Search found 350 matches for DarrenCriss

Emmys wrote:
American Tragedy

May 15, 2018

“One of the great goals in my career is to keep things as versatile as possible and to confuse and to throw people off,” he says. “So, I like it when you have a room full of Sundance people, you know, music folks, music supervisors, filmmakers that are like, ‘Wait, what? He’s a songwriter?’ That really excites me. The same way that, when I was mostly playing music and booked an acting gig, people would be like, ‘What? You’re an actor?’”

Unlike his famous costars, who have toplined studio movies (Ramírez), won an Oscar (Cruz) and enjoyed huge musical success (Martin), Criss has been waiting for his breakout.

Spending time with the San Francisco native, one can easily spot some similarities with Cunanan — a man who, with a slightly different nudge to his trajectory, might have become a brash social-media personality. Criss oozes charm and willingness to entertain. During this interview, he quickly turns the tables and pretends he is the one asking the questions, complete with an exaggerated news-anchor voice.

It’s all part of what Criss brings to the table, according to Murphy, be it for a role or an everyday interaction. “He’s a great performer and kind of a showman,” Murphy says.

Criss, who hasn’t seen the final three episodes at this point, then drops the façade and admits he is nervous about how his performance will be received. The series has just begun airing. Appropriately, Criss is wearing a maroon sweater emblazoned with cheerleaders spelling out the word H-E-L-P. “I just hope to be cool enough to have a movie at Sundance someday,” he says.

Considering that such a prospect seems well within the realm of possibility, it’s unclear if he’s joking or feeling a genuine twinge of career apprehension.

“I think Darren has a strange mix of charm and vulnerability as well as danger,” says Tom Rob Smith, the British novelist who wrote all nine hours of Versace. “And that, I think, was the key to Cunanan.”

In March 2015, the final season of Glee had recently wrapped and Murphy was in preproduction on The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story. But he was already thinking ahead when he ran into Criss on the New Orleans set of Scream Queens. Criss was traveling with Swier, who directs and produces promotional content and campaigns for Fox series, including Murphy's Scream Queens.

Criss, about to star in Hedwig and the Angry Inch on Broadway, was looking to line up his next gig. He pitched himself to Murphy as “a wily bellhop to come in and cause shenanigans around the hotel” for American Horror Story. Murphy interrupted the pitch with a dismissive “No” — but only because he had a better idea.

“He said, ‘We’re doing this anthology, American Crime Story, and we’re thinking about the Andrew Cunanan story. How much do you know about him?’” Criss recalls. “I didn’t know anything.”

He only vaguely remembered Cunanan because they shared a half-Filipino ancestry. But other than that, he could only recall that Cunanan had killed Versace — nothing about the four other victims or the high-profile manhunt or his suicide as the authorities closed in, eight days after his shooting of Versace on the steps of his palatial Miami home. Nevertheless, he felt excited by the prospect of reteaming with Murphy.

“'You’re the one with the keys to this castle, so I’ll wait by the phone until you’re ready to go,’” he told Murphy. “It took three years.”

That’s because a Hurricane Katrina–focused tale was poised to follow O.J. as the second American Crime Story outing. But that series kept hitting script snags and became too sprawling, even for an FX-backed anthology series. “Ultimately, I decided this is not the right way to tell the story. The story is too big,” Murphy says of shelving the Katrina project. “The episodes became so expensive that we could not produce them.”

Just as that decision was being made, Smith delivered three Versace scripts — based on Maureen Orth’s 1999 book, Vulgar Favors: Andrew Cunanan, Gianni Versace and the Largest Failed Manhunt in U.S. History — that blew Murphy away. In many ways, they offered “something that was the opposite of O.J.,” he says.

With Cunanan, he got just that — a killer unknown to the general public until he took down a world-famous fashion designer. By contrast, Simpson was already one of the most recognizable names and faces in the world before he was acquitted of murdering his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ron Goldman in the so-called trial of the century.

Aptly, Cunanan proved to be a Zelig-type character in the southern California gay community. Everyone seemed to have crossed paths with him or knew someone who had.

“I also had a visceral personal connection to that Cunanan story when it was happening,” Murphy says. “I was living in Los Angeles then, and I had friends who knew him. So, there was a personal thing there for me with that story.”

