The Queen of Versailles will soon hold court on Broadway. The new musical is based on Lauren Greenfield’s award-winning 2012 documentary film of the same name and the life stories of Jackie and David Siegel.
The film depicts the billionaire real estate couple, who were triumphantly building the biggest house in America for more...
themselves—a sprawling 90,000-square-foot palace inspired by Versailles—when their timeshare empire falters and the economic crisis hits…
The film received positive reviews and currently has a 95% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes. It won the US Directing Award at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and was nominated for the Critics' Choice Award for Best Documentary Feature.
In early 2023 it was officially announced that Tony winner Kristin Chenoweth would reteam with composer Stephen Schwartz for a musicalized version of the story. The musical also features a book by Lindsey Ferrentino, direction by Tony Award winner Michael Arden and choreography by Lauren Yalango-Grant & Christopher Cree Grant.
In the musical, Chenoweth leads the company as beauty queen, socialite and TV personality Jacqueline “Jackie” Siegel. From computer engineer to Mrs. Florida to billionairess, Jackie Siegel sees herself as the embodiment of the American Dream. Now, as the wife of David "The Timeshare King" Siegel and mother of their eight children, they invite us to behold their most grandiose venture yet: they're building the largest private home in America in Orlando, Florida – a $100 million house big enough for her dreams and inspired by the Palace of Versailles. But with the Great Recession of 2008 looming, Jackie and David's dreams begin tocrumble, along with their lavish lifestyle. The Queen of Versailles explores the true cost of fame, fortune, and family.
The musical premeiered at Boston’s historic Emerson Colonial Theatre in a limited six-week run- Tuesday, July 16 through Sunday, August 25, 2024. In the Boston engagement, Chenoweth was joined by F. Murray Abraham as David Siegel, Melody Butiu as Sofia, and Nina White as Victoria Siegel.
