Kristin Chenoweth Leads a Mess
In 2012, award-winning documentarian Lauren Greenfield’s film, “The Queen of Versailles,” became a Sundance darling. The documentary followed Jackie and David Siegel, billionaires and owners of Westgate Resorts, as they began building a replica of Versailles in Orlando, Florida. The property was touted as the largest private home in the United States. However, amid their massive build, the 2008 stock market crash drastically altered the couple’s financial status. Now, with a script written by Olivier Award nominee Lindsey Ferrentino, songs by Academy Award–winning songwriter Stephen Schwartz and directed by Tony Award winner Michael Arden, Kristin Chenoweth is stepping into Jackie Siegel’s sparkling pink stilettos and bringing her story to Broadway. Unfortunately, Greenfield’s dazzling assessment of greed, consumption and the American dream doesn’t translate on the stage.
“The Queen of Versailles” opens in France in 1661, with 23-year-old King Louis XIV (Pablo David Lauccerica) deciding to build what would become Versailles. Zipping forward in time to 2007, the audience then meets Jackie (Chenoweth), who, while sitting in the middle of a construction site in front of a camera crew, talks about building her own palace, her seven children and why it’s always essential to supersize things (including McDonald’s) when the option is given.
Shortly thereafter, we are introduced to David (F. Murray Abraham), Jackie’s much-older husband, who seems content to indulge (and fund) his wife’s shenanigans, especially since there are plans to have a Benihana on the meg-mansion’s grounds. From there, across two acts, the socialite welcomes audiences into her world. We learn more about her upbringing and how she worked several jobs to support herself while attending engineering school. The show also touches on her violent first marriage to her eldest daughter’s biological father, as well as her meet-cute and courtship with David. Meanwhile, endless construction, the Siegels’ lavish (but tacky) lifestyle and their chaotic family life buzz in the background.
“The Queen of Versailles” certainly has more than a few stunning elements. The scenic and video design by Dane Laffery is flawless, transporting audiences between 17th-century France and early 2000s Florida. Additionally, costumes spearheaded by Christian Cowan showcase who Jackie is before she even opens her mouth. From a bedazzled Hermes’ tote covered in red, blue and white to match the French flag to her over-the-top beaded gowns and penchant for gold and glitter, her presence immediately screams new money.
The performances, including a megatallented ensemble, are also excellent. As expected, Chenoweth is a force, and though Jackie isn’t really a “likable” figure, the Emmy Award winner draws out aspects of her personality that offer glimmers of sympathy for this toxicly positive billionaire woman. Abraham doesn’t really sing. Still, he delivers a perfect David, a crochety old man, only pleased if his pockets are fat. Moreover, Nina White and Tatum Grace Hopkins, who portrayed Jackie’s daughter Victoria and niece Jonquil, respectively, stand alongside Chenoweth with their own powerhouse vocals.
Yet the play’s positive components do not make up for its faults. Broadway is the wrong medium for this story. Musicalizing the story does little to ground the audience in Jackie’s world and instead pulls and stretches the tale, when the themes alone could speak for themselves. The narrative would actually soar if it were given feature-film treatment. Additionally, adding the musical element further bastardizes this tale. Except for “Caviar Dreams,” the third song in Act One, none of the other selections are particularly memorable. Though the opening act is fairly intriguing, by the second act, the nearly three-hour-long performance began to drag, especially as the show’s tone shifted drastically.
Taking a documentary and translating it on the Broadway stage was always going to be an ambitious endeavor, and when creatives attempt such feats, they should be celebrated. However, this entry into the Siegels’ world fails to land. Removing several of the music numbers and condensing “The Queen of Versailles” to cut specific sequences, such as Jackie’s upbringing and even scenes involving the French Revolution (though delightful), would make for a much more tonally focused and engaging production. In the end, some stories are best left for the silver screen.
