September 2025 Featured Artist
High-Spirited Songstress, Actress, and Cabaret Star, Ann Kittredge, is a Believer in Taking Chances
Ann Kittredge
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge |
Ann Kittredge is a lifelong performing artist. She has performed on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and at major venues across the country, working with top producers and directors throughout her career. In theater, she has been acclaimed for her leading roles in both musicals and dramas. In the cabaret world, Ann has displayed her versatility with a repertoire ranging from Great American Songbook standards to jazz, classic pop, and contemporary musical theater.
She recently expanded her career into the recording industry. Her debut album, reIMAGINE, won the LaMott-Friedman Award. Her critically acclaimed second album, Romantic Notions, was chosen as one of the top 10 vocal albums of 2024 by The Broadway Radio Show. You Sleigh Me, her latest album, releases soon. (Find more information about Ann's album releases.) "With a range of performing roles stretching from Marian Paroo in the The Music Man to that great First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt, Ann has proven her high-stakes versatility on the stage. Her talents as a cabaret performer at such venues as Birdland and 54 Below speak for themselves. If that were not enough to set audiences aglow, she is an unflagging supporter of the arts and humanity, particularly for children in need of such creative exposure and encouragement. She may call herself an 'extroverted introvert,' but the light she exudes is a beacon to us all." ~ Sandra Bertrand
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Sandra Bertrand, travel & culture editor, asked Ann to answer questions about her journey as a performer and recording artist as well as her work in support of the American Songbook Association.
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When did this musical talent emerge for you as a young girl? Were you encouraged by your parents? Did you know at an early age this would be your destiny? Or did it happen later, when you first auditioned at Carnegie Mellon University’s Theatre Department?
In hindsight, I realized I exhibited a passion for the entertainment industry, and some natural skill even as a young child, but I was equally introverted and resisted the spotlight because I truly couldn’t handle the attention. That said, I had teachers and family members who regularly encouraged me. I was constantly offered solos in choir performances at school and such, but I declined. Senior year of high school, I switched schools [to one that had] a vibrant theater program. The head of the program was also my psychology teacher, and he saw my struggle to integrate into the school, so he invited me to join the theater department. That was the trigger that made theater my alleyway to expressing myself in public. I loved it, but still never imagined I was good enough to make it my profession. During my freshman year of college, I attended a school that was not a good fit for me, but my roommate was a singer and came from Pittsburgh. We became good friends, and she encouraged me to leave the school and audition for Carnegie Mellon University. It was the only school I auditioned for, and I got in. My years at CMU were intense, a great theatrical program, and one of the toughest years of my life. But by then, where I lacked confidence, I made up for with passion and effort. |
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge
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You met your husband during that time and have had a long, sustaining marriage. Has he been involved in the arts or your career?
My husband received his Masters in Directing at CMU. We got together after he graduated. To this day, I can say I’ve never met another human being who can glean so much out of a first read of a script as he can. Early on, he decided he wanted to work on the producing side of the industry, and he has been a TONY voter and vice president at The Shubert Organization for many years. He is still my go-to audience when I’m working on something.
Among the roles you’ve enjoyed playing on stage, what stands out for you the most? You must have some favorite musical and theatrical partners.
My husband received his Masters in Directing at CMU. We got together after he graduated. To this day, I can say I’ve never met another human being who can glean so much out of a first read of a script as he can. Early on, he decided he wanted to work on the producing side of the industry, and he has been a TONY voter and vice president at The Shubert Organization for many years. He is still my go-to audience when I’m working on something.
Among the roles you’ve enjoyed playing on stage, what stands out for you the most? You must have some favorite musical and theatrical partners.
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Slideshow Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge
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I have a deep relationship to Eleanor Roosevelt. Creating her early years on the stage took up about two years of my life, and it was thrilling. She was a woman of her time until she wasn’t, until she stood up and demanded a more meaningful life. That cast was a great family, and I have such warm memories of that show. I also have a soft spot for Marian Paroo from The Music Man. I’ve played her three times, and I love her strength, her progressiveness. My goodness, I’m seeing a theme: I like playing characters that challenge the status quo, strong yet vulnerable.
