Kristin Chenoweth | Full Q&A at The Oxford Union

[Music] [Applause] well thank you so much for being with her today this is a long time coming so I really do appreciate it I appreciate you taking my money to let me come here I paid this so firstly how was how was last night amazing I did this thing called and y'all know it they did one before all-star musicals and and the reason I actually wanted to do it not just to be a mentor on the judges panel but to sing with Elaine Paige because she's one of my Queens I know y'all have a couple here but I love her so and were the same height we had a great time but I wanted to talk a little bit about start off with your with your music and your singing you have an incredible repertoire for saying so many from Jean ruse is there deliberate or did that just kind of come about I grew up in Oklahoma and I grew up I had the daughter of engineers I'm adopted so you can imagine those poor people when they got me oh my goodness what do we do with this kid you know they understand math and science and I understand music and art they should never sing ever ever ever but and what happened is I began singing in church and my my skill was sort of developed on my own that way and then my dad said where do you want to go to school we went you know I knew I want to be a music major and I went to a great school for me because I met my mentor teacher miss Birdwell mrs. Florence Birdwell and she is the one that opened up my voice and said you're actually a coloratura soprano I said no no I'm a belter and she said no you're a soprano and so together we developed both I should say my one voice right and I think that has been so important throughout my career that I do different things with my voice and different things are required of me when I'm hired that's one of the reasons people hire me is to do different things and with my voice and I love it I love it and how important was that gospel back definitely growing up the very first song I sang in church and this is really I think funny and y'all appreciate it it goes on I'm only 4 foot 11 but I'm going to head and then it makes me feel ten feet tall now if I'd only known that's how tall I was gonna grow do you think I would have anyway that's how it started and I'm Sandi patty I don't know if any of you know who that that awesome gospel soprano singer is one of my favorites she's a huge influence on me there and and the influences go on Judy Garland Elaine Paige Oh Seth who who else just my favorite Dolly Parton Renee Fleming the opera singer so it's a wide variety and in my concert damn what I like to do is all different kinds I like to do opera music theater all of it how do the fans respond to different sections do they all would you find it there's some that respond better to others or is it all just an absolute riot well the love that that love that riot is what I prefer it depends you know you look out of my audience and you have little girls when I played the first time I played Carnegie Hall in New York my father came and he said he's very southern and he said well Kristen here's what you got out there okay you got a couple little girls you got a couple of old people and you got a couple men dressed like it and that kind of says it all about me so I I like to see the different reactions from different people and everybody walks away from a concert of mine when I'm not hiding behind a role that is I'm being myself they know who I am they understand a little bit more of what I prefer to sing and why I sing it and that's the most fun about I'm doing a concert because not only are you the boss but you pick music for a reason that means something to you and sometimes I like to tell why and sometimes I don't sometimes it's best that I just know why do you know I mean you guys know then first solo show and it's just you how axing is it to be jumping between all the different genres or is that in an emotional word as well how difficult is that it's both and thank you for us asking that question because I'm not a robot and I think sometimes I feel like people think oh it's so easy for her you know she'll sing when her burn Steiner Puccini and then she'll do Kern and then she'll do Stephen Schwartz or Reba McEntire you know Dolly Parton it the biggest challenge that I have as an artist as travel just being honest travel and resting the voice so I'm very good at mine very good at my name I'll be like and people understand but I don't I have to rest a lot I don't live a crazy I mean I know how to have fun let's not get it confused if I stayed here tonight I'd have some fun but I'm not singing tomorrow do you know I mean I take very good care of my voice in my body so that I can continue to do what I love so what's next on the wish list there any genres will people want to collaborate with different things want to do you've done so much is there anything yeah I mean always always because I want to continue to get better and evolved just like we all do and whatever thing that it is that our passion is right I have this crazy idea I'm going to tell it here and people are gonna be like what I really want to do something I don't know what it is yet and I really want to do a version of opera and rap somehow I'm always thinking and these are the things that keep me up at night I I have released six albums but I haven't released a quintessential