Broadway Superstar Idina Menzel

[@JonathanReynolds1]

John Travolta : “Please welcome, the one and only, the wickedly talented Adele Dazeem” 😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@SoulKnightKing]

She has RENT, Wicked, Frozen. 3 iconic roles in a career is LEGENDARY

[@weneedthemusic]

The fact that the writers are so inspired by her that they make changes to their stories to showcase her talent is amazing and not enough talked about. Her talent doesn’t fit the mold, so they had to make new ones for her. Love to see it ❤️

[@RadellaNix]

It has happened in EVERY major step in her career. RENT, WICKED, even Frozen, were all shaped around her talents. All made iconic and taken to a new level that would not have been possible without her voice, acting skills and drive!

[@AshleyDouglasDance]

In a roundabout way, she ended up getting the music career she wanted but not the way she planned! Top 10 Billboard hit, Best Song at the Oscars, and headliner at Radio City.

[@jaybonn5973]

Hiring Idina as Elsa was the best decision Disney ever made. Really catapulted her.

[@kohlharrington569]

There’s an authenticity and enduring factor about her. I’ve seen many clips of wicked, and I’ve seen it on stage many many times. Yet nothing matches her defying gravity in terms of the mix of emotions: excitement, scared, happy, daring. Don’t know the exact words to say there but I get a level of emotion watching her…and I know the original developed the role etc. Anyway, happy for her success! Here’s to many more successes for her in the future!

[@document6]

I agree! …can’t wait for what’s next: Idina has originated 3 iconic roles … I cannot wait to see what she does next!

[@_wickedlyqueer]

That closing, what you said about Idina at the end there was perfectly, and beautifully said. I admire her for many reasons and there is just something about her that sets her apart from the rest. I love what you said, and thank you for highlighting the great aspects of both her career and who she is as a person

[@manifestgtr]

Idina has this intangible charisma that makes it so you have to pay attention, both visually and vocally. She’s not a particularly polished singer when compared to someone like Eden Espinosa or the others that usually fill in after she leaves a production…but that doesn’t really matter. Was Leonard Cohen a great singer? Was Chris Cornell a world class guitarist? Not exactly…but their sheer ability, charisma and artistic intellect brought them to the top. It’s a good lesson for anyone in the arts, period.

[@emmasmit2073]

Way better than any theatre history class! Adeeeeele! Thanks, Kevin!

[@MGS17]

Have been following her since her RENT days….an amazing talent…wish her well…can’t wait to see what she does next…

[@CliffRichardFan2001]

Ever since I watched Frozen in theaters I immediately looked her up and followed her career. Although it wasn’t a huge hit, I absolutely loved loved loved her performance in Chess. And that performance of I Know Him So Well with Kerry Ellis just gave me chills. It still does. She’s incredible and her music is terribly underrated.

[@JacobElyachar]

Idina Menzel remains one of my all-time favorite performers! She also created three powerful pop culture icons - Maureen, Elphaba, and Elsa!

[@luukjoling1]

My fav Idina is Chess Idina, I listened to that album soo much and I know which of the parts on YT to open to get to my fav songs. :)

[@kathycush]

I met her a few yrs ago and she was just the sweetest. I have been a fan since Rent. Cannot wait to see what she does next. BTW Cinderella was awesome!!

[@Laeiryn]

RENT's cast had some genuinely rad people. I worked for the Devil's Carnival 2: Alleluia! road show, which featured Adam Pascal, and one night I was handler for his autograph line. Got to chat to him between people, see how he interacted with fans. Very warm and sincere man.

[@agendarecords2530]

I’ve followed Idina’s Career through all of this in real time and never knew all the nuanced insights, Thank you for your perspective!

[@JeffreySewell]

this is incredible! i enjoyed this so much - idina is such an inspiration to me and one my all time favorite singers. i was like 4 when wicked opened - defying gravity was a song i would sing as a 7 year old on my chair in the house lol. i was a theatre kid, who often felt like an outsider. i remember being a teen and frozen came out and watching her soar to new heights. the connection i felt to her and the music/her story is profound. she is a living testament that yes it may take years and patience, but if you follow your true calling, gift, and gut, it will lead u to greatness! idina stan 4ever ❤️

[@BehindTheMagic]

I. Love. Your. Videos. Awesome work, once again!!!

[@AlexHurleyMusic]

An icon. Up there with Streisand for originating for iconic roles like Fanny Bryce. Maureen, Elphaba and Kate in the wild party. show's that will be revived for years to come and in wicked's case, still selling out on Broadway nearly 20 years later. She leaves behind a legacy with every role she puts 100% of her heart and soul into. She deserved that Tony Award more than anyone that year as far as im concerned. she literally defied (🥁) all the odds, critics and naysayers and created a literal masterpiece of Theatre.

