Idina Menzel on Super Bowl national anthem, Valley plans
Idina Menzel is no stranger to singing the national anthem at high-profile sporting events. She just did it, in fact, at the Major League Baseball All-Star Game this past July. And this is what she learned: There’s a lot of testosterone on that field, especially when you’re standing next to Derek Jeter.
We caught up with the Tony Award-winning actress a week before the Super Bowl to talk about the anthem, Whitney Houston and why she says she’s pulling for the Seahawks.
Question: How did it feel to be asked to sing the national anthem at the Super Bowl?
Answer: Oh God (laughs). It felt incredible. I’ve always had a really fond place in my heart for, specifically, the Whitney Houston national anthem. Ever since I was a little kid, I always remembered that and how beautiful it was and kind of dreamt that one day I could be at the point in my career where I’d be asked to do that.
Question: How did it feel to be asked to sing the national anthem at the Super Bowl?
Answer: Oh God (laughs). It felt incredible. I’ve always had a really fond place in my heart for, specifically, the Whitney Houston national anthem. Ever since I was a little kid, I always remembered that and how beautiful it was and kind of dreamt that one day I could be at the point in my career where I’d be asked to do that.
Q: You said nerve-wracking. Sometimes it seems as though people are lying in wait for something to go wrong with the national anthem.
A: I know. Yeah. But that’s just because it’s a song everyone knows. You can’t get away with anything. But it is what it is. I’m a performer. I can do five to eight shows a week and do a great show or something can happen on the live stage. It’s what makes it exciting and exhilarating for me. It keeps me in the moment. In life, it’s so hard to stay in the moment and that’s the one time in my life when I have to be truly present, when I’m performing.
Q: You’ve obviously done this before at other events. Do you have a favorite national anthem experience?
A: Yeah. Just recently, I did it at the baseball All-Stars, and Jeter was standing right there (laughs). So that was a big deal. It was a beautiful afternoon. They were honoring all the teachers and I sang a Bob Dylan song and then I sang the anthem. That was really nice. It’s funny, I think the thing you underestimate when you get up there is how much testosterone is coming at you when you’re standing up there in the middle of the field and all those guys are in their uniforms. They’re huge and they’re all standing there listening to you. Especially when Jeter was right there. I was like “I can’t screw this up in front of Jeter.” (laughs)
One other time I did it was the year the Giants beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl. I sang it at the last game of the season in New York, and that was a big thing for me because I’m a New Yorker and a Giants fan. I brought my dad. The other great thing about it is when you get to rehearse, you come into an open, empty field and I usually bring my dad with me. I don’t know what will happen at the Super Bowl. But at one of the games, my dad was actually throwing a ball in the middle of the field with a friend. It’s that kind of experience that I know he appreciates so much. He brought me up on football.
Q: So your dad will be there at the game?
A: Yeah. And my mom and my sister. But my dad’s the one that taught me about football. Who knows? Maybe someone will be there and throw him a ball on an empty field. Or maybe not. Maybe some bodyguards will come and whisk us away.
Q: So you said you’re a Giants fan?
A: Yeah, I’m a Giants fan, although my dad likes to bet on the games a lot. So I grew up a Jets fan and a Giants fan and everyone was like “What is that!?” Then I realized one year that my dad was betting on the games. So it was more like who covered the spread. It wasn’t necessarily being a fan of one of the teams. It was more about who was going to do better that weekend. So I have an affinity for both teams and that’s not that cool, but then I realized that’s because I’m the daughter of a betting man.
Q: So who’s he betting on to win this game?
A: I don’t know. I haven’t even talked to him about it yet. But I think we’ll probably root for Seattle because, you know, the Patriots are a nemesis of ours. They’re always in the way for us.
Q: So when do you get into Phoenix?
A: Wednesday night.
Q: Are there specific things you plan on doing while you’re here?
A: I’m usually doing eight shows a week so this is kind of a nice vacation. I’m going to relax and sleep in and spend some time with my family and enjoy the weather. That’s it.
Q: You’re also here this coming summer on your tour. What can fans expect?
A: I’m still contemplating and creating and thinking about what it is exactly that I want to do. I know that obviously there will be songs that they are familiar with from shows that I’ve been in and movies that have big Oscar-winning songs, but also songs that I just really love to sing. This year has been a big year for me so the venues are going to get a little bit bigger than before. And the challenge for me is to keep the intimacy as much as possible. It’s really important to me that no matter how big the venues get, the audience still leaves having gotten their little window into my soul. I try to keep the stage as much like my living room as possible. I peel off the layers and talk about why these songs have been important in my life. The artists I’ve always loved in concert are the ones that tell stories and connect the music to their lives so that you leave understanding a little bit more of who they are as a real person.
Q: Are there particular songs you look forward to singing?
A: Yeah. I guess. It’s funny, “Defying Gravity” used to be the big song for me. From “Wicked.” I used to say I never had a hit song on the radio but I could stick the mike out to the audience and they could sing every word to that, so that’s like a hit song. But now I’m so lucky to have “Let It Go” that I’m excited, actually, to see how that unfolds and what it brings to the night.