Broadway album for myself so I'll do that I think it's important for artists to know and for all y'all to know that no matter what you pick in your life if it's not happening and happening in a direction that you want I just remember I'm 411 and I sound like this so I've always just been creating roles usually I've been creating roles and at first I thought well I'm never going to get in a Broadway show because I'm sure and I sound like Betty Boop and the thing is is that then they begin to write for you so the things that you think are weird or not acceptable or will hold you back are the things that you should actually embrace it seems easy for me to say but even today I still compete I still get told no it's part of my job most of the time I get told yes but I still have to do it I still have to deal with rejection okay that's part of life and it's how you deal with it here's how I deal with it I go and I have myself a good old saying an ice cream or a donut or pizza and I have a good waller day or two of Waller and then I move on I put on making big-girl panties and I move on so I want to just touch on wicked for a moment when you first saw the students warts core it's an incredible school but it's also very complex and quite difficult mm-hmm how did you approach it all your thoughts when I first got the call from him he said I have this part and I hear your voice in it and what you need to and some may know this it was not Glenda an Elphaba story it was Pharaoh and Elphaba and he said Glenda has one song but I had just won a Tony Award and he said it'd be easy you'd come in be the Supporting Actress and then you can go and it'd be fun it's comedic I said okay well I'm really tired I'd done a big old bomb for NBC called Kristen and I said I'm so tired I anyway I went over to his house and he played me popular and I said oh I okay I'm not an idiot yeah I'll do it and so as we began to workshop the show it wasn't because I said oh I have to have a bigger part or anything like that in fact Madame Morrible you know for those of you who know wicked Glenda opens the show she comes down in a bubble which I did enjoy she comes down and best line ever that all ever had as an entrance is good to see me isn't it I think that originally it was Madame Morrible starting the show and you can see how shows evolve and change and they became they quickly I came to understand that the love story the true love story was between this these girls and when I say love story you know what I mean deep friendship the themes of wicked also attracted me because it has friendship and love and forgiveness which isn't always of my forte and and it struck a chord with truck drivers and little girls and everybody and I'm so I always remember I had won a Tony for a show that closed the next day and I wouldn't want it to show I wanted I wanted my lame is you know I wanted my phantom and [Music] so I'm proud of it was your favorite memory on the show we opened in San Francisco before we opened in New York and now let me say wicked did not get great reviews okay it was not but the people loved it I got great reviews let's not get it but the show itself the critics were not as kind but when we opened in San Francisco and I saw the reaction I said to my co-star idina menzel I said it ain't gonna matter what the critics say girl because the people love it it's just not going to matter and here we sit fifteen years later we just did a filmed in the in the u.s. we did a filmed concert reunion of it and 15 years later it's a big old blockbuster here you know though ah then how does going on Broadway compared to being on the screen whether it be you know doing a musical on the screen or just on the small screen of a screen you know when you show up at I show up to do a Broadway show about five and I warm up and then afterwards I call after the show I call it act 3 where I say hello to everybody and then I go out and see the people of outside waiting it's part of the job but it's a night job and then in the day you rest or do whatever you're going to do so once you get shot out of the cannon you go and I like that I know it's shocking but I like that the struggle and the challenge for me when I'm working on a film I just did a really cool movie for about a month in North Carolina and it space you know you got to pace yourself because it's you know a scene and then it's three hour lighting change and I'm like tick-tock let's go you know I'm ready I'm in that I'm in the character I'm in the moment so that's the difference and that of course when you're doing a movie musical and it's it's an even different kind of beast because let's say if you're doing Marian librarian or Lily st. Regis and Lily st. Regis is a great example in Annie there's a fine line you walk because she's over-the-top character but it's for a film so you have to walk that fine line or for those of you know who hairs at the no musical Hairspray I played a very unlovable character at Miz and Velma Von Tussle a former pageant queen who's you know not the nicest lady but but I had to find a way to love her and make her I had to love her so I could play her on a TV screen and she sings a song because she was former pageant queen miss Baltimore crabs and I thought I'm gonna do every trick and lovable trick I have in the book so that people understand why she is so bitter and