BWW's Super-Deluxe Photo Coverage Exclusive: Kristin Chenoweth World Tour Hits NY's City Center

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BroadwayWorld has seen and covered many concerts over the years, but never have we witnessed anything like what we saw on stage at City Center on Saturday night, June 2nd.

We walked into the venue and saw an elegant curtain with just a beautiful KRISTIN cut out onto it, in light. But when that curtain went up and Mary-Mitchell Campbell took hold of that orchestra, all hell broke loose. We were treated to a visual reminder, through footage, of just how long Kristin Chenoweth has been a part of our world and just how much this 4'11" stick of dynamite has accomplished, making her one of Broadway's greatest exports, since a young Barbra Streisand burst onto the scene.

But, then, as Kristin burst out onto the stage, it was clear from the first moment, that this is what she was born to do. And do it, she did!

Song after song, scene after scene, moment after moment. There was laughter, there were tears, there was plenty of cheering and screaming and, oh, yes, plenty of standing ovations.

We sat there barely be able to believe what we were witnessing. This concert/show, directed by Richard Jay-Alexander, with musical direction by Mary-Mitchell Campbell and choreographed by Tyler Hanes, was like a wild ride in an amusement park .... satisfying you to the point of exhaustion by the evening's end, and still wanting more from this talented creature who gave us everything she had, and generously so.

Along with an outrageously compact and skillful orchestra of 12 and 3 of the best and versatile trio of performers we've seen in awhile - Tyler Hanes, Chelsea Packard and Will Taylor - we were entertained and musically thrilled to the very core of our beings. Also, it must be said, that Matt Berman's lighting and sound design were flawless and just as much a part of what was going on as everything else that happened on that stage.

Who would EVER have expected a surprise appearance from AVENUE Q's Lucy T. Slut and The Bad Idea Bears?! What a delight. Ms. Chenoweth looked stunning in all the evening's ensembles, which, apparently, according to the Playbill, came from her own closet. That must be some closet .... especially with all those shoes!

The audience left the theatre having the strongest sense ever of who Kristin Chenoweth really is and proving we did not know her through all the great work she's done over the years. There's just too much talent there to be siphoned into a Broadway show, film or television series. She let it spill out all over the stage and into our hearts.

New York was a homecoming of sorts, as it was simply a "stop" on a 19-city tour, but we hope everyone, everywhere gets to see her and hear her in this show because it is something you will never, ever forget.

Just to get a general idea of what went on here, we offer the SONG LIST from Saturday night:

ACT ONE:

OVERTURE
SHOULD I BE SWEET?
GOIN' TO THE DANCE WITH YOU
MAYBE THIS TIME
MY COLORING BOOK
AVENUE Q Sketch
HARD TIMES
ONE LESS BELL TO ANSWER / A HOUSE IS NOT A HOME
FATHERS AND DAUGHTERS
UPON THIS ROCK
BRING HIM HOME

ACT TWO:

A CRAZY NEW YORK CITY SEGMENT
GCB SEGMENT
IN THESE SHOES
POPULAR
FOR GOOD
WHAT WOULD DOLLY DO?
WISHING YOU WERE SOMEHOW HERE AGAIN
ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE
WHAT IF WE NEVER
I'M TIRED
NO MORE TEARS (Enough Is Enough)
I WAS HERE

First Encore: I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU
Second Encore: GLITTER AND BE GAY

Photos by Walter McBride / Retna Ltd. For tickets and upcoming dates, click here!

BWW's Super-Deluxe Photo Coverage Exclusive: Kristin Chenoweth World Tour Hits NY's City Center

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