Kristin Chenoweth

Kristin Dawn Chenoweth, born July 24, 1968, in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, is an American actress and singer whose career spans Broadway, television, and film. Adopted at five days old by chemical engineers Junie Smith Chenoweth and Jerry Morris Chenoweth, she grew up in Broken Arrow, a suburb of Tulsa. She later revealed in her 2023 book I'm No Philosopher, but I Got Thoughts that her biological father was bassist Billy Ethridge, briefly a member of ZZ Top and also of The Chessmen, and her biological mother was known as "Mama Lynn." Chenoweth believed herself to be one quarter Cherokee, though genetic testing indicated she is four percent Native American.

From an early age, Chenoweth performed gospel music for local churches, and at twelve she sang a solo at the Southern Baptist Convention national conference, performing the Evie song "Four Feet Eleven." After graduating from Broken Arrow Senior High School, she attended Oklahoma City University, where she was a member of Gamma Phi Beta sorority, competed in beauty pageants, won the title of Miss OCU, and placed as second runner-up in the 1991 Miss Oklahoma pageant. She earned a bachelor's degree in musical theatre in 1990 and a master's degree in opera performance in 1992, studying under voice instructor Florence Birdwell. While completing her graduate degree, she performed at the Lyric Theatre in Oklahoma City in roles including June in Gypsy, Liesl in The Sound of Music, Fran in Promises, Promises, and Tuptim in The King and I. Named "most promising up-and-coming singer" at the Metropolitan Opera National Council auditions, she received a full scholarship to Philadelphia's Academy of Vocal Arts, but turned it down two weeks before enrollment to accept a role in the 1993 Paper Mill Playhouse production of Animal Crackers, playing Arabella Rittenhouse, and relocated to New York City to pursue a career in musical theatre.

Following Animal Crackers, Chenoweth appeared in regional productions including Babes in Arms at The Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and Phantom, a role she also toured in Germany. Her Off-Broadway credits include Luisa in The Fantasticks and Kristy in Box Office of the Damned, both in 1994. In 1997, she appeared as Hyacinth in the Roundabout Theater Company production of Scapin, and that same spring made her Broadway debut as Precious McGuire in the Kander and Ebb musical Steel Pier, for which she won a Theatre World Award. In 1998, she reprised the role of Anne Draper in the City Center Encores! staged concert of Strike Up the Band and created a role in the Lincoln Center Theater production of William Finn's A New Brain.

Chenoweth's Broadway breakthrough came in 1999 when she played Sally Brown in the revival of You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, a character not present in the original production. The performance earned her both a Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical. Later that year she appeared on Broadway in the comic play Epic Proportions, and in February 2000 she starred as Daisy Gamble in the Encores! production of On a Clear Day You Can See Forever.

In October 2003, Chenoweth returned to Broadway in Wicked, originating the role of Glinda the Good Witch following the show's San Francisco tryout. She received Tony, Drama Desk, and Drama League nominations for Best Leading Actress in a Musical for the performance, with her co-star Idina Menzel winning the Tony. Chenoweth departed the production on July 18, 2004, after nine months. In May 2004 she also played Cunegonde in the New York Philharmonic revival of Candide, directed by Lonny Price, a production broadcast on PBS's Great Performances.

From December 2006 to March 2007, Chenoweth starred on Broadway as Eve in a revival of The Apple Tree, alongside Brian d'Arcy James and Marc Kudisch, following a 2005 Encores! presentation of the piece. She received Drama Desk and Drama League nominations for that performance. In 2010, she appeared on Broadway as Fran in Promises, Promises. Her 2015 Broadway turn as Lily in On the Twentieth Century earned her a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Musical as well as a third Tony Award nomination. In 2025, she took on the title role in The Queen of Versailles, extending a Broadway career that began in 1997. Chenoweth has also appeared in five City Center Encores! productions across her career, in addition to Off-Broadway and regional theatre work.

Beyond the stage, Chenoweth built a substantial television career. She played Annabeth Schott on NBC's The West Wing and starred as Olive Snook on the comedy-drama Pushing Daisies, winning a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series in 2009. She had her own sitcom, Kristin, in 2001, and received Emmy nominations for guest appearances on Sesame Street and Glee in 2010 and 2011. Additional television credits include the ABC series GCB in 2012, the role of Lavinia in Trial & Error in 2018, and the characters Mildred Layton and Miss Codwell in the musical comedy series Schmigadoon! in 2021 and 2023, respectively. Her film work includes character roles in Bewitched (2005), The Pink Panther (2006), and RV (2006), voice work in animated features Rio 2 (2014) and The Peanuts Movie (2015), and appearances in made-for-TV movies including Descendants (2015). She also contributed voice performances to the animated series Sit Down, Shut Up and BoJack Horseman.

Chenoweth released her first solo album, Let Yourself Go, in 2001, and has since released several additional albums, including A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas (2008), Some Lessons Learned (2011), Coming Home (2014), The Art of Elegance (2016), and For the Girls (2019). In 2009 she published a memoir, A Little Bit Wicked, and in 2023 released the book I'm No Philosopher, but I Got Thoughts. She has also hosted multiple award shows throughout her career.