wants her daughter a success and of course we're talking about a time in our history that wasn't very pretty with racism and everything that goes along with that but I was very proud of that it's it's hard to play a villain it's really hard to play a villain and in some ways Glenda was but in some ways I felt that she had the bigger journey because it's what made her good and what she went through to make her good that that I was so attracted to the role you know and then fun of them for me before we hand over is similarly anything said on the wish list for film or small screen yeah I've never been like I said I've done the small screen musicals you know I've done those and they've they've been just a gift I've loved them but I have never done a big screen musical and I would like to do that before I before I die I would like that to happen so that's a big wish big wish list and I would like to get better at my language skills singing in Italian French and German but speaking in them would be you know comfortably would be something that I would like to I know that seems like a weird wish list you know I don't want to get better at math I don't care about it but I would like so we have to go to Italy and and Germany and at all places of the world and and and speak better right well now let's hand over questions to the audience I'm sure there'll be plenty if when I just put your hands up and wait for the microphone to be bought T and then stand up when you do yeah let's go to happened on the front row fast hi so I was wondering are there any pots you've ever turned down that afterwards you've regretted turning down it's a great one regret is a big word because at the time I'm sure there was regret but and now the big picture I turned 50 in July and now I go no I supposed to do this other thing so I could learn the the musical Thoroughly Modern Millie was originally mine and I turned that down to do a TV show and I believe everything happens the right reason a wonderful actors named Sutton Foster took over and ended up winning the Tony and I was in a big bomb of a TV show but now I look back and I had to learn I had to learn hey I've never been in front of a camera I needed to learn that skill and I needed to have the experience and so some might say that was a mistake but I Dino long I no longer think that no try to think if there's no other one says is there another one chef works with me by the way yeah I think so but usually I I am pretty good at like going you know I was offered the West Wing at the same time as I was wicked and you know the West Wing did come back around to me and believe it or not I played I was in it later I am usually one that makes the decision and feels good about it I had to choose between Annie Get Your Gun starring Bernadette Peters which was a big hit and Charlie Brown which was five people and none of my agents or managers told me to do it they said you want to do is job security and I listened to my gut the gut is a big one y'all listen to your gut when everybody tells you not to do something and in your gut you know you're supposed to do the gut thing so I did that and then that's ended up where I won the Tony Awards so yeah yeah I stuffed the hand thank you very much I just wanted to ask I understand when you're at Oklahoma you were part of the Gamma Phi Beta Sorority and I'm the guy on fire [Applause] I just asked about how that sort of shaped maybe shapes your career or what you learnt from that experience because it's quite emotional I left about being an authority it's a very southern thing when I moved to New York and I was like I'm gonna give a Phi Beta people are like stepped in what you know they don't care but for me I liked it because instantaneously I was with girls women who kind of had similar interests and even some that didn't and we learn from each other and we learned how to disagree and I think at one point I was like chapter president which was a heap a massive mistake that is not where I shine but I loved being in it it taught philanthropy it showed me other sororities that I enjoyed and got along with I just love to the and our our motto was love labor and loyalty and I'll never forget it another motto we have which I quote all the time it's not always pretty it's not always happy but we're alive remember that and I love that because there are days when like oh I just can't even today when I was getting ready with this dirty hair I thought oh you know I don't like to present and look nice you know but really what is it about is getting to know y'all and so now did they have sororities here is that a dumb question and in Canada I was in what part doctor auntie I've shot so many and pilots and TV shows there I love whole tranfer that's a good shopping center yes thank you you're welcome let's take another question yeah let's go to the hand you might have three rows back yeah I thank you so much for coming my question is about like guest-starring and/or guests have being a guest on something and walking into somewhere where there's already a dynamic and there's already all these people know each other and you're just kind of there to do your job you've been hired and kind of what's that like and what's that dynamic of being like the outsider that is such a good question I'm Seth what were we just talking about the other day so one of my best friends is