I also hold a special place for the comedic roles I’ve played, in particular Sr. Amnesia in Nunsense and Rosalind in Moon Over Buffalo. Earlier this year I got to play the lead in the 1964 musical High Spirits at 54 Below, which was very meaningful because my voice teacher, Adrienne Angel, was in the original Broadway production, and I played the same role that she did in the first National Tour. She came to see me (and gave me notes!). Currently, you sit on the Advisory Board of The Capital Cabaret Organization, promoting the art form of Cabaret in our nation’s capital, and have spent several years on the Advisory and Executive Board of the American Songbook Association, which provides workshops to underprivileged New York City public school students. Yes, I’m thrilled to be a part of the ASA community. This past spring, I became a master teacher, bringing a music program to a school in Queens that doesn’t have enough in its budget to pay for any year-long arts program, and whose piano is unplayable and needs to be put to rest and replaced. I, along with music director John Cook (with his portable keyboard), spent several weeks working with 5th graders, and it was an incredibly rewarding experience. What I love about the vision of ASA is that their program is not looking for talent, it simply wants to expose our youth to become familiar with the American Songbook and develop future audiences. Of course, when we see exceptional talent, we are also happy to encourage them.
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Cabaret has been a lifelong passion of yours. What was the transition like for you? Is it the intimate connection you can make with a smaller audience than Broadway or even Off-Broadway? What are some of your favorite venues? Favorite songs? Favorite singers?
I am a big believer in taking chances. Cabaret requires a different mastery of skills than a theatrical production, of which I didn’t have on hand. It has been thrilling to develop those skills to entertain people in smaller venues. I’ve always enjoyed telling stories through music, but you’re not hiding behind a character in nightclub singing. You’re baring your soul to strangers and your goal to give your audience an escape from their daily lives becomes very personal, very intimate, very vulnerable. I would have to say my two favorite venues to perform in are Birdland Jazz and Chelsea Table + Stage in New York City. I have performed in so many theaters across the country, so it would be hard to pick a favorite. Honestly, the character of the theater changes with each audience. Favorite singers include Adele, Alanis Morissette, Ray Charles, Jim Croce, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Billy Holliday, Billy Joel, Whitney Houston, Gabrielle Stravelli, Supertramp…I could go on! Favorite songs? Well, I’d have to say I absolutely love my renditions of Bob Dylan’s Mr. Tambourine Man, Victor Herbert’s Ah! Sweet Mystery of Life and John Prine’s I Just Want to Dance with You. Obviously, I have eclectic tastes. |
Slideshow Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge
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As a woman navigating in that world, how have you found your interactions with male management and crew to be? Do you think it’s improved from the beginning? It’s almost like a separate universe from the theater.
Ann with Christopher Denny at Chelsea Table + Stage
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge |
I think things have changed dramatically and for the better, much better. I credit that to a combination of strengthening my own sense of self and society’s gradual development of human rights in general. My experience is that workers are absolutely wonderful people doing their job and eager to contribute to a healthy work environment. I have been met with resistance when I say to some men I work with that I don’t agree with them. I truly think they aren’t used to it. But guess what? I also see them adjusting to my straightforwardness. Maybe I’m ‘right’ sometimes, maybe they are. But in the end, I’m the artist putting my face out there, and I trust my instincts. I also trust the people I choose to work with. I do not attempt to do their job for me. I welcome their input, which often leads to an even more creative idea actualized. It’s important for me to communicate my trust in them, even if sometimes I don’t agree. My creative team and I are so proud of some arrangements that came through real back-and-forth dialogue and experimentation. They always bring their best — I truly believe that — and they know how much I value them. And can I add, the #MeToo Movement really shook up my perspective of what it can mean to be a woman in the world. I will be forever grateful. |
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By now, you’re a trouper as a recording artist and live performer. Any examples you’d like to share in those hours in the studio and how that differs from live stage work?
