THE QUEEN OF VERSAILLES – Produced by Bill Damaschke, Seaview, and Kristen Chenoweth, through her production banner Diva Worldwide Entertainment. Music and Lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Book by Lindsey Ferrentino based on the documentary film “The Queen of Versailles” by Lauren Greenfield and the life stories of Jackie and David Siegel. Directed by Michael Arden. Scenic and Video Design by Dane Laffrey; Costume Design by Christian Cowan; Choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant; Music Supervised by Mary-Mitchell Campbell; Lighting Design by Natasha Katz; Sound Design by Peter Hylenski. At Emerson Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston St., Boston, through August 25th.
by Linda Chin
I must have missed the memo. For the beautiful and ebullient crowd at the Emerson Colonial Theater attending the highly anticipated new Stephen Schwartz musical, hot pink and sequins were the colors of choice, minidresses to ballgowns with floor-grazing trains the length of choice, boas and bling the accessories of choice. The Queen of Versailles – starring Tony and Emmy award-winner Kristen Chenoweth as Jackie Siegel – is a rags-to-riches-to-rags musical that follows working-class teenager “Jackie Mallory, who has a minimum wage salary” and lives in Endwell, NJ. She gets a degree in engineering – part of her lifetime dream is to work at IBM – but gets “pulled in a new direction.” There are plenty of references and allusions to Broadway shows and pop culture, and product endorsements for McDonald’s and Louis Vuitton (“the two bags under my eyes”). The show is enjoying a pre-Broadway run through August 25 at the Emerson Colonial Theatre (location and date of the Broadway run to be announced at a later date), and if the response at the opening night performance I attended is any indication, audiences are already tickled pink with the production.
The Queen of Versailles’ running time is 2 hours and 45 minutes, including intermission, and the first act is 90 minutes long. The rousing applause the multi-generational patrons shower on Chenoweth and her stage husband, David Siegel (F. Murray Abraham), begins when they make their entrances (Jackie sitting on the film set on a throne befitting a queen, and David in a golf cart, donning a #I’mAsemi-retiredTimeshareKing outfit. Pre-Broadway tryouts give the creatives time to resculpt the script and musical numbers, test the audience response, add botox or fillers, and tuck and trim to build buzz and pre-sell tickets. Audience members should be prepared for an even longer event time and later Uber or Lyft pickup time. The petite Chenoweth belts one showstopping number after another without so much as breaking a sweat and dancing while wearing sparkly pink platforms.
Both Chenoweth and Abraham (an Oscar winner for “Amadeus”) are actors with strong emotional and vocal ranges. David’s songs “Trust Me” and “The Ballad of the Timeshare King” reveal the melancholy of their individual lives, and the theme of unexpected connection recurs throughout the show. The Siegel’s nanny, Sofia Flores (Melody Butiu), also adds her angst and acting acumen to the performance. Daughter Victoria (Nina White) gets her 10 minutes of fame when they perform the beautiful solo – “Pretty Always Wins,” and the duet “Pavane for a Dead Lizard” with her cousin Jonquil (Tatum Grace Hopkins) was one of the most moving moments. After the finale, audience members in the mid-center orchestra rose to their feet in a standing ovation when the first small group of ensemble members came onto stage, prompting a domino effect in every row behind them.
Costumes, sets, lighting, and sound design enhance the storytelling. Though the choreography was uplifting and well-executed, I would have definitely enjoyed seeing more dance numbers. Knowing more about the backstories of the featured characters, especially Sofia, Victoria, and Jackie’s niece Jonquil, who feel estranged from the wealth, overconsumption, and waste around them, made for a sad ending.
Will the generation of 99 percenters prevail? The Queen of Versailles offers hope that they will. For tickets and more information, go to www.emersoncolonialtheatre.com.
