NEED TO KNOW
Kristin Chenoweth is officially back on the boards!
On Wednesday, Oct. 8, the Tony and Emmy Award winner returns to Broadway for her starring role in The Queen of Versailles, a lavish new musical based on the larger-than-life story of socialite Jackie Siegel and her still-unfinished $100 million quest to build the biggest private home in America.
PEOPLE has a first look at production shots from the musical, now playing at the Broadway Theatre in New York City. Opening night is slated for Nov. 9.
The project teams Chenoweth back together with Stephen Schwartz, whom she previously collaborated with in Wicked. The three-time Oscar winner and Tony-honored songwriter is also the composer behind such beloved Broadway scores such as Pippin and Godspell, and has contributed lyrics to a number of popular films such as Pocahontas, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, The Prince of Egypt and Enchanted.
Lindsey Ferrentino penned the book for the musical, adapting it from Lauren Greenfield’s award-winning 2012 documentary of the same name. Direction comes from Tony winner Michael Arden.
Julieta Cervantes
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The Queen of Versailles made its world premiere at Boston’s Emerson Colonial Theatre in the summer of 2024, where it broke box office records before announcing its Broadway transfer.
Like the film, the show follows Jackie Siegel — a computer engineer turned Mrs. Florida turned billionairess — and her husband, David “The Timeshare King” Siegel, as they embark on building their Orlando estate modeled after the Palace of Versailles. As the 2008 recession threatens to topple their fortune, the family’s glittering dream begins to fracture, exposing the real costs of fame and excess.
Speaking with PEOPLE earlier this month, Chenoweth, 57, opened up about the project, explaining she was drawn to Jackie because she wanted to take on a role unlike any she’d played before.
“The late Gavin Creel always said, ‘Two things can be true at once. Somebody can be a great person and also do things that you might question.’ I found that intriguing and challenging; to play someone very different from myself at this point. That’s what I’m looking for in my career. What actor doesn’t want to continue to evolve, grow, get better? This was an opportunity to do just that.”
She’s bonded with the real Jackie, 59, off-stage, too. “I find her to be very captivating, charismatic, very different from me,” Chenoweth said. “I enjoy her in a sense of a word, and I know that her heart is big.
Julieta Cervantes
Joining Chenoweth in The Queen of Versailles is Academy Award winner F. Murray Abraham as David. The real estate mogul died back in April, at the age of 89.
The cast also includes Melody Butiu (Here Lies Love), Stephen DeRosa (Hairspray), Greg Hildreth (Company), Tatum Grace Hopkins (Meek), Isabel Keating (The Boy From Oz), Nina White (Kimberly Akimbo), and Sherie Rene Scott (The Last Five Years) as standby Jackie.
They’re surrounded by a robust ensemble featuring Yeman Brown, David Aron Damane, Drew Elhamalawy, Christopher Gurr, KJ Hippensteel, Cassondra James, Andrew Kober, Jesse Kovarsky, Pablo David Laucerica, Travis Murad Leland, Ryah Nixon, Shea Renne, Michael McCorry Rose, Grace Slear, Anne Fraser Thomas and Jake Bentley Young.
Tickets for The Queen of Versailles are now on sale.
Julieta Cervantes