Oh my, yes. In the recording studio, you are making interpretive decisions with no objective audience to test them out in front of. It is a bit terrifying. As a live performance artist, I am very tuned into my audiences. I listen to them, and my performance is informed by them. But my album, Romantic Notions, has many songs I never performed live until after the album was released. My upcoming holiday album, You Sleigh Me, is like that, too. It takes a different kind of courage to lock into an interpretation and arrangement without audience feedback. That said, since it is all reliant on my senses and my creative team’s senses, there is an ownership to the results that brings a different level of pride when they are received well by a listening audience. My producer, Paul Rolnick, is the wind beneath my wings. He has believed in me since the first time we worked together. I like that he respects me enough to be honest with me about my choices that he doesn’t agree with; and sometimes I doubt my choices, and he’s cheerleading me on to embrace them. He wants me to be me. He wants audiences to feel when they are listening to music, as do I. And he is an incredible mixer. Really incredible. The comradery in a studio with the musicians rides a wave of fun and joking to intensely serious. It’s different from live performance because, once it’s in the can, that’s it, no next show to redeem yourself. Everyone is bringing their A game and offering suggestions to improve on arrangements. But there’s also a clock ticking, and so we need to agree to one take that everyone is comfortable with. THAT’s not always easy, but it is so wonderful hearing everyone giving their creative instincts to our music. |
Slideshow Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge
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Ann Glittering on Stage
Photo Credit: Helene Blumfield |
You must be excited about your recent and upcoming albums. You have your own label, King Kozmo Music, a Division of Jazzheads Music Group. You Sleigh Me, a holiday album, will be released soon.
Believe it or not, my holiday album, You Sleigh Me, releases September 5th because radio stations and such need access as of October to plan playlists! Crazy, right? King Kozmo, a division of Jazzheads Music Group, is run by Randy Klein, an accomplished pianist himself. He’s a lovely, lovely man, but he’s not easy to please; so again, I feel incredibly lucky to have him bringing his sharp ear to our mixes. And honestly, the fact that he likes what we are doing is a compliment [because] he’s picky! Facing the rigors of performing and keeping your body and voice in top notch shape only grows more challenging as we age. Can you describe your daily or weekly routine or secrets you’d like to share?
Vocally, I’ve found that continuing voice lessons (I’ve been with my voice teacher for decades), and chanting daily keeps my voice healthy, along with taking hyaluronic acid supplements (keeps vocal muscles supple). It may seem counterintuitive, but ‘you gotta use it, or you’ll lose it,’ meaning you need to vocalize at least five days a week, just for a few minutes. Resting your voice is only valuable if you are using it a lot, so you’re maintaining performance. Without regular use, though, you will more quickly develop a wabble and lose range. I have completely redone my relationship with food. I love food, dark chocolate in particular, but I grew up eating tons of unhealthy foods, and I had the kind of metabolism that wasn’t bothered by all that. As I got older, my metabolism began to fail me, and I hated the idea of buying a new wardrobe and the feeling of the added weight on me. So, I gradually found an eating program that works for me. It took years! I try to avoid starch and sugar as much as possible, and balance fat/protein/carbohydrates at every meal. I only eat two meals a day plus a snack. I developed an exercise regime when I was young, and I continue to work out every other day. And most important, I think, is as I got older, I slept less. After a few years of that, I decided sleeping was more important than anything. I indulge in gummies any night I need to, and to my joyful surprise, my doctor totally agrees with that. He said sleep is so important as you get older. |
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You’ve said life is about creating memories. What do you love to do most in your bucket list of experiences when you’re not performing? You’ve said hiking, biking, reading, and enjoying tequila and Jacques Torres chocolate. I also read your favorite pastime involves chains, leather and sand. That sounds erotic!