By the end of 2016, FX was thrilled by the scripts coming in, so it committed to shooting Versace in 2017. And Murphy could already count on Criss, who, he says, was “the only person in the world who could play Andrew Cunanan effectively.”

Coincidentally, Criss was once again starring in Hedwig — this time in San Francisco — when he saw an online news story that Versace was a go, instead of Katrina. He texted Murphy immediately to make sure their conversation in New Orleans still held true.

“He was a man of his word,” Criss says. “I ran out of words to express my thanks for his belief in me. If he hadn’t gone through with this, that would’ve been fine — I wouldn’t have held it against him. But he really did what he said he was going to do. And so here we are.”

Murphy didn’t exactly meet resistance when he first floated Criss’s name. But, initially, there were some blank stares. However, the über-producer was emphatic. “If Darren didn’t play this part, then we weren’t going to make it,” he says. “When you lead with that kind of passion to a network or a studio or other producers, they sit up a little straighter, and they’re like, ‘Oh, okay.’”

Coming in, Criss wasn’t a name actor like Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr., who’d portrayed Simpson. Playing in Criss’s favor was his ethnicity — half Filipino from his mother’s side (unlike Cunanan, whose father hailed from Manila). Hollywood has taken a PR drubbing for casting white actors and actresses in roles that called for Asians (think Scarlett Johansson in Ghost in the Shell). No one involved with Versace wanted to court the inevitable Care2 petition.

“I thought it was completely necessary [to cast a Filipino actor],” Murphy says. “I didn’t want to whitewash that part. I had been obsessed with the Cunanan and Versace story for years and years and years. And I remember, when I first cast Darren on Glee back in 2010, just filing it in the back of my head. Like, ‘Well, there’s your Cunanan.’”

More important, he was convinced that Criss could pull off the gravitas of a killer.

“Darren had been typecast before as this good-time Charlie song-and- dance guy,” Murphy adds. “But I always thought, having seen him do Hedwig on Broadway, that there was a darkness in Darren that I knew he was wanting to show. As somebody who supervised the editing of all of the episodes, it was almost always Darren’s first take that we used. He was just plugged into the experience of ‘I’m going to go for it.’”

For the rest of the story, pick up a copy of emmy magazine, on newsstands now, or here .

Deadline wrote:
‘The Assassination Of Gianni Versace’s Darren Criss Searches For Humanity In Killer Andrew Cunanan


Aaron Jay Young


May 16, 2018

Perhaps surprisingly, preparing for the role of notorious real-life Gianni Versace killer Andrew Cunanan in FX’s The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story wasn’t such a terrifying leap for Darren Criss, despite his upbeat musical theater background. Formerly best known for his work on Ryan Murphy’s Glee, Criss embraced this new, dark role, which not only brought him back into the Murphy fold, but gave him the chance to showcase his impressive acting chops.

“Are you kidding me? This is the role of a lifetime,” Criss says of the challenge. “People wait their entire careers for something this juicy to come along. I’m thrilled to be here.”

Criss’s talents are undeniably far-reaching; he sings, dances, composes, writes scripts and plays piano, guitar, harmonica, mandolin and violin. He’s also passionate about literature, and, it seems, something of a poetic romantic, as he recalls Anne Bancroft talking about the sound of her husband Mel Brooks coming home. “I want to get this right,” he says, visibly concentrating. “Bancroft said, ‘I get excited when I hear his key in the door because I think, Oh, now the party’s going to start.’ Can you imagine feeling that way about someone? I even put it in a song I wrote.”

Cunanan was incredibly astute, clever and crafty. A fabulist, he reportedly stayed awake for days, teaching himself about opera and fashion, and building entirely new backstories for himself. He’d tailor himself to what he believed people wanted to hear, and craft wildly intricate lies to order; a methodology which, to some extent, won him popularity. Friends who grew up with Cunanan and attended the Bishop’s School in a tony part of La Jolla reportedly said that he was a likeable character, voted ‘least likely to be forgotten’ by his senior class.

But while Cunanan was obviously an out-of-control sycophant, Criss managed to find a way to relate to him, however distantly. “I’m totally a people pleaser,” he says. “I’m not really sure why. It could be that I’m a baby brother, or perhaps it could be my Catholic upbringing, but I want to make people happy.”