Allison Janney if you know that actress and there she's on a show called mom and they've been trying to get me to do it for a long time and I just oh I just wasn't sure and it is a totally different beast it is an animal that you walk in and you know usually on this on a set if I'm on Glee or Pushing Daisies or West Wing or whatever it is I'm doing I'm that's my home but I realize I'm a guest I'm walking in so there's an adjustment period of I would like to you know I'm not gonna walk in and be like where's the gluten-free crackers you know I'm not gonna do that but also I'm not gluten-free so doesn't matter [Laughter] I'm just not gonna walk in I'm not gonna walk in and it's not my home I want to be respectful I also very much want my my the fellow actors who live there to be happy and to have fun with me because I never want to leave a place and stink up the joint it's interesting it's it's kind of hard a lot of people say it's really hard when I walked into West Wing it was a ended up it was a three Episode art but it end up being two years but when I walked in and I had a monologue imagine getting a role where you are the new press secretary and you are the smartest girl in the room and you have a monologue in front of Richard Schiff behind the you know in the thing see I don't even know that the microphone and I I'm going to talk about nervous talking about having to prove yourself because that is a cast that you're gonna get on the the train are you gonna be left at the station and they welcomed me with open arms and that mused that dialogue is music anyway so it was a right fit but it's scary truth is it's scary but you should always face your fears yeah let's go to the hand yes hi Kristen so I'm also a gamer Phi Beta [Applause] watch out y'all first of all you know don't look we're doing this secret I will wait to climb back over these now down so and howdy I'm from Texas so love the southern this way from Dallas Texas oh I love Dallas again best shopping in the world North Park we love North Park I know North Face international rut rhaggy everybody ok I'm so excited I'm like so nervous talking to you oh don't be nervous um anyway so since it's International Women's Day and since we have so many cool sisters here I have a question about your experience in a competitive field and how you can still maintain your relationships with women and make sure that you are both being competitive in your field and successful we making sure those relationships are strong and genuine and true at the same time and what advice would give to another girl that one side is a great question for this climate um I learned early on in a Miss Oklahoma pageant yes I did that I also got a free master's degree in opera performance because I did it I remember a woman a girl in the pageant right before we watch out for swimsuit saying to me have you gained weight this week I'm just telling the story because I think it's important and I was and something came in to me inside me and well they told me to I think it's always fun to when you get met with a woman who's not one of us to use humor to disarm them and let them know that they're we're all the same and it's in my career been the same that has helped me so many times because I'll tell you something women are we know that we can be tricky but when we are loyal we are still magnolias and there isn't nobody you want on your side more than a woman as my career has gone on I go out of my way and other women have gone out of their way that I've worked with and that I am friends with to make sure that we're okay that we're loved that we feel safe so I would say to all of you women and men but especially we're talking about this Phil just make each other feel safe if you notice a woman by herself if you notice and you guys know what I'm talking about like having a moment you know what I mean just go up and say you good I got your back that will go so such a long way it has gone a long way when people women have done it with me and it goes a long way when I'm getting to do it for other women and you know what it makes you feel blessed to when you do it that's the best advice how about let's just be kind and I have been guilty okay I'm admitting it I have been guilty of oh girl wore the wrong pants today oh and she's on bad mood and let's steer clear of susyq you know go towards Suzie Q and tell her it's all right go towards her that's that's the way I'm doing it that's jump to you uh-huh yeah it's the hand 6:54 is in the house hi thank you for coming oh I saw that Wicked's gonna be adopted for a movie yes and especially with someone who's done both film and theater what do you think are you most excited for about the movie and what are you nervous for whether it's a scene or something that might get lost in film because I know who's in who's involved I know that that our producer Marc Platt and I know that our composer Stephen Schwartz and our writer Winnie Holzman are involved I feel completely safe for I think they won't they would rather die than let anything be lost I'm excited to see how they the look of it you know I mean like are they going to create another world is it going to look like Harry Potter is it gonna look like it's gonna be real like what how's it gonna be set and I'm excited of course to see who will be playing Glinda and Elphaba because that is you know my DNA