Leslie Odom Jr. and the KC Symphony melt hearts with silky Christmas tunes at Kauffman Center
Leslie Odom Jr.
With the Kansas City Symphony
Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
Friday, December 12
“Is anybody here with their family tonight?” Hamilton alum Leslie Odom Jr. asks the audience at his sold-out Kauffman Center show. The resulting applause is cut short only by a second question: “Is anybody here avoiding their family tonight?”
Through cheers, Odom jokes, “That’s the real meaning of Christmas.”
He gets it. 
Kansas Citians knew Broadway talent would come to Kauffman December 12 and 13, Christmas tunes and KC Symphony in tow, when Odom’s The Christmas Tour came to town, but few knew the mood that would be set until he filled the room with his rendition of Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane’s “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”
It’s the song that kicked off his first holiday record, 2015’s Simply Christmas, and it’s the same song that gave Helzberg Hall a gentle nudge into a sleighride through two hours of Christmas music. Leaving Hamilton outside of the room likely proved easier than many expected, as Odom’s famously smooth delivery left listeners hanging on the end of every wintry lyric–but he wasn’t alone.
While classics, like “My Favorite Things” and “The Christmas Song,” breezed by, the star, who made a name for himself belting “The Room Where It Happens” as Aaron Burr, rarely missed an opportunity to highlight the band. Rightfully so, as music director/guitarist Steven Walker, pianist Chris Cadenhead, drummer David Chiverton, and bassist Eric England each provided standout moments throughout night one. Odom often joined the audience to simply watch as plucked strings and laid beats controlled the theater.
Just two weeks shy of another Christmas Eve, every member of the leading band was given their moment to shine, with perhaps the best showcase of their talents being a quintet, a capella cover of Sam Cooke and The Soul Stirrers’ “Jesus Gave Me Water.” The group even carved out time to wish Cadenhead a happy birthday as the show rolled on.
One small moment after another, it became clear The Christmas Tour leaned more on the group effort than the one-man show many may have anticipated. To share the spotlight between so many artists, especially with someone like Odom at the helm, is an undeniable feat. Performances of Christmas cuts “First Noel” and “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” were more than enough proof the actor-singer-songwriter could carry Kauffman through another chilly December night. Still, it’s clear the evening wouldn’t have been quite the same without the KC Symphony providing a vehicle for Odom and co., as guest conductor Caleb Young steered them through note after note.
Mixing the setlist with original songs like “Snow” with tasteful interpretations of “Ave Maria” and “O Tannenbaum,” while the symphony offered instrumental breaks of “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy,” left the room glowing heading into an inevitable encore. Still, even as Odom delivered a fierce retelling of “’Twas the Night Before Christmas,” an unshakable question could be heard ringing through the minds of those sat in the 1,600-seat theater: He’s gotta play some Hamilton, right?
“This is not a Christmas song,” Odom said to rapturous applause as the melody for “Wait for It” began to finally take shape. “I hope you can forgive us.”
The gripping Lin-Manuel Miranda tune, a character-driven track that helped propel Odom into the spotlight when he debuted as Aaron Burr more than 10 years ago, had, in fact, made it into the setlist. It was the only Hamilton song to earn a regular spot on The Christmas Tour, and the second-to-last number of night one.
“Wait for It,” especially the lively version orchestrated for the winter show, is the kind of song that could have carried the entire encore. Instead, its placement between two Christmas tunes positioned it more as a bow on top of the well-rounded package that was The Christmas Tour’s first Kansas City outing. Its second takes place tonight, December 13, at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, at 7:00 p.m.
As the band cleared the stage and the audience shuffled out, one person caught Cadenhead before his exit.
“Happy birthday!” they called out. Cadenhead, smiling, raised his hand and waved.