Perhaps this desire partly motivated Criss’s attraction to musical theater. He studied theater, musicology and Italian at the University of Michigan, and even now will occasionally spontaneously break out into song.


Embodying a bon vivant escort-turned homicidal maniac was not as traumatic as it might seem, Criss says. It was really more about finding those aspects of Cunanan’s character that made him more human. “I didn’t feel like I had to go to this extreme dark place to find Andrew, quite the opposite really. It was important to make him empathetic, someone we could all identify with, [because] otherwise it would’ve been a complete disaster.”

Indeed, it is the humanness he brings to the role that makes it such a success. “I am in no way excusing anything that Andrew Cunanan did,” he adds. “His behavior was absolutely repulsive. But if I was going to pull this off, I had to find a way to make him sympathetic or his character wouldn’t have been interesting at all. We all loved O.J. [Simpson] at one point, didn’t we? Even the worst people have their good moments.”

It’s been posited that Cunanan may have had antisocial personality disorder, meaning he had no real control over a total and complete lack of empathy. “He had a lot of pain in his life,” Criss says. “Yes, he was horrible in many ways, but that’s sad.”

After exploring this tragic story, Criss has found some solace in his beloved music once again with a new side venture. He and his fiance Mia Swier recently opened their own club in the heart of Hollywood, a piano bar called Tramp Stamp Granny’s. It’s a place where friends can gather to drink and sing around the piano, in line with the music festival he also co-founded, Elsie Fest, where Broadway and pop stars meet to sing show tunes.

“I wasn’t your typical theater geek but I love everything that comes with that,” he explains. “I like to think that I’m friends with a wider swath of people, and get along with everyone. But yeah, I was known to belt out songs at cast parties and such.”

Criss’s new business was partly motivated by his love of old-style seedy dive bars. His favorite bar in the world is the Claremont Lounge in the basement of an abandoned hotel in the Poncey-Highland neighborhood of Atlanta. As the city’s oldest and longest running strip club, he loves the place for its diversity. “It’s the only place in the world you’ll see a group of frat boys sitting next to your typical hipsters. And then down from them at the other end of the bar will be a group of drunk businessman drinking whatever they can. Every celebrity working in Atlanta has to stop there.”

During Tramp Stamp Granny’s opening week, Criss was seen taking his place behind the piano almost every night. His energy seems boundless, as he never appears to stop moving and working. “Why would I?” he asks. “I don’t have the luxury that some people have, that people are just offering me roles. And actors are only as good as the parts they get, so I can’t wait around. I can create whatever I want whenever. Whether it’s music, or a new show, or a new drink, that’s what I am going to continue to do for as long as I can, and for as often as I can.”

Experience Nashville wrote:
Q&A with Lea Michele

EN: Ok. So, I am currently ‘marathoning’ The Assassination of Gianni Versace. Are are you a little creeped out with Darren after his performance in the show? Because it was terrifying.

Lea Michele: So, it's really funny. When we first finished Glee, I went off to New Orleans to do Scream Queens he ended up watching me play a psycho killer on that show. Then, Ryan Murphy had him play Andrew Cunanan. So, we both left Glee to play psycho killers, which is hilarious. But Darren was so incredible and you know, what people may not know is that Darren really wanted to play this part -- he approached Ryan (Murphy) about playing it. So not only did he do such an incredible job of playing the role, but he also helped them make this project really happen. I don't know many other people that could've played that character. He was truly incredible. And, if you know Darren, you know he's nothing like that. He's a hippie, laid back. I'm so proud of him. And, if everyone wants to know, yes his body does really look like that. There’s no body double.


EN: Um. Definitely no complaints re: those scenes.

Lea Michele: He posted this picture, which I'm sure you have seen, of him in the little like, you know, um, I think it was like orange bikini bottoms he posted on Instagram? But before he posted it, he sent me the photo and he was, “hey, do you think this is like, bad for me to post?” I was like, “why are you sending this to me, I don’t want to see that!” I'm sure that there's a 100 people, a million people that want to see it. But, I was like; "this is really weird for me to say because you're my brother. But you definitely need to post that." He posted it in the world went crazy.

EN: Yeah. The world appreciates your advice in this matter.