and it's my history I know who I'd like to play it because I trust you know but there's very capable and wonderful young actresses out there that I think will be just amazing but you know I'd love to see does Cameron play Glinda and I'd love to see ariana grande play play off of that because I know that that would be incapable capable hands but I'm sure whoever they pick will be amazing I can't wait I'll be there opening weekend I've know yeah of course yeah listen just to eyes in front of you oh thank you for the inspiration today it's so amazing you're gay I wanted to ask you about what do you think of diversity in film industry and how is it changing and what do you see like how it's gonna be in the future who is the most of directors you see it's gonna put it forward I love the diversity happening it's called real world well remember where I grew up everybody kind of looked the same and when I moved in New York I was like this is a there's everybody here and I of course I live in LA - but New York is my that's my jam right as I watch movies and I watched TV I'm seeing real stories told which means real life which means not everybody is the same believes the same looks the same and that makes me happy it brings me pleasure it's the way it should be I want it to continue in this direction if you look at let's say the Oscars this year look at the different kinds of parts that we had not just women but men - if you look at let's say green book I know it was based loosely based on a real story but you see this african-american amazing amazing doctorate of music with this Italian you know a chicken eating swearing loving guy and their unlikely friendship I just thought it was a beautiful story of course I would like to see more women directors I would just like to see a viewpoint of that more with that being said I am a working actor so anybody that will hire me I'll take the part no I I think it's going in the right direction darling and I think that I think Broadway is even taking suit and I like that - see that - how about this how about whoever is the best for the part and gets it how about that that's what I that's and that's where we're going and I like it let's see the hand in the road back yeah you sir so do have a question but I wanted to first make a comment about something you mentioned before so you were saying about wanting to sing in a foreign language I don't know if you know Villa mine verkaik who sung Elphaba in three languages hello Villa mine the cake is she German German / she's my favorite alphabet you're my favorite Glinda you you need to see weave her in a foreign language she is amazing it's from another planet I love tina.bill mine I'm sure if she worked on other languages she could but I don't know if you know sir what is your name Brendan Brendan your darling by the way I don't know if you know that I have some popular in Japanese Chinese and German and Italian hi scalloped on Tibet danny's high-scale popular it won it popular you should go on youtube and watch i'm getting home and because of Bocelli I'm now adding Italian at the end so my question was and you kind of like done it already but do you not do you find it difficult for people to sort of ask you to sing all the time almost like a performing monkey or do you just get off on it no well I guess it depends on the day today was fun I loved music so much I view it like speaking I we sing it in music theater I always say it and it's what is what it is it's what my teacher taught me we sing it because we can't speak it anymore and then of course dance and Idzik is an extension of that and that's why the the milieu of music theatre is so special to me you know but yeah sometimes especially at family reunions I just don't want to do it you know i don't i say when I arrive in Oklahoma I say okay you got ten minutes ask me anything I'll I'll do anything and then it's over go you know but but yeah sometimes somebody will shove a phone in my face and say Oh sing for my granddaughter's he's kind of spooned thanks for my granddaughter's best friends cousins lover and I just know please don't make me do that but um but here today it's fun you're welcome by the way the outfit is working - it is you look like a model this this is your runway darling hello thank you so much for being here I think you're just amazing I was wondering whether you've seen Sophie Evans and Alice fern and wicked because I think they're amazing and they've got such a good diner we just like you and Deanna had okay first of all let's just get a couple things straight the last time I was here a year ago stuff was it I played the Palladium sold out anyway I had never seen wicked all the way through for some reason I just it was emotional and I just I just hadn't done so we went and was with me and I hear dad what do you think happened then I see see I think Glinda is a very difficult role and so I can appreciate someone who does it well and Sophie blew my mind it was blown it rolled down Piccadilly square I'm in my head was just like what I thought she nailed it I thought the actors playing Elphaba was there was a you know there was a way that she found to have humor with Elphaba and I think sometimes the trap there can be that Elphaba's not funny either and that glend is not dramatic they're both both they're both good and they're both wicked and I just thought