Audra McDonald’s resume borders on ridiculous. She trained with Ellen Faull at Juilliard. She won three Tony Awards before she was 30 (her total now stands at six, a record) along with two Grammys and an Emmy. She’s been the marquee name for thousands of sold-out nights on Broadway’s biggest stages, juggled regular roles on network dramas and even appeared as Mother Abbess in NBC’s live production of “The Sound of Music.” On Sunday night, she added another notch to her belt with her stunning Music Hall debut with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra. Backed by her touring trio and the full force of the Pops (led by her music director Andy Einhorn), McDonald kept the capacity crowd wrapped around her finger for the entirety of her 90-minute performance. In the process, she covered on a wide swath of the American songbook, touching some of its best-loved points, but also illuminating some of its lesser-known corners.

McDonald’s path to the Springer Auditorium stage, as she informed us after the brisk opening “When Did I Fall in Love?,” was not a smooth one. An exploding boiler in her basement, a sick toddler and a turbulent flight conspired to leave her unrested and unrehearsed, but from the second her legendary voice filled the hall, it was clear that her powers were undiminished. McDonald is an engaging and genial host, illuminating her selections with anecdotes of their origins and how she came to sing them. “The Glamorous Life” was paired with the hilarious tale of a botched rendition at a Stephen Sondheim tribute (Sunday’s version was, of course, flawless) and “Climb Every Mountain” came with details of the complicated nature of live television musicals.

One song that received no introduction was her heart-stopping take on “Summertime” from Gershwin’s “Porgy and Bess” (for which she won her fifth Tony Award in 2012). And indeed, what was there to say? For three minutes, McDonald managed to elevate a near-perfect concert into the realm of the sublime. McDonald shape-shifts between vocal deliveries so effortlessly it makes you wonder where Broadway ends and opera begins. “Summertime” was emblematic of all of Einhorn’s arrangements, a lush backdrop over which McDonald worked her magic.

Not all her selections were as lighthearted as “She Loves Me” throwback “Vanilla Ice Cream” or the profane (and utterly hilarious) Kate Miller-Heidke song about the follies of social media. “Ordinary Days” showstopper “I’ll Be Here” filled the same role here, and for the second time it seemed as if all the oxygen had been sucked out of Music Hall. The Adam Gwon-penned ballad traces a New York romance from its infancy to its sudden end on September 11, and charts the emotional wreckage beyond. All clichés about dry eyes are applicable here; even Ms. McDonald could be seen dabbing at her cheeks as the audience applauded.

To lift our collective spirits, McDonald turned to Jule Styne’s “Make Someone Happy,” which she presented to us as her personal mantra. “Make just one person happy/Make just one heart the heart you sing to.” She mused that she probably has the darkest complexion of anyone who’s played Mother Abbess (“I must have lived on the sunny side of the Alps”) before closing her main set with a soaring “Climb Every Mountain.”

Rapturous applause brought McDonald and Einhorn back to the stage for a quick encore. “Love is love is love is love,” McDonald (an avid supporter of LGBT causes) told us before launching into “Over the Rainbow” while the full spectrum of colors washed over the Music Hall stage. McDonald was the perfect choice to top the Pops’ return season to Music Hall: a world-class marquee name in a world-class performance space. It sets a high precedent for the years to come.

Audra McDonald performed:

1. “When Did I Fall in Love?” (from the musical “Fiorello”)
2. “It Might as Well Be Spring” (from the musical “State Fair”)
3. “Hurry, It’s Lovely Up Here” (from the musical “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever”)
4. “Stars and the Moon” (from the musical “Songs for a New World”)
5. “I Double Dare You” (Jazz standard)
6. “Moonshine Lullaby” (from the musical “Annie Get Your Gun”)
7. “Summertime” (from the opera “Porgy and Bess”)
8. “The Glamorous Life” (from the musical “A Little Night Music”)
9. “I Won’t Mind” (from the musical “The Other Franklin”)
10. “Vanilla Ice Cream” (from the musical “She Loves Me”)
11. “Simple Little Things” (from the musical “110 in the Shade”)
12. “I Could Have Danced All Night” (from the musical “My Fair Lady”)
13. “Are You Fucking Kidding Me? (The Facebook Song)” (Kate Miller-Heidke song)
14. “Can’t Stop Talking” (from the film “Let’s Dance”)
15. “I’ll Be Here” (from the musical “Ordinary Days”)
16. “Make Someone Happy” (from the musical “Do Re Mi”)
17. “Climb Every Mountain” (from the musical “The Sound of Music”)
18. Encore — “Over the Rainbow” (from the film “The Wizard of Oz”)

Nat Tracey-Miller is a Cincinnati-based high school librarian, musician, cartophile, and lifelong music fan whose love spans from Bowie to Beethoven to Bon Iver to Brubeck and hits every point in between. His writing has appeared in CincyMusic, Columbus Calling, Tome to the Weather Machine, Mixtape Methodology, and more. He records as The Birds of America, and is currently completing his first EP.