KRISTIN CHENOWETH

This week’s new entertainment releases include a new album of rootsy rock from John Mellencamp, the return of puppet friends from “Fraggle Rock” and a virtual Sundance Film Festival where all the selections can be streamed.

It's never easy to define a year in pop culture, especially in a rollercoaster year like 2021, when we were up and down again, and again, and again.

President Joe Biden has helped light the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse near the White House.

Growing up in Chicago, Broadway star Brittney Mack faithfully watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV after fulfilling her own parade duties.

The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will return to its pre-pandemic form this year, with its route restored through Manhattan, high-flying helium balloons once again pulled by handlers and crowds welcomed back to cheer them on.

Josh Bryant, Kristin Chenoweth Josh Bryant and Kristin Chenoweth attend "Stars In The House" celebrating $1M raised for the Actors Fund at Improv Asylum on June 30, 2021 in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images, File)NEW YORK CITY — Actress and singer Kristin Chenoweth on Friday announced that she said yes to a marriage proposal from her boyfriend, musician Josh Bryant. >> Read more trending news“Guess you’re stuck with me now,” she wrote in a Twitter post announcing their engagement. pic.twitter.com/RhNI6dQg3H — Kristin Chenoweth (@KChenoweth) October 29, 2021Bryant proposed to Chenoweth on the rooftop of New York City’s Rainbow Room on Wednesday, People reported. Now I love TikTok with his help.”©2021 Cox Media Group

Theater Broadway Returns Actress Kristin Chenoweth gives the curtain speech on the stage of "Wicked" at the Gershwin Theatre Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, in New York. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle) (Craig Ruttle)NEW YORK — (AP) — Many of Broadway's biggest lights — including Kristin Chenoweth, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Chita Rivera and Idina Menzel — will make appearances at Sunday's TV celebration of Broadway’s return. The two-hour special on CBS — hosted by Leslie Odom Jr. — will follow the Tony Awards telecast, which will be hosted by Audra McDonald during a two-hour live event also from the Winter Garden Theatre. The bulk of the Tonys — the acting, directing and technical ones — will only be accessible to Paramount+ customers. Odom’s special will cap the night with awards for the three top awards: best play, best play revival and best musical.

Many of Broadway’s biggest lights — including Kristin Chenoweth, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Chita Rivera and Idina Menzel — will make appearances at Sunday’s TV celebration of Broadway’s return.

APTOPIX Theater Broadway Returns Actress Kristin Chenoweth gives the curtain speech on the stage of "Wicked" at the Gershwin Theatre Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, in New York. Taymor, the director and costume-designer of “The Lion King,” congratulated her audience for the courage and enthusiasm to lead the way. Andrew Cuomo picked Sept. 14 for when Broadway could begin welcoming back audiences at full capacity. You get to wear masks tonight.”Before the shows, Miranda, Taymor and "Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz stressed that Broadway has implemented safety protocols that make cramming strangers into theaters as safe as it can be. And I’m thrilled ‘Hamilton’ was was available on a screen in a time when we couldn’t go to a theater.

Kristin Chenoweth, Julie Taymor and Lin-Manuel Miranda welcomed back boisterous audiences to “Wicked,” “The Lion King” and “Hamilton” for the first time since the start of the pandemic, marking Tuesday as the unofficial return of Broadway.

Gregory Maguire's 1995 novel "Wicked" gave a backstory to one of the most haunting figures from L. Frank Baum's "Wizard of Oz" – and inspired a show that has become a beacon for anyone who doesn't fit a conventional mold.

With Katie Holmes and Lil’ Kim on his front row and singer Marina on the mic high above his runway, Christian Siriano helped kicked off New York Fashion Week Tuesday night.

Some of Broadway’s biggest stars are joining together to pay tribute to the late three-time Tony nominated actor Rebecca Luker and raise money to fight Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Michael Kors loves fashion, but he also loves the Broadway theater.

FILE - Rebecca Luker, left, and her husband Danny Burstein arrive at the 73rd annual Tony Awards in New York on June 9, 2019. Luker, 59, a three-time Tony nominated actor who starred in some of the biggest Broadway hits of the past three decades, died Wednesday, Dec. 23, 2020, said Sarah Fargo, her agent. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)LOS ANGELES – Soprano Rebecca Luker, a three-time Tony nominated actor who starred in some of the biggest Broadway hits of the past three decades, died Wednesday. She was 59Her death was announced by her husband, veteran Broadway actor Danny Burstein, who said in a statement “our family is devastated. Luker made her Broadway debut in 1988 in “The Phantom of the Opera” first as an understudy to Sarah Brightman and then playing Christine opposite the legendary Michael Crawford.

(AP Photo)LOS ANGELES – Yes, 2020 may seem like a complete fail with all the constant bad news and tragic moments. It’s been filled with gloom and doom(scrolling), but some celebrities and those inspired by them have tried to brighten a bleak year. He reassigned his 10 seamstresses in New York to produce thousands daily for health care workers on the frontlines. The singer and husband Emilio Estefan's restaurant Estefan Kitchen served up homemade meals for health care workers in Miami. The challenge coordinated offers by celebrities and athletes to raise funds to feed those in need during the pandemic.

The Robert Zemeckis adaptation of “Roald Dahl’s The Witches” has found a new home on HBO Max this month just in time for Halloween. Warner Bros. said Friday that “The Witches” will debut on the subscription streaming service, owned by parent company WarnerMedia, on Oct. 22. Dahl’s 1983 novel about an orphaned boy who discovers a coven of witches that hate children was previously adapted for the big screen in 1990 by director Nicolas Roeg. It starred Angelica Huston, Mai Zetterling and Rowan Atkinson and was a box office flop, despite its critical acclaim. This new version has actor Jahzir Bruno playing the boy who must try to stop the witches from turning the world's children into mice.

Kristin Chenoweth to star in Broadway revival Emmy winner, Kristin Chenoweth stars in a Broadway revival of "On The 20th Century" full of Hollywood glamour. And Sponge Bob is coming ashore in a new movie. Suzanne Marques has your Eye on Entertainment.