[@ivanbarney1147]

"Goddess" is an immediate word reference for her...with beauty, grace, and presence that is statuesque and ageless. Shs is an artist, like Sandra Bullock, has defied time and the unavoidable reality of aging (and its march across her face - she is a young 50...shhh!). I was privileged to see her on stage for one of her last performances of Elphaba in "Wicked" (NYC). She does not disappoint!

[@gregorywiederecht]

The Wicked section explained something I never understood. Forbidden Broadway did a number spoofing Wicked and the Tonys race, and I never quite got it, because I didn't understand why Kristin and Idina were spoofed as being frenemies (They seemed to genuinely like each other!). I had no idea they were being pitted against each other in the press. But that's Forbidden Broadway for you: serving as a snapshot of a given moment in Broadway time.

[@camara1194]

I don’t know how i never saw this. I’m truly happy and exciting to hear that this was made. She is absolutely fantastic and she’s so talented. I love her so much. She’s fantastic. I’m glad she’s getting this and finally getting the recognition she deserves. This is amazing. I love that this is making my quarantine a huge highlight (I have co vid). Thank you so so much.

[@gstone8255]

My one of my Favorite actress ever 😍

[@stephenfindlaythedancingba8515]

Once again, you hit it out of the park. Wonderful work!

[@kazza6078]

Ahhh another episode AND an inside interview yayyy!!

[@gstone8255]

I LOVE Idina ❤

[@zbotello1439]

These videos are amazing. I enjoy them a lot 👏 very well done

[@ThexImperfectionist]

It's so funny to hear Paul say that Idina struggled to find a place for her skillset on Broadway, when now 20 years of women with similar skillsets have followed in her footsteps in this star-making role she originated. The legacy of that dynasty of both Elphabas and Glindas is truly staggering

[@VanessaDMusic]

Love her so so much

[@CarlyBarley333]

My mom and I saw her tour! It was amazing!! We also saw If/Then, it was good but somewhat confusing

[@BrianZick]

Incredible as always!

[@thechickapedia1175]

I saw her at Foxwoods in 2017. I got the tix from a friend and I was not disappointed. Shes amazing

[@Robbleheads]

Lol that’s me in the Carnegie Hall NYT photo at 23:15!! 😂😍

[@StagedRight]

So cool!!

[@kazza6078]

Another great video! Thank you!

[@millangullehag4138]

Thank you for this video. Love her so much.

[@davisneves]

I have her old album… best song is Still I Can’t Be Still 💖💖💖

[@jessical4866]

Really surprised by the number of comments here lauding Idina as someone who was made for the stage or perfect as a singer and actress, when the video is pretty clear she wasn’t. She’s influential and groundbreaking, but insisting this was just a matter of time for her is erasing the difficulties and realities of her situation. Idina is not perfect or the best Broadway star or anything, but she managed to make an incredible career for herself anyways.

[@ciaransammon]

Love Idina!! Always felt so bad for Stephanie over how the whole ‘Wicked’ thing played out. Glad she eventually got her Tony. ❤️ (And Kristin & Idina were majorly adversarial as that run continued)

[@benschaeffer8102]

Idina is in a class ALL ON HER OWN. You have to love her because she's SO amazingly talented, BUT, she has a tough, gritty, enduring character that makes her COMPLETELY appealing. She IS a LOT like Streisand I guess, BUT, honestly, I find Idina MORE interesting than Streisand. Idina has an "edge" to her that isn't common in a lot of Theater performers. I agree with Wontorek though: she's still going to surprise us and do more "big" things. However, she's UTTERLY FABULOUS! I think she's also been VERY smart throughout the course of her career.

[@alexy2050]

Loved the video! More people need to subscribe

[@StagedRight]

Thanks! I've been lax on asking people this but will probably "campaign" soon. In the meantime, if you can, please spread the word! xo

[@oliviapete]

Idk how she does it. If I had to hear “let it go” basically everyday, even if I was the singer and got the pay she did, it would drive me absolutely insane. I guess you’d get somewhat used to hearing/singing the same songs regularly from performing on Broadway, but Frozen probably pushed some tolerance limits because I’m sure that song follows her everywhere to this day. Also I believe Incredibles 2 is the highest grossing animated film now

[@highbaritone]

Thank you again for your posts.

[@emmasmit2073]

For better or worse, I think you GOTS to do ALW soon - his influence is far reaching, and is helping MT make headlines even during a pandemic.

