I can finally say that I’ve found my spirit animal–and he’s totally okay with it! This weekend I had the pleasure of experiencing the amazing Mr. Jonathan Groff in action. (BEST CHRISTMAS PRESENT TO MYSELF EVER.)
The lighting was a little weird, but the acoustics and the view made up for it.
For those of you that can’t place the name, Groff recently voiced Kristoff in the Disney’s box office smash Frozen. Groff got his musical start in Broadway’s Spring Awakening, where he starred alongside best friend, and Glee star, Lea Michele. He’s also had a recurring role on Glee as Jesse St. James, and now has his own show on HBO called Looking.
I may or may not have teared up when he sang his first song. Photo Cred: Kevin Yatarola
He gave two performances in the Allen Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center on February 15th, one at 7:30 pm and another at 9:30 pm with his accompanist Mary Mitchell-Campbell. The venue, by the way, located in the Time Warner Center, with a brilliant view of Columbus Circle, is one of the most unusual concert spaces that I ever been in. At one point, Jonathan commented on the scenery, saying that he’d never felt so upstaged by a background before.
The view of Columbus Circle from the waiting area at Jazz @ Lincoln Center.
When the tickets went up for sale, I found myself debating which show to go to. Ultimately, I decided that 9:30 was a better bet if I wanted to try to meet him afterwards. The show was absolutely SPECTACULAR.
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The song list from the 9:30 performance, if you’d like to take a look.
The highlight of the show, in my opinion, had to have been his Glee medley. At first, he teased the audience about bringing Lea Michele out to sing with him. (At this point, I was nearly in tears because, for those of you that don’t know, she’s my idol.) Unfortunately, Lea was “unable to attend,” so instead he brought up a girl from the front section. He even put a wig on her and a sign that read “LEA MICHELE.” Needless to say, I was in tears for her. (And slightly out of jealousy…)
Groff was just bouncing with energy, at one point going as far as imitating Britney Spears’ dancing during a medley that combined the works of Stephen Sondheim and Britney. It. Was. Wild.
Jonathan’s moves had the audience in peals of laughter and cheers. Photo Cred: Kevin Yatarola
I was also amused to find that he’s quite the storyteller–he gave an anecdote about how he’d always dreamed of performing for Lincoln Center’s American Songbook series. One of his first experiences with the series was when he got to see Sutton Foster give a performance for the series. He was, and still is, quite a fan of hers.
He got the picture of his first encounter with her printed for the show. When he went to pay for it at Staples, he was asked if he was going to propose (it was Valentine’s weekend). He responded with a chuckle: maybe. Photo Cred: Kevin Yatarola
From the very beginning to the last encore, Groff absolutely stunned me with not only his stupendous vocal abilities, but also his natural way of connecting with the audience. It made me wish that I had gotten tickets to both performances, as some fans did, rather than just the 9:30.
But remember how I said that I would try to meet him after the show? I was not disappointed.
Yes, I was screaming inside. He put his arm around me.
I had to have my friend take the picture because I was shaking in excitement. He put his arm around me. It was glorious.
After waiting nearly 2 hours for him to emerge, His Groffiness finally graced us with his presence. And what a glorious moment it was. He was kind enough to spend a few minutes with everyone who had waited so long to see him, apologizing for taking so long. He blamed his inability to stop talking, which only made him that much more adorable because it is so true.
We chatted with him for a few minutes, telling him how much we love Frozen and Glee and what big fans we were. He seemed really genuine and sincerely thankful to have so many fans waiting for him. My friend, Carolyn, also seized the opportunity to tell him that a lot of what he said and did on stage reminded her of me, and therefore he was officially my spirit animal. He laughed and gave me his blessing. I was (and still am!) over the moon! I shall cherish that day for the rest of my life.
Should the opportunity ever-present itself to go see him again, I would most definitely run towards it. I cannot recommend him enough.
Jonathan Groff is set to announce this year’s Tony nominees on April 29th with Lucy Liu.
Sorry, I feel incomplete without GIFs. And this face seemed appropriate.
Also…on a side note/in case you were wondering… Jonathan Groff gives the best hugs. 😉
Stay warm, my friends.
Stay tuned for my next post on meeting Jonathan’s best friend and my idol, Lea Michele!