Kristin Chenoweth said she was “extremely nervous” to perform in Utah, and there were at least two reasons for that.
Reason No. 1: It had been a year and a half since she had sung in front of a live audience.
Reason No. 2: Utah has really, really high altitude.
On July 10, the Broadway star headlined the Utah Symphony’s Deer Valley Music Festival in Park City. The outdoor show, which took place against the backdrop of ski slopes, marked Chenoweth’s first live performance since the pandemic shut down concert halls and venues across the country in March 2020.
“There were 4,000 people there,” Chenoweth said during an appearance this week on “Live with Kelly and Ryan.” “They were safe, they were so happy, too, just to be there.
“It was exciting to be back,” she continued. “I was extremely nervous.”
The “Wicked” star is popular in Utah and has performed here a few times in recent years — including for the Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square Christmas concert in 2018 and for the Deer Valley Music Festival in 2019 — so she knows the challenges that accompany performing in a place with higher elevation. But that doesn’t make it any easier.
“I was on family vacation in Destin, Florida, at sea level, and I went directly to the highest place,” she said Monday on “Live with Kelly and Ryan.” “I do suffer with asthma and I have vertigo ... so I had to kind of acclimate.”
Chenoweth said the last time she performed at Deer Valley, she had a tank of oxygen to help get her through.
“I was so out of shape,” she recalled. “This time I was surprised at how well it went. I’d been practicing, but it’s nothing like doing a two-hour show after a year and a half. But I got to do it — I used the (oxygen) thing. And the audience’s spirit ... I hope I fed them, but they fed me, too.”
Chenoweth’s performance on Saturday marked the third show in the Utah Symphony’s Deer Valley Music Festival, which runs through Aug. 7. Chenoweth will return to Utah in November for a performance at Tuacahn Amphitheatre, the Deseret News reported.