Lea Michele: Yeah, I mean that's the thing about Darren and I. I think in order to do tours together, you have to be friends, and you have to have stories and experiences. You know, Darren and I have spent holidays together with our families. We've done New Year's Eve together. So, those are the things, those are the moments, those are the stories that we want to share and what we want to talk to our fans about. And so I think that these little glimpses into who we are and who we are as friends. It is definitely going to be very unique and very personal.

EN: As a fan, the music is obviously a huge part of the experience, but what really makes a show stand out to me is the banter and the engagement with the audience between sets.

-

Guilherme Siqueira & Darren Criss

Deadline wrote:
21st Century Fox Falls Short Of Earnings Expectations, As Broadcast TV Revenue Plummets

May 9, 2018

UPDATED with details from the investor call: 21st Century Fox fell short of Wall Street’s earnings expectations for its third quarter, as broadcast television and film units reported declines from a year ago.

[ . . . ]

Fox’s cable business was a bright spot, with operating income of $1.68 billion for the quarter, up 16% from a year ago. FX network drama The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story and the Donald Glover comedy Atlanta were two shows Murdoch identified as performing well.

“Our cable segment delivered its highest earnings ever in our fiscal third quarter, propelled by sustained double-digit gains in domestic affiliate revenues,” said Executive Chairmen Rupert and Lachlan Murdoch. “Creatively, we are firing on all cylinders. Our stand-out programming continues to drive up the value of our video brands to distributors, as well as build our direct relationship with consumers, as we’re demonstrating with the successful inaugural season of Indian Premiere League on STAR Sports and Hotstar platforms.”

Fox reported its results as news accounts suggest its film and television assets may be the object of a bidding war. The company’s board approved Disney’s $52.4 billion all-stock offer for significant parts of the compan, including its film and television studios, cable channels National Geographic and FX, and its regional sports networks.

Disney chairman Bob Iger expressed confidence that the deal would close in a call yesterday to discuss its financial results with investors. However, Comcast may scramble those plans. The cable operator is making preparations for a hostile bid for the Fox assets and has been lining up finances to make an all-cash offer, sources say.

Comcast is said to be awaiting the outcome of the Justice Department’s antitrust suit seeking to block the proposed merger of AT&T and Time Warner.

21. We love bedazzled blazers that also happen to be on theme, Darren Criss.

Anonymous wrote:What other glee stars have been to the met gala? Darren went twice during glee so there must've been some others of the main cast at that time ?

dcriss-archive wrote:dcriss-archive:

We were just talking about this yesterday - I believe the Glee stars who have been to the met gala are Lea, Darren, and Dianna.
Google advises Lea went in 2011, 2012, and 2014, Darren in 2012, 2013, and now 2018, and it looks like Dianna went four times (2012, 2014, 2015 and last year? Not sure).

Updating this:
Matthew Morrison also went in 2011, 12, 13 and 15 and Cory went in 2012.

Ryan Murphy


Ryan Murphy is an Emmy, Golden Globe and Peabody Award-winning screenwriter, producer and director. He created the groundbreaking television drama Nip/Tuck, which won the Golden Globe for Best Television Series in 2005 and ran for six seasons. He also created the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning series Glee, Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning anthology series American Horror Story and American Crime Story, Emmy-winning anthology series FEUD, Scream Queens and 9-1-1. His upcoming FX series Pose will make history by featuring the largest transgender series regular cast and the largest LGBTQ cast ever for a scripted series. On stage, he most recently teamed up with David Stone to produce the Broadway revival of The Boys in the Band, starring Jim Parsons, Zachary Quinto, Matt Bomer and Andrew Rannells. Murphy wrote and directed the Golden Globe-nominated film Running with Scissors, starring Annette Bening and Gwyneth Paltrow, and the box office hit Eat, Pray, Love, starring Julia Roberts and Javier Bardem. In 2014, he directed the HBO movie The Normal Heart, which received Emmy and Golden Globe awards including the Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie.

styleandsociety: Variety Studio: Actors on Actors // Day 2 [camera emoji]
#VarietyStudio #ActorsOnActors #Day2 #RedCarpet #Celebration #Awards #JohnLegend #TiffanyHaddish #MandyMoore #DarrenCriss #JasonBateman #FrankieShaw #DebraMessing #SharonStone #DavidHarbour #KyleMaclachlan #SaraGilbert #StyleandSociety