Ha, ha! Best to leave that a mystery. Yes, as a mother I’ve come to realize that life is about creating memories, because when an experience is over, what can last is the emotional impact. That can be good and bad. Pictures of the experience can trigger the memory, or maybe an object. I am sometimes concerned, though, that taking pictures gets in the way of creating memories. It’s almost like today we think the picture itself is the memory. I know people who take thousands of pictures a year. That seems counterintuitive to me. Are you capturing memories or too busy taking pictures to participate in the memory-making? At my age, the things that make me feel most cozy are memories from my childhood, or memories earlier on in my adulthood. And I have no doubt in 10 to 15 years, I’ll be including memories from now. Even the most difficult struggles we’ve been through can morph into valued memories, for the lessons we learned, or the joy that we’re no longer in that place, or the pride we have that we made it through. |
Ann Backstage
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge |
Children have played an active role in your life. You had adopted children yourself and then you have been active as a teacher. You’ve spent several years on the Advisory and Executive Board of The American Songbook Association. How important are arts to young people?
A Christmas Carol, Macy’s Day Parade, Paramount Theater, New York City
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge |
The arts have existed for as long as humanity: the drawings on cave walls, the singing out in the work fields, the nightly drawing room performances, the evolution of different visual art genres reflecting the times. To ever suggest that the arts are secondary to math, science and literature is irrational. Before the theory of relativity, there were the arts. Every human being has a relationship to different art forms. To try to diminish the creative and emotional impact and value to a person’s life is to deny the very things that separate us from other life forms. Do we not savor the sound of a bird singing or the symphony of crickets or breathtaking scenery? Humanity took all of that and expanded it because of the inherent understanding that art feeds the soul.
Studies have shown that music, in particular, releases endorphins that promote the feeling of happiness and positive mental wellbeing. My children had music and books and visual art in their life as soon as they could hum a tune and hold a pencil. They were immersed in the arts. And though they were both good students, it is their creative and expansive thinking that I recognize in them that sets them up for a rewarding life. The ASA recognizes that too many children are not exposed enough to all forms of music, and so they’ve taken it upon themselves to provide music programs to expose them to the American Songbook, and in doing so, develop a love for the music and inspire the young to be our future audience. It’s not about finding and educating talent, it’s about developing a love for music and all the benefits derived from that. I love the mission of the ASA. |
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You are also an active member of Soka Gakkai International, a Buddhist NGO of the United Nations. Finding harmony between countries is even more challenging these days than finding harmony in musical notes. You’ve said Eleanor Roosevelt is an inspirational icon to you, having created a woman’s life for herself through civil rights, for example. A quote that struck me recently is from Helen Keller who said, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.” In the midst of this incredibly full life, where do you find sanctuary?
My sanctuary is my spirituality. My husband and I have raised two children, and yes, we are Buddhists. Of course, they were surrounded by Buddhism as children; yet through it all, we emphasized to them that once they are older, they need to find their own spiritual journey. They don’t need to follow ours. They need to find the spiritual philosophy that speaks to them. I believe that a truly happy life cannot be attained without an active spiritual life. It doesn’t have to be formal, but it does have to be vital.
And so, for me, the center of my Buddhist practice — the middle way (no extremism) and honoring the connected wisdom we all have access to — has transformed my whole perception of community and caring for others. For someone who struggled with confidence for so many years, it is so empowering to develop a strong inner core of belief in myself and to recognize how much I can give to others. I love looking for the meaningfulness of my interactions, even when it appears difficult. I still need solitude to re-energize (typical introvert), but I don’t think most people imagine, in meeting me, that I do. As a matter of fact, I’d say I’ve evolved to become an extroverted introvert, because it’s in that place I can honor who I am in my center while embracing all the unique and unknown that is presented to me. |
Ann Kittredge
Photo Courtesy: Ann Kittredge |
I spent a couple years of my life working on shows about Eleanor Roosevelt, and she, too, struggled with shyness. But as she challenged herself to define who she wanted to be, she became more and more a woman beyond her time. Yes, she is definitely one of my inspirations.
And it seems like the torch has been passed! You have been an inspiration to so many in so many ways, Ann.
And it seems like the torch has been passed! You have been an inspiration to so many in so many ways, Ann.
