Since bursting onto the pop-culture landscape from Fox’s hit show Glee over a decade ago, Emmy and Golden Globe winner Darren Criss has embodied the kind of kaleidoscopic artistry that’s entirely uninhibited by form or genre. The multi-hyphenates illustrious career spans television, film, music and stage.
Kicking off the Christmas season Criss will perform songs from his recent holiday album, A Very Darren Crissmas. His first ever full length project includes a wildly eclectic collection of songs from big band Christmas classics to novelty tunes to modern-day folk-pop ballads. Made with Ron Fair, multi-Grammy nominee and producer of numerous GRAMMY-winning hits, A Very Darren Crissmas showcases his artistry delivering both thrillingly unpredictable moments and a timeless sense of Christmas magic.
Criss is widely known for 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.
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 also recently seen starring in Netflix’s hit series Hollywood, for which he also served as executive producer.
Presented by Count Basie Center for the Arts