The Pride wrote:
Tramp Stamp Granny’s: Your New Weekend Hangout

April 30, 2018

I can honestly say I’ve never used the words “tramp stamp” and “granny” in the same sentence, so of course I had to check out LA’s newest piano bar, Tramp Stamp Granny’s, to see if it lived up to the name. Located in the heart of Hollywood’s Cahuenga Strip, Tramp Stamp Granny’s ironically took the place of Grandpa Johnson’s Cocktail Club, which closed unexpectedly last year. The love child of co-owners Darren Criss and fiancée Mia Swier, Tramp Stamp Granny’s pays tribute to L.A.’s past with a modern twist.

Long before portraying Toby Phillips in “Little White Lie” and his breakout role as the openly gay Blaine Anderson on Fox’s musical hit “Glee,” Criss played piano at the Grove’s Maggiano’s restaurant to make ends meet. Criss (and his abs) were all over the blogs during the first weekend of Coachella, but during Tramp Stamp Granny’s opening week, Criss himself was a regular on the piano. If you didn’t get a chance to hear him play, don’t worry. Chances are you’ll get the opportunity again. I walked (yes, walked) to the piano bar on a Sunday night, passing well known watering holes like The Room Hollywood, Velvet Margarita, and the Attic along the way. When I got to Tramp Stamp Granny’s and realized I’d have to walk through a red curtain to get inside, I knew I was in for a treat.

The most important part of a piano bar (besides the cocktail list, which I’ll get to later) is the music, and Sunday night’s piano player didn’t disappoint with his impeccable song selection. Known to the bartenders simply as Mike, he performed his rendition of songs like “Wonderwall” by Oasis and Elton John’s classic “Tiny Dancer” – the kinds of songs you’d sing along to even if you’re sober, but definitely when you’re drunk. The acoustics were perfectly balanced. I was pleased at the simple fact that I could easily hold a conversation while still enjoying great music. Mike took a break from his set and suddenly I was listening to Paul Simon’s “You Can Call Me Al” followed immediately by Go West’s classic “King of Wishful Thinking.” The former song got one brave patron out of his seat and on the dancefloor, channeling his inner Chevy Chase. (If you’ve seen the music video, you’ll get it.) Even if you happen to miss the piano player, the music overall is just what you’d want from a place like Tramp Stamp Granny’s: A throwback to New York-style sing-along hubs like “Rose’s Turn” and “Pieces.”

Tramp Stamp Granny’s is a small space with a lot to take in. The piano is the main attraction and the fact that you can sit right around it only adds to the sense of intimacy. From the brass fixtures to the hardwood, chevron-printed floors and the contemporary art hung tastefully on the walls, each detail feels carefully thought out. Whether you’re lounging in the red velvet chairs or standing by the marble top bar, Tramp Stamp Granny’s is a vibe. It’s a “Great Gatsby” meets “Cocktail” vibe – the kind of vibe I didn’t even realize my soul needed until I walked through that red curtain. It’s a uniquely inviting atmosphere that’s sadly missing from many bars and nightclubs throughout Hollywood.

In addition to great music, Tramp Stamp Granny’s offers a full bar and interesting cocktail list complete with names like Great Rac, Boob Soup, Actress/ Waitress/ Mattress, Pierced Nipple, and their signature, the Tramp. You can order spirit shots like Matcha Vodka, Basil Vodka, Truffle Bourbon, and my favorite, Bacon Bourbon. They’ve got PBR and Pale Ale on tap, and for the non- drinkers, there’s Kombucha on tap (or in my case, diet coke.)  The bartenders are friendly and know how to make a proper drink, which is essential to any bar, especially in Hollywood.

A few minutes before I had to call it a night, Mike came back to the piano and said a few words before he began his second set. He said that when you come to Tramp Stamp Granny’s, you can always expect “…great people, great staff, great family.” Los Angeles is a big city and a bar that makes you feel welcome and at home is priceless. Tramp Stamp Granny’s is just that kind of bar.

ewagmeister: That’s a wrap on @variety’s #ActorsOnActors! Thanks to all the super talented actors (like @mandymooremm & @darrencriss!) for informative, raw, honest conversations at our shoot all weekend long. Airs this June on PBS…stay tuned for talks with @tiffanyhaddish, @johnlegend, @sharonstone, @therealdebramessing, @jessicabiel, @alisonbrie, @michaelbjordan, @issarae & more!