if I may that they slayed as you guys say laid and I went backstage and was able to meet them and tell them to their face because I think it's important for us to do that when when it's true otherwise you say thank you for the seats I'm kidding there's always something good to say but I was blown away and they know it but you can tell them I said that again they know it though they know how I feel about them and it's a safe door hey um it's amazing - you talk wicked was the first musical I ever saw so it's just incredible to like see you in the flash just kind of freaking out a very good friend of mine is an aspiring musical theater actress she really wanted to come today but she couldn't Annamarie said that she couldn't um but she wanted to ask you um she just texts me how to ask her a good friend by the way I am an amazing how we were talking about women that's what you do exactly she owes me her life now but um right but she wanted she wanted to ask you um how important do you think like formal or classical training is in like musical Dasia career if you want a long career it's you must there are so many good voices that blow themselves out eight times a week is no joke and if you would like a career let's let's say like Elaine Paige let's say like Barbara cook then you must train it's like working out a muscle and that's that's me I'm very very very pro education and I still I mean Seth how much do I practice I practice a lot and I have a voice coach and teachers that I check in with because I don't sometimes we listen to ourselves too much as singers and you get caught up in the way sound good or bad you have to have that extra ear so I check ins you tell her I said yes girl get me to the teacher and stay there and then behind your eyes in front I don't bore to me yet like they're gonna say no hi scan asked ESET that one things you really didn't like you're sure I know I just want to compare shop and compare that's what we do come here got me beat by any what is your interest in school like what are you doing here I'm doing English and German you may sit down my mom my mom is an oppressor your mom isn't exactly your clothes kids you know like sales I dunno yes hmm I just had machine um I'm just gonna ask like you know it's traveling and you said that that's what if you're like annoying things that you it's like tiring how do you deal with that when you travel around and when you like you know do you have a routine to try and help you settle in all the time when you get homesick and like relaxing what do you do my routine is so sad yes I mean okay where where shall I begin I do what's called nasal rinse everyday or nasal douche I call it I do I have a heating pad I have a bad neck injuries and I have a heating pad that I sleep with I also have an mouth guard I have to sleep on an incline it's very sexy my boyfriend's like really I'm like hang on honey anyway no talk Tiger Balm salon pause lots of texting no talk reading lots of reading and lots of listening to music prayer sleep is a problem I'm just been completely honest with y'all y'all want to know sleep is I chased that Gargan I can't get it I can't get it now there are other ways that we've all learned that my may or may not help but that's something that's hard when I get on a plane I absolutely contain I have an emotional support dog which means I've signed a paper that says I'm insane so that I can have a dog with it I spray down a seat with hand sanitizer what else do I do mix in my nose always wear gloves antibacterial I sprayed the person next to me if I don't know them it's this kind of thing because getting sick means cancellations and I don't want to do that if I can help it so that's routine that's just a physical routine it's hard nobody that was hard then it wouldn't be no fun right yeah that's come inside in the front right I I love you so much I saw you and promises promises you're incredible you liked eleven yeah I was like um do you know Broadway artist Lyons yeah so I was like during that during the summer I'm so glad you saw that part yeah nobody wanted me to play that I'm glad you saw where are you from I'm from New Jersey Ocean Township well my manager is from there right there that fellow Jersey eyes the Garden State yes yeah so I was just wondering um of the shows that you've been in which one or which rule within that show has impacted you the most as a performer and which has impacted you the most as a person interesting that you said promises and this is an example of doing something that nobody that you're scared of and that nobody wants you to do because I'm known for come comedy more and that kind of veiny wacky Madeline Kahn that kind of thing I wanted to do promises promises because I wanted to seeing how they've been in Burt Bacharach score it is about a woman who is in love with a married man who will not leave his wife and she ends up trying to take her life now you wouldn't necessarily think Oh Kristin Chenoweth but the truth of the matter is I am a woman I have lived a second and I needed to do the part because without saying too much I understood her very much and I wanted to play it and I was scared to death the most scared I've ever been plus it's a hard score burt bacharach by the way for those of you who sing know that it's de-seeding he's hard I'm fixing a recorded album of his music right now and it