Since bursting onto the pop-culture landscape over a decade ago, Darren Criss has embodied the kind of kaleidoscopic artistry that’s entirely uninhibited by form or genre. For this concert, Darren will be performing a playlist of songs featured throughout his wildly eclectic career as both a songwriter and performer.
Before Darren Criss exploded into the internet’s subculture as both an actor and songwriter for the YouTube viral hit A Very Potter Musical in 2009, he had made a small name for himself playing unique interpretations of popular songs he’d perform at cafes and bars in his hometown of San Francisco. Little did he know that the same knack for covering tunes would serve him well in 2010, when he was cast on FOX’s massively successful musical series Glee, from which many of his performances of popular songs would lead to several Billboard-topping records. In 2015 his songwriting also landed an Emmy nomination for Best Original Music and Lyrics, from penning the song “This Time” for the show’s series finale.
Criss has continued to write and produce music extensively through the years, whether for his own releases as an artist or as a songwriter for theater, film & television. In 2019 Criss created, executive produced, starred in, and provided all the original songs for his short-form musical comedy series Royalties, and earlier this year provided the music & lyrics for the opening number of the 2022 Tony Awards: Act One. As an artist, he most recently delivered a genre-diverse collection of “character-driven” singles as part of his 2021 solo EP titled “Masquerade” (BMG) , and in the same year, released a full-length Christmas album titled- aptly- A Very Darren Crissmas (Decca).
As an actor, Criss is a veteran of the stage whose Broadway credits include the titular role of Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2015), How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying (2012), and the most recent 2022 revival of David Mamet’s seminal play American Buffalo alongside Laurence Fishburne and Sam Rockwell. In 2018 his work in Ryan Murphy’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story received wide critical acclaim, earning him a Primetime Emmy, Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, and Critics’ Choice Award. He was most recently seen starring in Netflix’s hit series Hollywood, for which he also served as executive producer.
