Kristin Chenoweth to show off versatility at Borgata

Who's the hardest-working woman in show business? It says here Kristin Chenoweth is a serious contender for that title.

By the time 2016 fades into memory, the Tony (You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown), Emmy (Pushing Daisies), and Golden Globe (Glee) -winner will have, in the space of less than six months, released a new album (The Art of Elegance, due in late September), filmed a featured role in the coming Starz channel fantasy series American Gods, costarred in NBC's live December broadcast of Hairspray, and toured cross-country with her concert act, which she brings on Friday and Saturday to Atlantic City's Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa.

All of this comes on top of a multifaceted career for the 48-year-old Oklahoma-born former resident of West Chester (and onetime Miss Pennsylvania contestant) that includes many TV and film appearances and Broadway stints in Steel Pier, Promises, Promises, and last year's Roundabout Theatre revival of On the Twentieth Century, for which she received multiple honors for her portrayal of fictional 1930s movie star Lily Garland.

Is it fair to describe you as a Type-A personality?

[Laughs.] I don't know. What gave you that idea? Yes. That, or, like, "showbiz ADD." I'm not sure which. I love to do a lot of different things, and I'm grateful that I get to do it. I love to do film and TV, and I love to do Broadway. Probably my favorite is concertizing, because I'm just myself and I have a lot of fun letting audiences see me [rather than a fictional character].

How do you juggle everything? What sacrifices do you make to accomplish so much, professionally speaking?

The truth is . . . I had to miss some [family] things, and relationships with the opposite sex have been sort of tricky because [my career] is my child. There's been sacrifice. But it's sacrifice I'm willing to make.

Assuming you occasionally do, how do you unplug from show business?

When I step away from it, I wish I could tell you that I just party and let go and go to town. But the truth is, I'm in my pajamas watching bad television or catching up on all my favorite TV shows. I love to hike and walk. I love to just, you know, chill out. That's what I do in my free time.

And I love to be with the people I love the most and that love me.

Let's talk about this weekend's Borgata visit. What can we expect at the show besides Broadway tunes?

I will be singing some country music. For sure, I will sing country music because that's what I grew up listening to. I'll sing some Dolly Parton, because she's one of my favorites. I'll be paying homage to the Eagles [the band] as well. . . . It's sort of running the gamut. . . . I want people to know me as a person. This is my opportunity to show the people in Atlantic City who I am, what I have to say.

And my training was in church, so I'm going to actually stand in Atlantic City and sing a gospel song. My master's degree [from Oklahoma City University] is in opera, so that will be represented.

I think it's perfect for Atlantic City. There's something for everyone.

The track list for "The Art of Elegance" certainly contains some of the most elegant songs ever written, including Gershwin's "Someone to Watch Over Me" and Rodgers and Hart's "Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered." Why did you decide on an album of classic pop?

I love that era, and I love the full orchestra sound, as many people do.

There's a need right now for a harkening back to a more innocent time, and this music takes me there. It seems interesting to me that I started really listening to this music at such a young age. I felt like, "Why do I understand the lyrics to these sophisticated, complicated songs?" Then I remembered Linda Ronstadt released an album with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra [1983's "What's New"]. It was incredible, just incredible. I've been listening to that music my entire life.

So for me, it felt correct and right to go and revisit. Of course, people who know and love the music, I hope, will love the homage I've paid here, but I also want my younger fans to hear this music for the first time.

After such a busy 2016, what can you possibly have planned for 2017?

[Laughs.] A vacation. I just did a concert in Sun Valley [Idaho] with an orchestra, and I have to tell you, I didn't know how beautiful Idaho was. There are so many parts of this country that are stunning. And part of me wants to go away just for a retreat - rest and sun. Maybe I'll go skiing, but knowing my track record, I'll probably break a leg. But I will tell you that a big break is heading my way in January. 'Cause if I don't get one, I can't refuel, right?

I can totally see me taking a big ol' chill pill.

Kristin Chenoweth

9 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Borgata, Atlantic City.

$85-$95. 866-900-4849, www.theborgata.com.

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