“I’m just so grateful to have something new to play with at this point in my career,” Chenoweth says while applying bubblegum pink blush. “I mean, it’s not like it’s just me standing onstage with a chair and a carpet—this is a brand-freaking-new, big ol’ honkin’ American musical!”
Ahead of the show’s Broadway bow in 2025, Chenoweth caught up with Vogue about developing The Queen of Versailles with Schwartz, doing 18 costume changes every night in Boston, and meeting the real-life Jackie.
Vogue: Take me back to when Stephen first approached you about this project.
Kristin Chenoweth: Our wonderful writer Lindsey came to Stephen first, because she’s from Florida and had met Jackie at a beach club. Her first impression was, This lady is like a Gypsy Rose, there needs to be a musical about her. So she went to Stephen, who went to our producer Bill Damaschke, who went to our director, Michael Arden, and they all called me at the beginning of COVID with this idea. Michael really had to talk me through his vision because I was immediately like, how is that gonna work?
Were you already familiar with the documentary?
I loved the documentary, but I wasn’t sure it would work as a musical. I told Stephen, “You know what, I’ll do a reading or two and see if it comes to me.” We started tinkering with part of act one three or four years ago—around the time COVID vaccines started rolling out. I showed up to that rehearsal and almost immediately started to fall in love with Jackie. It felt so much like it did with Wicked, because Glinda was very much a supporting character in that show. It was really Elphaba, Fiyero, and Madame Morrible’s show until it organically became Glinda’s as well.
