Kristin Chenoweth Kicks Off Mini-Tour Tonight in Lancaster (With a Surprise?), Followed by Brookville, Schenectady, Louisville & San Antonio

BroadwayWorld.com has been buzzing for days since the news that Kristin Chenoweth was asked to reprise her iconic role of April Rhodes for GLEE's 100th Episode.

Tonight, audiences are going to be even more excited, as the popular star kicks off the first date of a February 'mini-tour' with a limited run of five concert dates.

As with her recent shows, the evenings will feature musical direction by Mary-Mitchell Campbell, with direction by Richard Jay-Alexander.

The star and her team gathered in Los Angeles, over the weekend, to rehearse this very special 90 minute concert. If you happen to be in the Lancaster area tonight, we hear that area native Jonathan Groff will be in the audience, which might lead to something special on stage. This is 'rumor mill' - but we have it from a pretty reliable source.

Chenoweth recently said farewell to Jay Leno at The Tonight Show. Leno will end his reign tomorrow night, on NBC, and the show will then move to the East Coast, hosted by Jimmy Fallon. This should be a great boon for Broadway and stars like Kristin and all her peers.

We've also heard early reports that work has begun with Chenoweth, Jay-Alexander and Campbell for Carnegie Hall on May 3rd. We took a look at ticket sales, and they're brisk, so here's a link if you want to book now, for what's sure to be a special evening, entitled THE EVOLUTION OF A SOPRANO.

Wednesday, Feb 05	American Music Theatre - Lancaster, PA (click here)
Friday, Feb 07	Tilles Center for The Performing Arts - Brookville, NY (click here)
Sunday, Feb 09	Proctor's Theatre - Schenectady, NY (click here)
Wednesday, Feb 12	Whitney Hall - Louisville, KY (click here)
Saturday, Feb 15	Majestic Theatre - San Antonio, TX (click here)

Best known on-stage for creating the role of Glinda in the original Broadway production of Wicked, Kristin Chenoweth is one of Broadway's most celebrated stars. Most recently, Chenoweth starred opposite Sean Hayes from TV's Will & Grace in the Broadway revival of Promises, Promises (2010), a 1960s musical by Burt Bacharach and Hal David which features the hit songs I'll Never Fall in Love and I Say a Little Prayer.

On-screen, Kristin Chenoweth has appeared in TV's The West Wing as Annabeth Schott and Pushing Daisies as Olive Snook. Putting her musical talents to good use, Chenoweth has guest judged on American Idol and guest starred on musical TV show Glee as April Rhodes. Last year, Chenoweth starred as the antagonist in GCB, a series based on the novel Good Christian Bitches by Kim Gatlin.

Over her extensive career Kristin Chenoweth has been invited to sing for President Obama, Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II and TV royalty Oprah Winfrey. Chenoweth has also garnered a multitude of awards, including Broadway's coveted Tony Award for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1999), and an Emmy Award for her role in Pushing Daisies in 2009.

Chenoweth has also taken the stage off-Broadway in Love, Loss, and What I Wore, Stairway to Paradise, The Apple Tree, Candide, Earth Girls Are Easy, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever, A New Brain, Strike Up the Band, Scapin, Box Office of the Damned, The Fantasticks and more.

Photo Courtesy NBC