Kristin Chenoweth - Who Can Do This?!?!

Kristin Chenoweth at the beautiful Winspear Opera House

We were a little worried...

we knew she could... but, would she "really" deliver?

it was a night of GREAT EXPECTATIONS...

And, yes! Yes, indeed... this little, tiny, bundle of enthusiasm did just that!

SHE DELIVERED!!


(the beautiful Winspear Opera House taken from our seats)

This was DLW's birthday gift from me...

 to see Kristin at the Winspear for his birthday celebration!

We were more than a little excited as we arrived.

As we sat down beside a nice couple from Dallas,

we discovered that their cousin is a long time friend of ours!

What fun! And the night had just begun!
It's a small world...

They captured this pic of us before the concert - 2nd row from the stage!

Terrific seats, indeed!

This concert was a crowd pleaser from the start...

personalized with Kristin's southern smart-alecky charm.

Not a single style of music did she leave unsung.

From classical to jazz to country to pop ~

she delivered it all..
succinct, articulate diction...
manipulating her voice from belt to lyric...
from gritty guttural to graceful glissando vocal technique!

And her comedic timing was superb...

we laughed until we hurt!

She sang her opening number, "Should I Be Sweet"...
(here is the end of it from another concert
forgive the sideways video, but the sound is splendid)

after which she picked up an extra large styrofoam SONIC drink

which was sitting on the sleek, black grand piano on stage.

Then, sipping from a straw,
Kristin smiled sheepishly at the audience and said...

"I just LOVE TEXAS..."
(grinning and spoken with a deep southern drawl)

"You just can't get SONIC in NYC or LA!!"

The audience burst out in cheers... for this tiny dynamo had already

connected to her audience   
and a splendid rhythmic flow continued

throughout the entire concert...
with Kristin's heart directing the beat!

Here is a rogue video from her tour -

 I found it on youtube.

"Maybe This Time"

the third song she sang at the Winspear...

Kristin told personal stories... related each song to something in her life:

Her shoes, her men, her broken hearts, her country roots, 
her Christian faith, 
her mother, her daddy, her Broadway endeavors, 

her American Idol Finale "bump" which happened the previous night,

her voice teacher's depth of song interpretation,

her GCB show's cancellation!

She called the creator of GCB from the audience for a hug and thanked him publicly.

There were times... she acted nuts... and the audience LOVED every minute of it.
She donned a mumu and bedroom slippers with flower in hair...
and sang the song "I'm Tired" with an asian accent.
I laughed until my innards hurt!

She was not afraid to speak her mind...

she spoke about her own non-profit for doggie adoptions.
(and two pups were being adopted in the lobby per her request)

She spoke of her love for ALL people regardless of their beliefs...

her respect for old-time composers like Gershwin, Bernstein, and Kern...

Kristin gave a tribute to Dolly Parton...

"WWDD" (W-W-Double-D)

(this is her singing it on the 

Grand Ole Opry stage)

One of my favorite moments was when she sang

a Christian number

"Upon This Rock"

In my early years, I sang this song 
a gazillion times!

The crowd cascaded into applause for Kristin,
because, of course, she brought the house down with her rich vocals and high notes.

And, there were times... she acted sensitive and serious... and the audience LOVED 

every minute of it, too!

She invited a 14 year old girl from the audience

to sing "For Good"  as a duet.
She swore this young talent was not a plant.

The girl was from Westlake.

She appeared shy... not confident on stage.

The audience went WILD 
when this precious teen sang with Kristin.
She had a voice... sang on pitch, with a good strong connected instrument,

and a gorgeous timbre.

Kristin was visibly blown away by this talent...

as were we all!! 


At this moment in the show,
we were enchanted with a "what are the odds" kind of moment!

The audience teared... a community "awe"...

something special had happened!
(I hope her mommy got a video!)

And as Kristen began to sing "Popular" from Wicked,

the crowd anticipated it's familiarity as one of their favorites.
BUT, KRISTIN CHANGED IT UP!
She sang it in German and Chinese...

intermingled with English.

It was so funny!!
(the element of surprise, I guess!)


Here is a recording of "Popular"  from last night's concert.
It's an iPhone recording someone put up on youtube from this concert

so it's a little tinty... but, she sang it with much more color than is heard here...
I hope it's okay to upload... 
you can probably hear me cackling from the second row as she switched from 
German to English to Chinese... etc!

So the evening went on and on...
hit after hit...
high notes... low notes... country twang... operatic technique...
all completed with precision.


Now, you tell me... 
how does an artist, after singing for 2 1/2 hours 

... run back on stage for her SECOND encore...

and sing "Glitter and Be Gay" as fresh and clear as if she had sung it
first on her line of repertoire? 

(here is Kristin singing "Glitter" from a previous concert)

Who can do this?!?!


Wow! This evening was terrific...

The energy...

The talent...


I have to tell you, this soul singer was totally amazed...

because I respect the manner in which Kristin Chenoweth

courageously crosses all music genres
exhibits dramatic and comedic expertise
and
connects ~ totally connects with her audience.


There is simply not a better entertainer, in my view!


If she comes to a city near you...
you don't want to miss this!


La - Ti - Do!
(and Kristin would sing those to an E-6!!)
Impressive!


Jeanne


I hope you enjoyed this blogpost... 
If you have heard Kristin or would like to share your thoughts, please comment below.
Thanks!