the song I got it's just hard it's just hard I don't know why it's hard but I'm so glad I did it I grew the most from it is it I think Dolly Parton says it she says you grow the most from not the rainbows but the rain and so that's an example of that and so that's the one sure there's been I mean I have loved the parts I've played but that one was hard and necessary let's take another question hi if my sisters knew I were like here in the flesh with not only Glinda but also Lilly st. Regis in the 1999 Annie film they would I am geeked out a little but my question comes from you know being someone who is too often kind of like holed up by myself in the library what is your advice to being popular make me cry you know when I was talking about earlier about you know being yourself in high school let's say let's look at who my friends were well they were yes the football team they were the drama nerds they were the smoke hole kids that's what we called it back then and the people that smoked in the smoke hole I loved I loved all the people I just liked people and I guess I wasn't afraid to show I still am not who I am so depends on what how you view being popular but I think it is letting people see who you really are and that letting them laugh at your dorkiness or your you know smartness or you know I mean I'm such a dork you have no idea the amount of dorkness that I have and me I mean I can be like in the radio listen to the radio I'd be like that's that I just don't want you to know that Tchaikovsky and the cab drivers like we don't care I'll need to analyze it I'll need to go I mean it just goes on and on I wake up in the middle the night I with rap breath you know on my mind so embrace embrace what's you and let people see it let people see it you're welcome let's take another question yeah - the hands in the back hi like finally thank you so um being on Broadway of course it's not an easy task you just said it but it's also about rejection and all of that and even so if you actually we're in Broadway just coming back to show it's hard so I guess what I want to say is what's what has been the most valuable advice or what's the thought that makes you be like okay I'm gonna addition I'm gonna I'm gonna go for it even if you'll owe it like when you love it it could be hard to wake up and be like I don't want to deal with another no or I just I'm just tired I'm get a girl I got so what is it what's the best advice that anyone having ever given to you to make you be like just skip swimming Yeah right what's your just keep swimming two pieces of advice number one if you can't see yourself doing anything else and being happy then you get up out of bed you go to class you do you go to the audition you do it that's number one if you can see yourself being happy doing anything else then you should go do that thing because this is just full-on all the time 24/7 an artist has an a unique brain I think also be willing to do do other things on the side when I was young I sang at bar mitzvahs I handed out candy at different parties I I mean I did whatever it took so I could be off-broadway in The Fantasticks to make 180 dollars a week I had four roommates we had bunk beds and The Clapper okay which made the lights go on and off so I mean it was small but I did whatever it took I wanted it so bad and I viewed an audition this is kind of another dork side when you get an audition and I do this to this day if I have a meeting about a movie I look at it as fun don't look at it as oh no this is fun let's offer something different when you never know how they'll change their mind they might I was ah in a show on Broadway called Steel Pier Kander and ebb I was young young young the audition called for a tall leggy chorus girl who could sing a high C featured part and my agent got me an audition and I thought this is gonna be fun because you know I'm 411 and I got a high E flat but anyway I'm just gonna go in there and have fun it's candor nib so I say I think Victor Herbert and danced and ret aside and got a callback and you know I'm not I'm not what they pictured but it ended up working now and another great example of that is Joel Grey they didn't see him as the emcee at all they wanted a tall languid and he walked in the room so I would say look at every audition as fun fun fun fun really finds nothing fun about you're welcome and yeah they went on for two final questions so let's take if I were did the final thrill to these three here hi-yah thanks for coming I just wanted to ask since I'm interested in the sort of production side of theater and from an actor's perspective what does bit what makes a good team for you to work with like what's been some of us seems that you've worked with like creatively not from yeah it's just felt like the production side of things that is such a great question thank you for asking in my hometown they built a Performing Arts Center beautiful and it I've always known that so much happens before the actor arrives I've always been aware that hello there's writer writing and set designers happening but when I when this theater opened and they they bare bears my name I thought oh no you know I can't but I have learned so much about how important let's let's use the example lighting with color schemes and these these people that work with me and that work in this field are the most important