[@Enr227]

Phew. Laurie Anderson casts a dark cloud over anything she takes on. Idina is outstanding

[@BTURNER1961]

The next reincarnation, the next big move of exploration will be as an actress in a straight drama. Someone is going to cast her in a dramatic play or movie - something with no hint of her unmistakable vibrato.

[@huntermcneal1827]

Yooo John Travolta is a menace😂😂😂😂😂

[@lorelihilgers1275]

Cool

[@bekahmoon9739]

do an episode on Sutton Foster!!!

[@prestonnorris9822]

💜💙💜🤗

[@folklore_of_beth]

I hate when people cherry-pick moments from Glee and criticize them. Way to pick a heartfelt moment when the characters were paying tribute to their friend in a wheelchair and respond with “What the hell is this?”

[@StagedRight]

Hi Beth. That moment has not aged well. It should never have been done in the first place. It is wildly condescending to the disabled community and people in wheelchairs from an ableist perspective. Do some research in the New Year! Cheers!

[@folklore_of_beth]

@@StagedRight How? They spent the week in wheelchairs so they could at least have a glimpse into what it feels like for him. That’s not condescending. You’re just looking for problems in the name of being “progressive”. And you’re not even disabled, so who are you to say what others find insulting. So many people think they need to speak up for others and get it wrong. THAT’S condescending. Maybe you can be more open to other people trying to nice and gain insight in the new year.

[@StagedRight]

@@folklore_of_bethDo a google search, Beth. You're right on KZbin, check out some modern perspectives from the disabled community and people in wheelchairs. Watch the documentary "Love, Scott". Just because I am not a person in a wheelchair does mean I cannot decipher what is condescending and disrespectful to another community. That's actual empathy, not non-disabled actors playing a scene in reverence to a disabled character played by a non-disabled actor. The show portrays Artie as a character with a disability rather a character in a wheelchair. It's a distinction with a difference. Obviously you enjoy the show and it means a lot to you. Great. But be aware that there are many elements of the show that have not aged well. If you are triggered by such an innocuous reference that are talked about Idina Menzel, this channel might not be for you.

[@jasonkingsley9134]

Don’t forget the upcoming Frozen 3 coming next year.

[@a.b3748]

👍👍

[@brookemartin6101]

I was under the impression that Idina Won the Tony Award for her performance in Rent.

[@StagedRight]

Nope. X

[@miklos.]

Adele Dazeem

[@NairAthul]

Now let's talk about Chenoweths career bc I think she's really fallen short of what everyone expected

[@StagedRight]

I definitely agree she hasn't had the trajectory some anticipated. I know Ben Brantley really put her on that Future of Broadway pedestal. But, frankly, the trajectory of most Broadway "stars" is moving to film and television. And Kristin has said once she did make that move to film and TV, the Broadway community viewed her differently. I think "Wicked" really did show off all she could do vocally and, like Paul said, her being this appealing blonde comedienne who could also do drama really made people fall in love with her. I also think the entertainment industry is still pretty crap in knowing what to do with women who've been in the industry after a certain point. I'll be honest that I haven't followed Kristin's career that closely. But I do give her props for "working it" and keeping busy with her concert work and keeping active in the theatre and TV world. Maybe she'll pop up in a future episode...

[@nikibronson133]

Why are we calling it a 20 year career when she’s been in the industry for 30 years

[@StagedRight]

If we’re really gonna split hairs (including her wedding/bat Mitzvah days), fine. I do mention *I’ve* been following her career for 20 years (in 2021). Most have only been aware of her for the better part of 26 years and, as I’ve tried to make clear in this video, she entered ‘Rent’ and Broadway with no goal of actually being a theatre star. Those wedding and bat mitzvah days definitely helped shape her as a performer, but it’s not the thing she is boasting about in her bio.

[@nikibronson133]

@@StagedRight Oh no I wasn’t counting those I was counting from her first I guess professional job because I mean technically her career started when she did the bar mitzvah stuff and she moved up but I was counting from 24 or 25 Which is when I thought she debuted in rent

[@nikibronson133]

@@StagedRight So she’s 51 now so I thought that would be almost 30 years

[@nikibronson133]

@@StagedRight what an incredible career to have no goal of being that theater star but just ended up becoming one. It’s like destiny Or fate in a way. But most importantly a lot of hard work. And here I am I don’t even know how to get into an audition room itself. Any advice? Anyways thank you for your channel

[@chronotope-perfume]