Darren Criss, Mandy Moore and Tiffany Haddish are celebrating at Day 2 of Variety Studio: Actors on Actors presented by Shutterstock on Sunday (April 29) in Los Angeles.

The three stars are all included in the eighth season of the Emmy Award-winning series, featuring exclusive one-on-one conversations between top actors.

The first episode will premiere on PBS SoCal KOCE on June 19 at 7 PM, with the second arriving on June 21 at 7 PM.

Bill Hader, Jason Bateman, Debra Messing, Sharon Stone, Frankie Shaw, Sara Gilbert, John Legend, Kyle MacLachlan and David Harbourwere all in attendance.

the_xmag: The ever dapper @darrencriss celebrated Stephen Schwartz’s 70th birthday with an all-star concert last night. Stay tuned for more shots from our exclusive portrait studio! [camera emoji] @nathanjohnsonny

nathanjohnsonny
: Shot one of my homeboys at Stephen Schwartz’s 70th birthday, put on by @dgfound …some fun other shots to come!! #darrencriss #assassinationofgianniversace #dgf

lauraosnes: Hanging w/ this handsome and happy bunch tonight, honoring #stephenschwartz’s 70th bday!

dgfound: So lucky to have such a glorious cast at our Stephen Schwartz Birthday Concert! We couldn’t have asked for a better group to add to the DGF family!

Variety wrote:
Variety, PBS SoCal Announce Lineup for Eighth Season of ‘Variety Studio: Actors on Actors’

April 18, 2018

Variety and PBS SoCal KOCE have announced the lineup for the eighth season of “Variety Studio: Actors on Actors.”

The Emmy Award-winning series will air in two episodes on PBS SoCal KOCE, the first on Tuesday, June 19 at 7 p.m. and the second on Thursday, June 21 at 7 p.m. Both episodes will stream on pbssocal.org following their premieres.

This year’s lineup of pairings includes: Issa Rae (“Insecure”) with Michael B. Jordan(“Fahrenheit 451”); Laura Dern (“The Tale”) with Angela Bassett (“9-1-1”); Tiffany Haddish (“The Last O.G.”) with John Legend (“Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert”); Benedict Cumberbatch (“Patrick Melrose”) with Claire Foy (“The Crown”); Jason Bateman (“Ozark”) with Bill Hader (“Barry”); Debra Messing (“Will & Grace”) with Sharon Stone (“Mosaic”); J.K. Simmons (“Counterpart”) with Edie Falco (“Law & Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders”); Alison Brie (“GLOW”) with Jessica Biel (“The Sinner”); Maggie Gyllenhaal (“The Deuce”) with Jonathan Groff (“Mindhunter”);  Frankie Shaw (“SMILF”) with Sara Gilbert (“Roseanne”); Jeff Daniels (“The Looming Tower”) with Laura Linney (“Ozark”); Darren Criss (“American Crime Story: The Assassination of Gianni Versace”) with Mandy Moore (“This is Us”); David Harbour (“Stranger Things”) with Kyle MacLachlan (“Twin Peaks”); and Dakota Fanning (“The Alienist”) with Freddie Highmore (“The Good Doctor”).

“There’s no better way to celebrate another groundbreaking season of television than with our ‘Actors on Actors’ franchise,” said Debra Birnbaum, Variety’s executive TV editor. “We’re proud to shine a light on this year’s most remarkable performances with this series of revealing, one-on-one conversations. And we’re thrilled as always to partner with PBS SoCal to share this content with their audience.”

Variety’s “Actors on Actors” issue will hit newsstands June 5 with clips appearing on Variety.com starting at the beginning of June.

“Southern California’s creative industry inspires and excites our PBS audiences like few others. And this season of ‘Actors on Actors’ is sure to please, with compelling conversations between some of today’s most popular protagonists,” said Andrew Russell, president and CEO of PBS SoCal. “It’s terrific to team with Variety to produce and share ‘Variety Studio: Actors on Actors.’”