key element to the key also there's the creative aspect one of the reasons that I have Seth working with me is that I might have to write something on the sly all the time I have to do it if I'm in a concert and let's say the president has been elected and I have a show on Broadway that night of myself I'm going to write something because it's topical and you know the creative aspect when you're an artist is you're not just a singer you're not just an actress you're not just a dancer you're also a writer and you also want to know what's how it's gonna be lit and if you don't know you should learn and you should hire people that you trust so as one actress artist to a production future maybe production person I'd like to say in advance thank you because without you we it's not gonna be pretty so thank you thank you thank you and we do need women more women in that field so right on right on and then yeah hi thank you for being here today um I'm not gamified better or you know Authority but I was wondering how your how your experience in that sort of sisterhood informed how you approached a role like Glinda and wicked where there is such a powerful female friendship man I love the way y'all are talking you have no idea you have no idea when I got the part and it began to evolve and change and like I said it came more about Glinda and Elphaba Elphaba and Glinda I should say and their friendship it evolves into what real life it friendships are and almost sisters you know it's not always pretty and happy but it's real and it's I think that's why wicked rings tomb still for lots of people especially women because these are best friends like sisters and they part but before they part they forgive each other and that is a as I'm growing and evolving myself that is something that I'm just learning how important forgiveness is if you want to be forgiven you have to forgive I say that my show a lot that's true so when I approach a lot of my women friendships and relationships that way I have friends that there is no way on paper we shouldn't be friends okay let's give you an example there's a comedian Kathy Griffin on paper we could not be more different all right we're very close Kathy Najimy another one I I wear fur don't get mad at me I'm from Oklahoma I eat meat I have a fur rug she said there's no way that we should be friends but we are best friends okay you find the differences in yourselves ladies and find a way to connect and go I see your point I understand that I'm still gonna be me you know I'm still gonna be mean but I see what you mean it's having a bigger open-open bigger opening I can't send my words right just open your brain you might actually adopt some opinion that somebody else has that you never thought you'd have does that answer your questions you know what I mean yeah it's kinda like that you know Cathy teases me a lot because I'm a Christian and she does you know I'm going straight to hell my absolute you are in Hell now girl you are in hell but we just are I don't know what to tell you we don't believe the same we're different but however if she loves me and she doesn't judge me for who I am under that's at the final question so even at a shorty how are you Italian Fulton I'm here this might be a first after we have our foot camera [Applause] I'm like you're Heidi Klum everyone's cooler than me I'm no waste like know that look how adorable you are and it makes you special and different so and when you're 50 you're gonna look not 50 so my question to you is I'm a massive musical theater fun and love singing but I get really bad stage fright and that's held me back quite a lot so do you get stage fright and if you do what do you do to kind of help with that and so it depends on the thing like I get in a routine doing Broadway or doing a concert series I'll be okay I'll be okay but like for example last night I'm singing with someone that I admire so greatly and so I'm nervous as a kid okay I'm just and I then this gets shallow we're talking about our breath which is the support system of how we sing and I have to have conversations with myself that's what I call them conversations with myself girl you're here for a reason stop freaking yourself out breathe don't forget to breathe by the way do you know there's a singer in a country singer named Faith Hill and she sings a song called breathe breathe just bring me to and as I get go on I keep thinking breathe breathe breathe so don't forget to breathe have conversations with yourself however they go I don't need to know you know what you need to do to tell yourself you should be there whether it's an audition or a part or whatever also the more you practice the better the less the nerves are going to affect physical movements I'm a big person of Prayer so I do that but whoever you pray to or whatever you do do that too that's my that's my and good luck no no married man yeah well well unfortunately that's what we've got time for but ladies and gentlemen please do join me in sincerely thanking you

Channel: OxfordUnion

Views: 16,852

Rating: 4.7080293 out of 5

Keywords: Oxford, Union, Oxford Union, Oxford Union Society, debate, debating, The Oxford Union, Oxford University, kristin chenoweth, glinda, wicked, broadway, tony award winner

Id: ukxyLZKEaSo

Length: 60min 8sec (3608 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 06 2019