Lea Michele [1] and Darren Criss joined forces to spread the holiday cheer. In a "Carpool Karaoke: The Series" holiday special from Dec. 22, the "Glee" costars revisit their original Christmas songs [2] in a festive singalong ride.
The video begins with shots of iconic holiday landmarks in New York City, including Rockefeller Center's ornate decorations and holiday lights along the busy streets, and a shot of people ice skating at the Wollman Rink in Central Park. Michele channels her "Funny Girl [3]" role by jokingly introducing herself as "Darren Criss" before breaking into the first song.
The Broadway star starts off their carpool concert with "Christmas in New York," which she initially released on her third studio album, "Christmas in the City," in 2019. Criss and Michele belt out the lyrics that match the holiday vibes from the beginning of the segment. "It's Christmas. Like Darren 'Criss-mas,'" Michele jokes midsong.
"I'm a fan of a lot of Christmas things, so I wrote a little song about all the things that make me want to dance at Christmas," Criss says, prefacing the second and final song of the concert: "Christmas Dance" from Criss's 2021 album, "A Very Darren Crissmas."
While the performance definitely got us in the holiday spirit, watching Criss and Michele perform together has us feeling nostalgic for more reunions from the former castmates. In October, Criss and Michele rekindled backstage at "Funny Girl," and Michele thanked Criss [5] for supporting her career over the years. "The amount of times this guy has heard me sing 'Don't Rain On My Parade' 😂 I love you @darrencriss and @miavoncriss ❤️," Michele wrote to Criss and his wife [6]. If we have it our way, there will be a bigger collaboration from Criss and Michele in the future.
Apple TV+'s "Carpool Karaoke: The Series" stemmed from the popular segment on "The Late Late Show." Watch Michele and Criss's holiday clip above.