Hold on to your pillbox hat: a musical comedy is coming which exposes some of the darker sides of the famous Kennedy dynasty. As the title suggests, the focus is on America’s beloved former first lady, Jacqueline Kennedy; in particular how young socialite Jacqueline Bouvier became a globally famous political wife... and those exclamation marks hint that this show will not be played totally straight.

‘Though Jackie!!! tackles serious issues, it absolutely does not take itself seriously,’ admits Blair Russell, the American theatre producer and Tony Award nominee who has worked on Broadway, and previously brought shows like Lizard Boy, Diva: Live From Hell! and Pop Off, Michelangelo! to the Fringe. ‘It’s not high camp like Pop Off, Michelangelo!, but it maintains a similar level of fun and irreverence as a take on a historical narrative. The characters are highly caricatured and the show uses a lot of dark humour to expose the insanity of some of the events which happened in this period of history.’

To research the play, Russell and the writing team (Joe McNeice, Max Alexander-Taylor and Nancy Edwards) spent a lot of time reading biographies and scouring the internet for insights on Jackie and the Kennedy family. They pored over documentaries and interviews, including A Tour Of The White House With Mrs John F Kennedy, a primetime TV special which aired in 1962. ‘I spoke to my grandparents about Jackie,’ says Russell. ‘My nan recounted her memory of watching Jackie exit Air Force One covered in her husband’s blood, which really demonstrates the lasting impact of her legacy in the UK as well as in the US.’

Mrs JFK spent many years in the public eye and was named Time magazine’s Woman Of The Year when she was 33. After her husband’s assassination in 1963, she went on to marry Greek shipping magnate, Aristotle Onassis. She was a paparazzi favourite and became known globally as Jackie O. But, of course, Russell and his team had to make some editorial decisions about which elements of her story stayed in the script.

‘Our play spans nearly 20 years of Jackie’s life in an hour, so we definitely had a different task than the 2016 film [Jackie starring Natalie Portman], which focuses on Jackie post-JFK’s assassination, or the Katie Holmes mini-series [The Kennedys, 2011] which focuses purely on the Kennedys. In our show, we really wanted to focus on Jackie, and the tough ultimatums that she was often put through as someone who was in an extremely visible and complicated family of immense power and dark secrecy. Our Jackie is ambitious and driven from the outset. Starting out as a young journalist, Jackie wants to break away from society’s expectations of her as a debutante, striving to be anything but a housewife. Although she is conflicted throughout the play, Jackie remains strong in her convictions, and is led by her devotion to art, culture and the values of her country.’

Besides the glamorous, scandalous plot and singular, stylish lead character, let’s not forget the score, which Russell describes as ‘steeped’ in a very classic musical-theatre sound. ‘The score evokes the fabulous 50s and swinging 60s, with little musical-theatre easter eggs planted throughout for discerning fans in the audience. The sound-world is at times presidential, with fanfare aplenty, but it’s also got flashes of lots of genres, from lilting ballads to shredding rock, with a psychedelic drug trip to boot!’

Jackie!!!, Gilded Balloon Patter House, Wednesday 30 July–Monday 25 August, 6.30pm.

Others to see: Musicals about real people

The former First Lady who suffered the trauma of having her husband cheat on her all too publicly before scrambling to rescue his brain in the motorcade on that fateful November day in 1963 isn’t the only one having their famous life turned into a musical this August. A treat is in store for fans of King Danjong who was a mere lad when he became the Korean leader way back in the 15th century. 1457, The Boy At Rest (Assembly George Square Studios, 31 July–24 August, 2.45pm) tells the tale. Another ancient historical figure is portrayed in musical form via Charles II: Living Libido Loca (CC Blooms, 3–23 August, 5.30pm), a title barely anyone could argue with, surely? It’s ‘raunchy’, ‘spicy’ and rammed with the aforementioned libido.

In slightly more modern(ish) developments, Shake It Away: The Ann Miller Story (Space Surgeons’ Hall, 1–9 August, 1.50pm) recalls the actress who worked with everyone from the Marx Brothers to David Lynch, which seems almost too remarkable to be true. Helen Shapiro Walkin’ Back (Greenside George Street, 18–23 August, 7.40pm) tracks the early life of a singer who gained popularity and chart hits as a mere 15-year-old. More disturbing territory is covered, albeit from a defiantly feminist perspective, in Jack (Space Surgeons’ Hall, 1–16 August, 7.05pm) which explores the brutality of London’s Ripper through the eyes of his final victim, Mary Kelly. And before you shut down, Nerds (Underbelly Bristo Square, 30 July–25 August, 12.30pm) examines the heated rivalry between Steve Jobs and Bill Gates.