Independent IE wrote:
Actor Darren Criss calls reaction to serial killer performance ‘mind-blowing’

April 19, 2018

Actor Darren Criss has said playing the part of serial killer Andrew Cunanan in The Assassination Of Gianni Versace is what he has worked for for his entire life.

The former Glee star said he was encouraged by viewers’ attempts to rationalise why his character in the biopic drama series murdered fashion designer Gianni Versace in 1997.

He told ITV’s Lorraine: “Any time people respond to it, it’s encouraging. It speaks less of our show and my performance, and more about the compassion people have.

“The aptitude for sympathy or empathy that people have displayed is a little mind-blowing.

“It means we are looking for something to redeem somebody, which is a beautifully poetic thing, even though it’s a difficult thing to wrap your head around as it’s something so horrible and unforgivable.”

Criss discussed his role as Blaine Anderson in hit musical TV series Glee as well as his forthcoming acoustic concert at St Pancras New Church in London.

He also impressed host Lorraine Kelly with his choice of nail polish, which he wore while attending the Coachella music festival last weekend.

However, he was quick to play down suggestions that his performance as Cunanan would earn him a nomination for an Emmy Award.

“I know it’s an exciting thing to talk about but I already feel like I won the lottery.

“This is no hyperbole but I have literally waited and worked my entire life for this moment.

“I feel so privileged to have gotten just a small part of what I’d hoped for in my life that awards are just peripheral stuff.

“If and when then that time comes though – rock ‘n’ roll!”

 

Track: Darren Criss on The Assassination of Gianni Versace: "It's a Shakespearean tragedy that you can't believe is a real story."
Artist: Steve Wright in the Afternoon

Darren Criss on The Assassination of Gianni Versace: “It’s a Shakespearean tragedy that you can’t believe is a real story.”

Darren discusses playing the serial killer Andrew Cunanan, who murdered Versace in 1997. | 18 April 2018

Darren's and Chuck's Concerts at  El Plaza Condesa in Mexico City (March 31 & April 1, 2018)



Thanks for the link to the livestream, Lilikoiluv.  It's so nice of you to post that here.    And I forgot to say earlier, I hope you also had a nice Easter or Passover, Lilikoiluv, and the same to everyone. 

It amazes me how much energy Darren has.  To do two 2-hour shows, on back to back nights.  How does he do it?   And I really do think his voice has grown stronger; he just sounds as if he is steadier, has more control, is better able to adjust his tone, has more power (without compromising control).    For me, I can hear the growth the most when I listened to some of his oldies ("Jealousy,"  "Human,"  "Not Alone,"  "Don't You," etc.), as well his favorite Disney song, "Part of Your World," but I also heard it on "I Dreamed A Dream," "Hopelessly Devoted to You," and "Lost Boys Life."  In particular, I found his performance of "I Dreamed A Dream,"  "I Don't Mind,"  "Goin Nowhere" all so beautifully sung, and full of emotion.  

Xtian Leon
FULL SHOW available HERE

1. What A Feeling / We Like It (with Chuck)
2. Lost Boys Life (with Chuck)
3. Jealousy
4. Don’t You
5. One Fine Day
6. Cough Syrup
7. Goin Nowhere
8. Human
9. Sami
10. Granger Danger
11. Hopelessly Devoted To You
12. Back To Hogwarts
13. Not Alone
14. I Dreamed A Dream
15. Colors Of The Wind
16. I Don’t Mind
17. The Damage (with Chuck)
18. The City (with Chuck)
19. Every Single Night (with)
20. The Day That The Dance Is Over
21. Foolish Thing
22. Teenage Dream

Darren Criss Army wrote:
CDMX Darren/CG (Computer Games) show Setlist Thread (FINAL)

1. What A Feeling / We Like It (with Chuck Criss)
2. Lost Boys Life (with Chuck Criss)
3. Jealousy
4. Don’t You
5. One Fine Day
6. Cough Syrup
7. Goin Nowhere
8. Human
9. Sami
10. Granger Danger
11. Hopelessly Devoted To You
12. Back To Hogwarts 
13. Not Alone
14. I Dreamed A Dream 
15. Colors Of The Wind 
16. I Don’t Mind 
17. The Damage (with Chuck Criss)
18. The City (with Chuck Criss)
19. Every Single Night (with Chuck)
20. The Day That The Dance Is Over
21. Foolish Thing #DarrenCrissMx
22. Teenage Dream (yes we’re calling it now, it hasn’t started yet)

