Audra was recently named the 2013 Margaret Hill Endowed Visiting Artist at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. To kick off this new collaboration, Saint Mary’s College will present “An Evening with Audra McDonald,” as part of the Margaret Hill Endowed Visiting Artist Series at the college on Monday night, January 28. During the day, Audra will teach a master class for Saint Mary’s students and will participate in a public Q&A session.  In an interview with Saint Mary’s newspaper, The Observer, Audra said, “My main goal is to make the student as comfortable as possible and in a sense make every one else in the room ‘disappear’ so that it is just the two of us exploring the material. I think these one-shot evaluations have value because any chance to perform for a live audience is a lesson within itself.” To learn more about Audra’s master class, click here.

Audra and husband Will Swenson celebrated President Obama’s inauguration by performing at the Human Rights Campaign’s Out for Equality Ball in Washington, D.C. The evening also featured performances by pop icon Cyndi Lauper, American Idol contestant and Rent vet Frenchie Davis, and the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington, D.C. A passionate supporter of the LGBT community and marriage equality, Audra was honored by the HRC in 2009 with their Ally for Equality Award.

Before you pop open that bottle of champagne this New Year’s Eve, remember to tune in to your local PBS station to catch Audra in Live From Lincoln Center’s telecast of “One Singular Sensation: Celebrating Marvin Hamlisch” with the New York Philharmonic (check local listings). Playing a dual role as both host and performer, Audra will be joined on stage by special guests Joshua Bell, Raúl Esparza, Michael Feinstein, Maria Friedman, Josh Groban, Megan Hilty, Kelli O’Hara, and Frederica von Stade. Conducted by Paul Gemignani and directed by Lonny Price, the performance will feature selections from Hamlisch’s most beloved works for stage and film.

On tonight’s episode of The Colbert Report, Audra helps celebrate the second night of the show’s “Christmas Carol Week” with a duet of the beloved holiday classic “Baby It’s Cold Outside” by Frank Loesser with Stephen Colbert. This performance marks Audra’s second appearance on The Colbert Report this year; in March, Audra spoke with Colbert about the history of Porgy and Bess and performed a surprise duet of “Summertime” with him. The show airs at 11:30 pm EST on Comedy Central.

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts today announced that Audra has signed on as the official host of the landmark PBS series Live From Lincoln Center. In her new role, she will host seven broadcasts from December 2012 through Spring 2013 including “The Richard Tucker Opera Gala” on Thursday, December 13 and the New York Philharmonic’s New Year’s Eve Gala, “One Singular Sensation: Celebrating Marvin Hamlisch,” on Monday, December 31. She will also perform in the New Year’s Eve live telecast. (Check local listings.)

Audra said, “I grew up watching Live From Lincoln Center and Beverly Sills, the great soprano who used to regularly host the series, was such an inspiration to me. Ever since I moved to New York to attend The Juilliard School, I’ve spent so much of my life at Lincoln Center that I consider it my home away from home. Needless to say, I was incredibly honored when Live From Lincoln Center invited me to become the host.”

“Audra’s Lincoln Center roots run deep and wide,” said Elizabeth Scott, Chief Media and Digital Officer for Lincoln Center, and executive in charge of the series. “She’s performed on every major Lincoln Center stage, and her appearances on Live From Lincoln Center are among the most enduring presentations in the series’ 37-year history. We’re thrilled that this consummate artist–whose passion for the performing arts is infectious–will be the new face of Live From Lincoln Center. We can’t imagine a more perfect match.”

Audra made her Broadway debut in The Secret Garden while still a classical voice student at The Juilliard School. Before long, she earned her first of five Tony Awards for her role in Lincoln Center Theater’s 1994 production of Carousel.

Thanks to Live From Lincoln Center, viewers across the country have experienced Audra’s performances in “Stephen Sondheim’sPassion” with Patti Lupone, “Audra McDonald Sings the Movies” with the New York Philharmonic, and more. Most recently, she hosted “The Philharmonic Opening Night Gala with Itzhak Perlman.” Upcoming programs will be announced shortly.

Live From Lincoln Center is in its 37^th broadcast season. The series has received 13 Emmy Awards to date. Live From Lincoln Center has made the world’s greatest artists on Lincoln Center’s renowned stages accessible to home viewers in virtually every corner of the United States.