Marla Mindelle and Constantine Rousouli never set out to make musical theatre history. They just wanted to make each other laugh.

By Ricky Anderson

It’s been called the show of dreams. And it was. It really, actually, is.

Titanique creators Ty Blue, Marla Mindelle and Costantine Rousouli

What began as a chaotic, Céline-soaked inside joke between friends Marla Mindelle and Constantine Rousouli has transformed into Titanique—the Olivier Award–winning, Lucille Lortel–lauded, wave-making juggernaut that has now docked in cities around the globe, including London, Paris, Australia, and Chicago, with no signs of slowing. With over 1,200 New York performances and counting, the show is a full-blown theatrical anomaly: a cult hit that’s become a commercial smash, a parody with real emotional stakes, and a jukebox musical that somehow feels like the future.

But how did a musical that opens with Céline Dion hijacking a Titanic museum tour become one of the most talked-about theatrical exports in recent memory?

Taking Chances

What do you say to… moving across the country? Longtime friends and self-proclaimed “theatre monsters,” Mindelle and Rousouli were ready to take the leap—and bet on “making it” in Los Angeles.

“We had both spent a decade in New York, working back-to-back in Broadway shows,” Mindelle recalls. “By the end of our twenties, we were like, ‘There’s got to be something better than this.’”

“I was like, ‘How hard can this be? We’ve already done four or five Broadway shows,’” Rousouli adds, laughing. “‘I’m going to get a TV show tomorrow.’ Well—L-O-fucking-L.”

Fame and success didn’t arrive overnight—or even close. What followed was a string of humbling gigs. But eventually, the two reunited at Rockwell Table & Stage, a dinner theater in Los Feliz, where they performed in and co-wrote musical movie parodies, from Scream to Troop Beverly Hills.

Then one night in 2016, over a glass of Sauvignon Blanc and a martini, lightning struck. “I think the next musical we should do at this dinner theater,” Rousouli said, “is a Céline Dion musical with all of her songs—and make it a parody of Titanic.”

“No thanks,” was Mindelle’s initial response. But once they started riffing on Dion’s iconic mannerisms—spiraling down a YouTube rabbit hole of her greatest (and weirdest) hits—their mutual obsession with Titanic gave shape to a fever-dream musical mashup.

And just like that, Titanique was born.

It’s All Coming Back to Them Now

A sweltering hot reading in Burbank had the makings of a quintessential theater nightmare. But when the show went over “shockingly well” with the audience, it confirmed for Mindelle and Rousouli that maybe this wasn’t just funny to them. “We were like, ‘Wait… maybe this is New York good?’” Mindelle recalls.

By 2018, the self-funded show premiered in New York at Green Room 42. “We did a week of staged readings, and the thing completely sold out—becoming this overnight cult success,” she says.

It wasn’t until the pandemic derailed their plans for a larger staging that they re-teamed with director Tye Blue and musical arranger Nicholas Connell to dream even bigger. The show reopened Off-Broadway at The Asylum NYC in 2022—and quickly snowballed into a full-on sensation. “It just exploded,” Rousouli says, still somewhat dazed. “The audience reaction was electric.”

After eight extensions and a move to the Daryl Roth Theatre, Titanique has played to rapturous crowds for over three years—and counting.

So what’s the secret to Titanique’s unsinkable success?

For starters, it doesn’t just spoof Titanic or Céline Dion—it pays loving tribute to both. Mindelle’s performance as the Québécoise queen of pop is outrageous and oddly spiritual, channeling Céline’s signature blend of sincerity and self-parody. Rousouli, who stars as a lip-glossed Jack, somehow turns being shirtless, ridiculous, and deeply committed into a full-blown character arc.

“We rake the movie over the coals,” Mindelle laughs, “but our love for Céline is real. It’s a love letter.”

That authenticity resonates—especially with Céline’s own inner circle. “Her manager came backstage crying,” Rousouli says. “He told us, ‘I never thought I’d hear her songs again in a theater.’” The singer herself hasn’t seen the show yet, but nearly everyone in her orbit has—from her backup dancers to her sister Claudette Dion. “They’ve all said how meaningful it is to see her legacy celebrated this way,” says Mindelle. “It’s surreal.”

Because You Loved It

Audiences have refused to leave Titanique all by itself. “At the first preview at The Asylum, I’d never heard an audience laugh harder in my entire life,” Mindelle recalls. Even the producing team admitted they had “never seen a response like this on anything they’d produced.”

Now, with six international sit-downs—London, Paris, Canada, Australia, Chicago, and New York—and more unannounced productions in the pipeline, Mindelle and Rousouli are fielding a question they never dared ask in the early days: Is a Broadway transfer next?

“We hope so,” says Mindelle. “If this show can sail across the world, why can’t it sail back into New York?” She pauses. “We always find a way.”

The success with audiences around the world hasn’t just expanded their horizons—it’s blown them wide open. The duo is now developing a show with Lorne Michaels’ production company, after testing for Saturday Night Live and catching the attention of the comedy godfather himself. “Titanique made us creators,” says Mindelle. “We’re not just actors anymore—we’re building new worlds.”

A New Diva Has Come?

So where does their heart beat now? With more divas, of course.

Rousouli’s ultimate trifecta is Whitney, Mariah, and Céline. Mindelle leans toward “J.Lo,” she adds, half-joking, “or Ariana. We might need to tie her team to a railroad to get the rights.” And what about Patti LuPone? “Always,” they say in unison. “And Barbra,” Mindelle adds. “Obviously.”

At the end of the day, the power of Titanique lies not in its spoof, but in its sincerity—its belief that camp, comedy, and catharsis can co-exist. It’s about healing through laughter, celebrating the absurd, and belting your lungs out like it’s the last night on the RMS Titanic.

“You haven’t seen the last of us,” Rousouli promises.

Titanique is ultimately a show with a lot of heart—one that will go on and on and on.