The curtain is set to fall prematurely on “The Queen of Versailles,” marking a swift conclusion to Kristin Chenoweth‘s vibrant return to Broadway as the flamboyant reality TV personality Jackie Siegel.
Producers announced the decision to end the lavish musical—boasting a score by “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz—just over two weeks after its official debut at the St. James Theatre on November 9.
The show is scheduled to close on January 4.
Produced by Chenoweth, who holds Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Awards, “The Queen of Versailles” is a stage adaptation of Lauren Greenfield’s 2012 documentary. The story portrays a wealthy Orlando couple’s extravagant ambition to construct the largest home in America—a replica of the opulent Versailles palace near Paris, home to King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette during the French Revolution—only to see their grand plans unravel during the Great Recession.
The production, also starring Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham as Siegel’s husband, David, marked the first time Chenoweth and Schwartz worked together on Broadway since “Wicked” premiered in 2003.
The musical was performing respectably at the box office, bringing in over $5.5 million from nine performances and 32 previews. However, this wasn’t sufficient for the producers to sustain the show. As reported by The New York Times, the production had a capitalization cost of approximately $22.5 million.
While New York Daily News critic Chris Jones praised Chenoweth for her “singular combo of raw determination and a beguilingly empathetic commitment to veracity,” other reviews were less favorable.
Entertainment Weekly said the musical “toggles between different modus operandi — in this case, campy comedic sendup, surface level social commentary on income inequality, dark family drama, and French historical farce — and does none of them particularly well.”
Associated Press critic Mark Kennedy wrote the “story waffles between ridicule and championing Siegel’s pie-in-the-sky vision, failing at biting satire and ultimately losing a chance to say something about wealth inequality as America flirts with economic disaster again.”
Also, Chenoweth herself has been the subject of widespread backlash after expressing sadness over the death of polarizing Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, known for espousing what many viewed of racist or homophobic viewpoints.
The actress — a prominent advocate of LGBTQ+ rights — has been largely silent on the controversy, but said in an interview earlier this month that the blowback “nearly broke” her.
