Jorgensen Center welcomes back Kristin Chenoweth
On Saturday, Dec. 11, the queen of the Great White Way will be making her anticipated return to the University of Connecticut. Tony and Emmy award-winning Kritstin Chenoweth will grace the stage at Jorgensen Center for the Performing Arts in a one night only event, “An Evening with Kristin Chenoweth: ‘For the Girls.’” Audiences will hear songs from Chenoweth’s 2019 studio album, “For the Girls,” featuring songs by female artists who have inspired her such as Barbra Striesand, Dolly Parton and Judy Garland. Audiences will also be treated to a few selections from her latest album, “Happiness is…Christmas!,” and “an evening of good humour and personal reminisces,” as stated in the event description on Jorgensen’s website.
Kristin Chenoweth first performed at Jorgensen on Oct. 20, 2018, and audiences were dazzled by her talent and stage presence. The star’s undeniable charisma is what attracted Jorgensen director, Rodney Rock, to invite Chenoweth to UConn after seeing her perform a few years prior.
“I first saw Kristin on Broadway when she starred in the musical ‘Wicked’ back in 2004, I think,” said Rock in an email. “She was fabulous and I ended up bringing Jorgensen donors and friends down to NYC five times to see the show. I knew then at some point I would try to bring her to Jorgensen.”
A campus correspondent from The Daily Campus who reviewed the performance described the crowd as “absolutely ecstatic” when they heard the beginning notes of “Popular” from the hit Broadway musical “Wicked.” Chenoweth starred as Glinda the Good Witch in the original cast of the musical. Rock also reminisced on Chenoweth’s humorous anecdotes and lively banter with the audience at the 2018 show.
“Again, fantastic performance,” said Rock. “She worked a lot of shtick about UConn and she sang with UConn Chamber Singers. It was a huge success!”
With Rock’s efforts, an encore performance from Chenoweth was certainly in UConn’s future. However, scheduling conflicts and the ensuing cancellation of all performances due to COVID-19 last year delayed Chenoweth’s return to Storrs.
“We had so many requests to bring her back, so I was able to grab a return date in the Fall of 2019. Again, that date was postponed and rescheduled for March of 2020.” explained Rock. “And then of course COVID-19 hit and the season was canceled.”
“I worked to try to arrange a live stream with her during the 2020-21 season via the Jorgensen Digital Stage but that did not work out and finally, we lighted on Dec. 11 of 2021,” Rock said. “We are excited because although this will not be a holiday show, she will be including some holiday music that she will premiere on Dec. 13 in her Christmas show at The Metropolitan Opera. So it’s all kind of exciting!”
So while it’s been a long three years of waiting, Kristin Chenoweth will be back at Jorgensen, and the UConn community couldn’t be more excited. Those who want to catch the one-night-only event should act fast, as seats are limited and floor tickets are already sold out. The curtain goes up at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 11.