Ummmm there’s a gaping hole in this video and analysis where The Gays™ should be. Love how said you outed yourself as a stan, and it makes sense to me completely…but I’m gay. And I’ve got absolutely no clue if you’re gay or not; this is the first video of yours I’ve watched. (It was great also, so thanks for it & know that this isn’t a critique so much as an addendum.) However, str8s often don’t pick up on that sort of hidden rhetorical messaging, and sometimes they need a translation to fully understand, so here it is: it’s not just that her characters persevere against all odds. It’s that she was introduced to the world in an explicitly queer role in a musical that makes a point to document the way the AIDS crisis was being actively mismanaged in the US. And the story arcs that her other two biggest roles follow also parallel queer lives, with each featuring a show-stopping identity-defining number that can be (and often have been) read as coming out songs-which is to say, gay anthems. When Elpheba’s no longer playing by the rules of someone else’s game, and if that’s love, it comes at much too high a cost, what she’s rejecting is hetero life. It’s too late to go back to sleep, now that she’s realized she’s queer, then it’s time to close her eyes and leap…out of the closet. She’ll try defying gravity-being gay in a world that, when the musical was released, still stood by and watched as we continued to die in droves of a disease that had been killing us off since the 80s-because as somebody recently told her, everyone deserves the chance to fly, or love who she wants regardless of the risks because, as she’s communicated, the alternative is just too pricey even if this way comes with the risk of effin’ literal death. Anyway, nobody is ever gonna bring HEEEEERRRRR DOWWWW(look at her she’s wicked, get her! I hope you’re happy! So we’ve got to bring her down)OWOWOWOWNNNNNNNN! (See also: Stacy Wolf’s article “‘Defying Gravity’: Queer Conventions in the Musical ‘Wicked’.) Elsa, then, is somehow even GAYER than Elpheba, primarily because she’s coded as far more explicitly femme (aka: is a bottom-or, if you’re into reaching, a trans woman), and “Let It Go” can otherwise be served against the same analysis I just put Defying Gravity through and more or less hit all the same beats. Blah blah blah, Idina’s also always been vocally supportive of The Gays, and recently (in the present moment, 2 years after you posted this) she performed with Charlene in the wee nighttime hours. TL;DR: her star power is of a particular type. She’s very specifically a gay icon, and gays back our icons even when they’re stuck in creative ruts here and there making subpar work. So her staying power has been in no small way due to The Gays™ who’ve supported her even during the times when she’s occasionally been out of the spotlight. Also: to the gays, particularly those of his own generation, John Travolta is a notoriously closeted member of The Community™ SO even the Adele Dazeem moment was in a large way as big as it was because the gays were forcibly flung directly into a whole entire moment. That’s all great video thanks!

[@zayydelmar]

Off topic, It’s crazy that mark platt and david stone are not related

[@cdd4248]

Okay, I don't know where I have been...but, I had no idea John Travolta screwed up her name. I am incredulous...Was he on drugs? Good Lord, how does that happen?

[@audramcdonaldapologist3676]

He explained how he screwed up her name and I still have no idea how he could have messed up 😂

[@christinaphipps1784]

Narrator you forgot to tell Frozen Idina Menzel was Elsa and frozen 2 and Cinderella Idina played Vivian wicked stepmother with her two costars Cabella Camillo and minnie driver

[@StagedRight]

Frozen 2 is shown while Paul reviews her career and this episode predates Cinderella. Cheers!

[@Laeiryn]

(stashes Idina albums from the 90s) what's that then? my very own planet z?

[@Gfdcnjjyfx]

Wait do you also like Charli xcx????

[@StagedRight]

I literally only know/love 'I Love It' so...

[@Gfdcnjjyfx]

@@StagedRightWhat are your favorite idina songs? my favorites are her live version of “I stand” (video version with the candles and piano) and “my own worst enemy”

[@Gfdcnjjyfx]

I listened to her when I was a kid and went around calling myself a “fanzel”

[@passiveaggressive6175]

OMG she’s Lea Michelle’s twin. Is that a good thing?lol😂

[@markusschultz7720]

She did even play her mother on GLEE,... right? :-D

[@Sdority905]

@@markusschultz7720 yes she did. They did a duet of Lady Gaga's "Poker Face"

[@lysan4878]

I think the many Broadway critics and society didn’t love and respect her because she made it clear that she doesn’t love Broadway and acting. She only does Broadway because she couldn’t make it as a pop artist. So it’s disrespectful to all the people that have a passion for musical theatre when she seems unappreciative to all the opportunities and accolades that have been given to her.

[@StagedRight]

Such a weird take. Sources?

[@jamescurran6277]

Why doesn't she care about migrant children anymore?