Titanique Opens on Broadway: Céline Dion, Camp and Chaos Take the Stage
Jim Parsons, Marla Mindelle and more dish on bringing the over-the-top Titanic parody to Broadway audiences
What to Know
- Titanique—a campy, Céline Dion-narrated retelling of Titanic—officially opened on Broadway on April 12 after a successful off-Broadway run
- Star Marla Mindelle leads the musical alongside Jim Parsons, Frankie Grande and Constantine Rousouli, blending comedy, drag and queer joy into a 90-minute show
- Created from Rousouli’s spontaneous idea, the hit production celebrates over-the-top humor, iconic music and a high-energy Broadway opening night
Titanique, the campy retelling of James Cameron’s 1997 film through the eyes of one Céline Dion, opened on Broadway on April 12. Directed by co-writer Tye Blue, the production transfers to Broadway following its popular off-Broadway run. The heart of the ocean sparkles almost as much as the cast and crew, whom Broadway.com spoke to on the opening night red carpet.
The show’s star and Dion doppelgänger Marla Mindelle loves that she is “a vessel to the greatest singer in the world.” Her purpose in the show, she explains, “is to bring joy for 90 minutes.”
Constantine Rousouli, who plays the romantic lead Jack Dawson, originally had the idea for Titanique. “This is a random idea that I had in a bar, wasted,” he says. The message here being, “Follow your intuition. Sky’s the limit. You can do anything you put your mind to.”
Jim Parsons, who previously told Broadway.com that he has been waiting to return to drag, immediately jumped on board the ship when the offer came in. “I got an email from my agent one day that said, ‘Offer: Titanique,’” Parsons recalls. “As soon as I opened it and it said, ‘You’ve been offered the role of Rose’s mother, Ruth,’ I said, ‘Oh, I’m doing it.’”
Frankie Grande, previously on Broadway in Mamma Mia! and Rock of Ages, is having his most raucous experience yet in Titanique. “I love that we get to infuse queer joy into 1,400 people every single night,” Grande says. “We’re all unapologetically having the best time of our lives.”
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