheist" (her description)
Matt Albie is modeled after that between Chenoweth and Sorkin;
[43] Chenoweth's decision to appear on the
700 Club and her falling out with Women of Faith were depicted with the Hayes character.
Chenoweth has
Ménière's disease, an inner-ear disorder which can cause vertigo, among other symptoms. She has said that, during some performances, she has had to literally lean on her co-stars to keep her balance.
[44]
Chenoweth was awarded an honorary doctorate in Performing Arts from the
University of North Carolina School of the Arts on May 30, 2009, where she was the commencement speaker.
Credits
In theatre
Broadway
|
Year
| Title
| Role
| Venue
| Notes
|
1997
| Steel Pier
| Precious McGuire Couple #4 Couple #25
| Richard Rodgers Theatre
| Theatre World Award
|
1999
| You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown
| Sally Brown
| Ambassador Theatre
| Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical Tony Award for Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical
|
Epic Proportions
| Louise Goldman
| Helen Hayes Theatre
|
|
2002
| Funny Girl
| Fanny Brice
| New Amsterdam Theatre
| Sings "His Love Makes Me Beautiful"
|
2003
| Wicked
| Glinda
| George Gershwin Theatre
| Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Onstage Pair (shared with Idina Menzel) Nominated — Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical Nominated — Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical
|
2006
| The Apple Tree
| Eve Princess Barbára Ella/Passionella
| Studio 54
| Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Diva Performance Nominated — Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical Nominated — Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical Nominated — Broadway.com Audience Award for Favorite Actress in a Musical
|
Off-Broadway
|
Year
| Title
| Role
| Venue
| Notes
|
| The Fantasticks
| Luisa
| Sullivan Street Playhouse
|
1994
| Box Office of the Damned
| Kristy — The New Girl
| CSC Theatre
|
|
1997
| Scapin
| Hyacinth
| Laura Pels Theatre
|
|
1998
| A New Brain
| Nancy D./Waitress
| Mitzi E. Newhouse Theatre
|
|
New York City Center Encores!
|
Year
| Title
| Role
| Notes
|
1998
| Strike up the Band
| Anne Draper
|
|
2000
| On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
| Daisy Gamble/Melinda
|
|
2005
| The Apple Tree
| Eve, Princess Barbára, Ella/Passionella
|
|
2007
| Stairway to Paradise
| Female star
|
|
2009
| Music in the Air
| Frieda Hatzfeld
|
|
Filmography
Film
|
Year
| Film
| Role
| Notes
|
1999
| Annie
| Lily St. Regis
| TV film
|
2001
| Seven Roses
|
| TV film
|
2002
| Topa Topa Bluffs
| Patty
|
|
2003
| The Music Man
| Marion Paroo
| TV film
|
2005
| Bewitched
| Maria Kelly
|
|
2006
| The Pink Panther
| Cherie
|
|
RV
| Mary Jo Gornicke
|
|
Stranger Than Fiction
| Book Channel host
|
|
Running with Scissors
| Fern Stewart
|
|
Deck the Halls
| Tia Hall
|
|
A Sesame Street Christmas Carol
| Christmas Carol
|
|
2008
| Space Chimps
| Kilowatt
| Voice role
|
Tinker Bell
| Rosetta
| Voice role
|
Four Christmases
| Courtney
|
|
2009
| Into Temptation
| Linda Salerno
|
|
Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure
| Rosetta
| post-production
, voice role
|
Twelve Men of Christmas
| E.J. Baxter
| pre-production
|
2010
| Rapunzel
| Rapunzel
| in production
, voice role
|
Tinker Bell: A Midsummer Storm
| Rosetta
| in production
, voice role
|
You Again
| "a wedding extraordinator"
| pre-production
|
Tinker Bell: A Winter Story
| Rosetta
| pre-production
, voice role
|
Television
|
Year
| Title
| Role
| Notes
|
1999
| LateLine
| Kristin
| "The Christian Guy"
|
Paramour
|
| Mini-series
|
2001
| Kristin
| Kristin Yancey
| Eleven episodes
|
Frasier
| Portia Sanders
| "Junior Agent"
|
2002
| Baby Bob
| Crystal Carter
| "Talking Babies Say the Darndest Things"
|
2003
| Fillmore!
| Museum Guide
| Voice role, "Masterstroke of Malevolence"
|
2005
| Great Performances
| Cunegonde
| Candide
|
2004-2006
| The West Wing
| Annabeth Schott
| Thirty-four episodes, main character Nominated — Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series (2004, 2005) (shared with the cast)
|
2003-2006
| Sesame Street
| Ms. Noodle
| Two episodes
|
2001-2007
| Elmo's World
| Ms. Noodle
| Two episodes
|
2007
| Ugly Betty
| Diane
| "East Side Story"
|
Robot Chicken
| various
| "Squaw Bury Shortcake"
|
2007-2009
| Pushing Daisies
| Olive Snook
| Twenty-two episodes, main character Nominated — Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress – Comedy Series (2008, 2009) Nominated — Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actress – Series, Miniseries or Television Film
|
2009
| Sit Down, Shut Up
| Miracle Grohe
| Voice role, seven episodes, main character
|
Legally Mad
| Skippy Python
| Pilot
|
Glee
| April Rhodes
| "The Rhodes Not Taken"
|
Discography
Year
| Title
| Label
| US chart positions
|
2001
| Let Yourself Go
| Sony Music Entertainment (#89384)
| —
|
2005
| As I Am
| Sony Music Entertainment (#93483)
| —
|-
| 2008
| A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas
| Sony Masterworks (#8869734256)
| 77
|
"—" denotes releases that did not chart.
|
Awards
- 1997 Theater World Award
- 1999 Outer Critics Circle Award - Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown)
- 1999 Drama Desk Award - Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical (You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown)
- 1999 Tony Award - Best Featured Actress in a Musical (You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown)
- 2005 Breakthrough Of The Year Award from Hollywood Life Magazine
- 2008 Point Courage Award — Point Foundation
References
- Timeline
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- Kristin Chenoweth biography
- Kristin Chenoweth: Live at the Met
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- Kristin Chenowith Joins ''Music''
- Met Opera Seeks Chenoweth for ''The Ghosts of Versailles''
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- Chenoweth, Greene, Kurtz, Pace and More Will Be "Pushing Daisies" for ABC
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- Tony Winner Chenoweth Lands Role in New NBC Drama
- Intervention with Kristin Chenoweth
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- Headlines: Kristin Chenoweth Lands Guest Judge Slot on American Idol
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- Oklahoma in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
- OK Centennial To Be Featured in Thanksgiving Macy's Parade
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- ''West Wing'' to West Coast: TV's Auteur Portrays TV
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