PHOTO GALLERY: Broadway Stars Who Record Studio Albums

Cheyenne Jackson is best known for his performance in the 2008 Broadway musical, “Xanadu,” as well as a number of recurring roles on television shows like “30 Rock” and “Glee.” But for his next project, he won’t be on the stage and the screen. On May 10, Jackson will release “Drive,” the first single from his debut solo album, which comes out in July.
Although Jackson recorded an album with Michael Feinstein in 2008, which included songs by Cole Porter, George Gershwin, and Duke Ellington, among others, this is Jackson’s first foray into the music industry as a solo artist.

He’s not the first Broadway star to record a studio album, either. Veterans of musical theater often transition to the music industry, to varying levels of success. And while some stick to their musical theater roots, other have ventured into other genres, experimenting with pop, rock, and even country.

See below for other Broadway stars who have taken a break from the stage to record albums.

Kerry Butler


After starring alongside Jackson in “Xanadu,” which opened in July 2007 and earned her a Tony nomination, Butler took some time away from the stage to record her first solo album. The album, “Faith Trust & Pixie Dust,” was released in May 2008 on the PS Classics label, and featured some of Butler’s favorite Disney songs.

“They’re just so hopeful, and they just make you feel good,” says Butler in a promotional video for the CD. “This is a different slant on Disney songs.”

Songs like “When You Wish Upon a Star” and “Colors of the Wind” were a perfect match for Butler’s voice, which isn’t unlike that of a typical Disney princess. In fact, in 1996, she played the role of Belle in “Beauty and the Beast” on Broadway. The album also includes an unreleased song by composer Alan Mencken, “This Only Happens in the Movies,” which Butler was the first person to record.

Kelli O’Hara



While O’Hara was starring in “The Pajama Game” in 2006 — a role that landed her a Tony nomination — she and her co-star, Harry Connick, Jr., discussed the possibility of a solo album for O’Hara. Shortly after the musical closed on Broadway, she began recording “Wonder in the World,” with Connick, Jr. acting as a producer. The album includes both original music and covers of American Songbook classics, as well as a few Broadway hits.  And while O’Hara’s voice is unmistakably perfect for musical theater, her debut album shows off her wide range, venturing into jazz, country, and pop.

“Even though it is my passion, Broadway is not all of me; it’s part of me,” O’Hara said in an interview with Broadway.com. The solo album, she says, was an opportunity to reveal more of herself.

“It just had to be like, put me in your car, in your CD player, or put me on your iPod, and just learn who I am,” she says. “‘Cause I’ve been playing behind characters for so long.”
The album also features a duet with Connick, Jr. In 2011, O’Hara released a second album, “Always,” which includes songs from Broadway shows like Stephen Sondheim’s “Saturday Night” and “Sunday in the Park with George,” as well as a track from Rodgers & Hammerstein’s “South Pacific,” which O’Hara starred in on Broadway.

Matthew Morrison



After gaining fame for his role as Will Schuester on the hit television series, “Glee,” Morrison recorded a solo album with Mercury Records. Released in May of 2011, the self-titled record includes both original songs and covers, as well as duets with Gwyneth Paltrow, Sting, and Elton John.

“I went into it wanting a Justin Timberlake-meets-Michael Buble kind of feel,” Morrison told “The Hollywood Reporter in January 2011. “But what came out of it was something more raw.”
The pop album sounds more like “Glee” than Broadway, where Morrison starred in shows like “Hairspray” and “South Pacific” before moving to Hollywood. He even performed his single, “Still Got Tonight,” during the second season finale of “Glee.” The album received mixed critical reviews, with Jody Rosen of “Rolling Stone” predicting that it would “please Gleeks and befuddle everyone else,” but would “be a huge hit.”

Idina Menzel



After originating the role of Maureen in “Rent,” Menzel recorded her first solo album, “Still I Can’t Be Still,” with Hollywood Records. Released in 1998, the album had a pop-rock feel, with Menzel showing off her raunchy and vivacious personality. The albums title, she said, had to do with her constant restlessness and ambition.

“I think that it really stemmed from the fact that there were all these wonderful things happening for me while I was in ‘Rent,’ and then given the opportunity to make my album,” she told CNN back in 1998. “And I was constantly unsatisfied, and through that stemmed probably a lot of the emotion in many of the songs.”

Although the single “Minuet” was mildly successful, ranking at #48 on the Radio & Records Contemporary Hit Radio/Pop Tracks chart in October of 1998, the album’s sales were underwhelming. In 2004, Menzel released a second album by Zel Records, titled “Here.” But her third album, “I Stand,” was her most successful, reaching #58 on the Billboard 200 chart. The success was likely due to Menzel’s popularity from “Wicked,” the Broadway show that earned her a Tony Award in 2004.

Since then, Menzel has continued her music career, performing in concerts around the world. In March she released her fourth album, “Live: Barefoot at the Symphony,” which features recordings from her various performances.

Daphne Rubin-Vega



Like Menzel, Rubin-Vega’s first big role was in the 1996 Broadway musical “Rent,” originating the role of Mimi Marquez. Before that, though, she gained success as the lead singer of Pajama Party, a Latin freestyle group. Three of their songs made it on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, in 1989 and 1990. In the 1990s, Rubin-Vega recorded a few singles, and in 1998, she recorded her first full-length solo album, “Souvenirs,” but it was never released due to problems with the record company.

Rubin-Vega continued working in theater, performing in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” on Broadway in 2000. While working with Joan Jett on that show, Vega said, she was inspired to start her own band. In 2006, they released “Redemption Songs,” an album with Latin, reggae, and rock undertones, which Rubin-Vega produced and wrote many of the songs for.
“A therapeutic way for me to recycle a lot of shitty feelings and pain is writing,” she told Pop Matters in 2007. “If you need to say it, somebody needs to hear it. It’s in that spirit that I write.”
Rubin-Vega continues to perform with her band, but she has also returned to the stage. She is currently starring as Stella in the revival of Tennessee Williams’ “A Streetcar Named Desire” at the Broadhurst Theatre.

Kristin Chenoweth



Chenoweth gained fame on Broadway for playing Sally Brown in the 1999 musical, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” for which she won a Tony Award, and for her role as Glinda in the 2003 musical, “Wicked.” But she’s ventured into the music industry quite a few times, releasing her first solo album in 2001. Titled “Let Yourself Go,” the album included musical theater songs from the 1930s, and featured a duet with Jason Alexander. For her second album, “As I Am,” which was released in 2004, Chenoweth switched to the Christian music genre. And her third album, the 2008 “A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas,” included holiday classics like “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” and  “Silver Bells.” Most recently, in September of 2011, Chenoweth released her fourth album, titled “Some Lessons Learned.” This time, she took on country music, citing her Oklahoma upbringing.

“I wanted to do an album dedicated to my roots,” she told “The Boot.” “I grew up singing country music and gospel music, so it’s the record that I feel born to do. It’s not really switching genres for me, even though it’s not what I’m known for.”

Chenoweth isn’t the only Broadway star to try out country music. Rachel Potter, who currently plays the “Mistress” in the musical “Evita,” is releasing a country album, “Live the Dream,” on May 15.