CDMX Show # 2 SETLIST

(Oh no he took out a Hedwig song!)


nini_mags: My first setlist ever and it was from @darrencriss show in my city thank you so much to the crew member who gave it to me. I wish I knew his name  #darrencriss #chuckcriss #computergames

Not the whole thing but worth it

Source

Darren Criss, CDMX, April 1, 2018

Fotogalería | Darren Criss | El Plaza Condesa.

*We remind you of the schedules for tonight with #DarrenCrissMx

Access: 6:00 pm @DarrenCriss: 8:00 pm

Due to changes in the production configuration, some tickets were enabled for today. Available at our box office.

*Frieeeends!! @DarrenCriss is in Mexico, he has a concert today and tomorrow at @El_Plaza_ Condesa… And it’s going to be amazing!!

Zocalo wrote:
Emociona México a Darren Criss

March 31, 2018



Mexico City.- Fascinated by the idea of ​​meeting his Mexican fans for the first time, Darren Criss shared his feelings about his first visit to the country to offer two shows.

“It gives me the chills just to be here, it’s a mission accomplished, a dream come true, it’s a fascinating moment,” Darren said yesterday, when he arrived at the meeting for an exclusive talk in the center of Coyoacán.

Famous for the series Glee and recently seen as the killer Andrew Cunanan in The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, the 31-year-old Californian manifested the reason for his frenzy to be in this capital.

“This is the first time I come to a country in Latin America, and although I am clear that it does not represent everything, because there is a lot of cultural diversity, I do believe that it is the first big step to extend through the region and then visit more countries,” said Criss.

“When I put together a show, wherever it is, it’s a varied concert of what my career has been. It’s a bit of Glee, Broadway, StarKid, my own music, from (the band) Computer Games, which makes It’s exciting because it has a palette of many colors. ”

What the artist wants is that those who come to his concert, connect with him with the idea of ​​having fun and spending an unforgettable time.


“What I want is to always go beyond people’s expectations of me,” said the actor, who, unlike his well-known image of a washed and shaved face, came with a bulging beard.

“The beard means I’m not working on camera, or doing a role, I’m comfortable, it feels good but I think that could mean that I’m unemployed now,” he said with a laugh.

In a brief tour of Coyoacán, Criss posed in the fountain of the coyotes, went inside to see the Church of San Juan Bautista, took a look at balloons that the vendors of the plaza brought and took a video of an singer doing songs of “Cri Cri”.

“I came to work, but since they’re on holidays here in Mexico City, they tell me that they enjoy themselves in a fantastic way and there’s no traffic,” he said.

“Today (yesterday) I woke up like it was a day off, and the truth is that when I’m not working I’m a glutton, I eat a lot, I ordered chilaquiles, which, I would not eat regularly, but being in Mexico City why wouldn’t I do it?”.

With 20 years of theatrical career, which was where he started, and some independent films, Criss said he loves meeting different characters and that fill him with expectations.

“The challenges are the same, you try to connect in so many ways with the audience, and you expect to create a complete character with which people can identify, it’s great being able to do as many different things as possible,” said the singer of “I Don’t Mind”.

“For me everything is to interpret, it can be drama, musical, I like to generate a fascination for what I represent. For me, it’s all about telling a story, about representing, looking for new colors, new tones. ”

*#SaturdayofGlory with the exclusive interview of @DarrenCriss #DarrenCriss in Coyoacán. By @juagarci in @reformagente @Reforma “Is a facinating time”

 @DarrenCriss came to Mexico and visited the heart of Coyoacán. The singer and actor of Glee tell us what he liked the most http://bit.ly/2E7KM4d

*This is my Saturday… with @darrencriss or #blaineanderson or #andrewcunanan which one is you’re favorite?  @raularregui

*Beautiful experience being able to meet #DarrenCriss  It was incredible, I’m still in shock.  Thank you, a beautiful day that I will never forget for a lot of reasons.