This past week I had a wonderful opportunity to not only watch the third annual Kristin Chenoweth Masterclass but to perform in it!! As you might know, I'm quite a fan of this powerhouse diva that grew up here in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma (who has an album coming out soon and had an amazing jewelry collection come out earlier this year!). Every year, Kristin comes home for one night to train five students in front of a live audience. For those of you who don't know what a masterclass is, it is where a professional from the industry comes in and works with students who aspire to be performers. They critique them and tell them techniques to use while singing.
I was fortunate enough to perform two group numbers with my fellow Broadway bootcamp friends I made this summer at Kristin's bootcamp! After we performed we got to sit and watch Kristin work with the nine students. Four of those students were high schoolers and five were college students from Oklahoma City University, which just so happens to be where Kristin went to college herself!! Pictured below is OCU student Megan Carpenter performing while Kristin works with her.
Let me just flat out say it: every single one of those students were AMAZING! They had the audience right in their hands, which, by the way, was a sold-out crowd! After one of the students sang their song, Kristin came over to them and gave them a big hug. After this she spent around twenty minutes with each one, giving them advice and critiques on how to make their performance even better! Some things that I learned was to sing your truth, relax, don't be afraid to be you and remember that you are enough! These all seemed to "click" for me as a performer myself. She talked about how you need to sing what you are feeling and to connect with the song. Tell the story and make sure it's clear to your audience. For me, I don't relax often. I'm usually always tensed up or anxious, but when she told one of the girls to just relax and let loose, it all made sense. I realized that I don't have to be all uptight and tense. I can have fun and be in the moment or else I'm going to miss what is happening! I learned so much just by watching and I hope maybe next year I can do a solo and be critiqued by someone I highly look up to as a mentor and role model.
To top off the evening, Kristin gave a huge donation to the Broken Arrow Public Schools Fine Arts Program. A total of $20,000!!! As a student who adores the arts, this made my heart oh so happy!!! Kristin is such a generous lady who truly cares about her community and students that want to pursue the arts as a career. Another wonderful thing that happened was that Broken Arrow Show Choirs got to close the show with a number. We all got a group picture with Kristin and the check, which was just about the size of her! As we were getting the picture, she noticed me and ran over to give me a hug! She's the sweetest!! The show was amazing and I'm so thankful Kristin does this. I don't think I can thank her enough. Can't wait till next year!!
