Seeing a cruise ship under construction is a little like seeing a theatrical play in rehearsal. It’s not polished, but you can get a sense of the finished production. If a recent backstage tour of Cunard Line’s new Queen Elizabeth is any indication, the completed ship will make a grand entrance when she begins sailing in October.

Last Friday, my husband, Paul Lasley, and I joined seven other U.S. journalists at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, for a preview of the 90,400-gross ton, 2,092-passenger ship.

“At this stage in the construction, as soon as something is complete, it’s covered up,” said Cunard president Peter Shanks, as we all donned hard hats and entered the ship. So we walked on newly-laid carpet that had been covered with plastic and passed newly-installed balustrades that had been cloaked in cardboard-like material. But as we navigated the decks, ducking to avoid hanging wires, an image of the soon-to-be-finished ship began to take shape. The vessel promises to be a thoroughly modern creation inspired by some icons of maritime history.

“This ship carries a grand heritage,” said Shanks, noting that she’ll be the third to carry the Queen Elizabeth name. The RMS Queen Elizabeth, which was launched in 1938 and sailed until 1968, was named for and christened by Queen Elizabeth, the mother of Queen Elizabeth II, Great Britain’s current monarch. RMS Queen Elizabeth 2, or QE2, which was in service from 1969 to 2008, was named—not, as many surmise—for Queen Elizabeth II, but because she was the second Queen Elizabeth liner. (The new Queen Elizabeth won’t be called QE3, it was explained, because currently there’s no other Queen Elizabeth ship.)


“The overall design of the ship is art deco, paying homage to the Cunard ships that have gone before,” said art consultant Amy Lucena, standing in the Grand Lobby, a three-deck-high atrium near the ship’s center. (artist's rendering, right) Indicating a space behind her some 18 and a half feet tall, she said, “Here in the Grand Lobby will be a wood marquetry panel depicting the original Queen Elizabeth.” David Linley, the queen’s nephew and son of the late Princess Margaret and photographer Lord Snowdon, created the art work, which is made of wood veneers including American walnut, Indian ebony, gray ripple sycamore, and bird’s eye maple.

Art deco-inspired marquetry lines the walls in the two-deck-high Britannia Restaurant, the ship’s main dining room, which has a grand double staircase; and a 1930s-era British globe decorates the two-deck-high library, which will offer some 6,000 books (artist's rendering below). Lucena and her team scoured antiques stores in search of photos and memorabilia from the earlier Elizabeth ships, and many of their finds are on display in Cunard Place, a kind of shipboard museum/gallery, and in the midships bar, where three display cases exhibit treasures such as QE2 square teapots and a small model of the original Queen Elizabeth.

The ship’s specialty restaurant borrows a concept from the original Queen Elizabeth. Along with the first Queen Mary, the first Queen Elizabeth had a restaurant called The Verandah Grill, which was celebrated for offering some of the finest dining at sea. The new Queen Elizabeth will have The Verandah. “It will offer classic French cuisine with a contemporary flair,” said Shanks, as we stood in a bare room that will eventually feature quiet booths and soft lighting. “Passengers can dine here for a special evening out aboard the ship.” Cunard’s global culinary ambassador Jean-Marie Zimmerman has created the menus for The Verandah, which will command a $30–$35 surcharge for three courses. (Charges here might be on an a la carte basis, said Shanks.)

Cunard plans to celebrate tradition in the ship’s activities, too. While offering a fitness center with the latest equipment and a spa with a hydrotherapy pool, the new Queen Elizabeth will also feature—on its Sports Deck—old-fashioned games that were popular during the 1930s: croquet, paddle tennis, and English bowles. (artist's rendering, right)

In its entertainment, though, the Queen Elizabeth is charting new waters. The Queen Elizabeth Theatre Company will be a repertory group at sea. More than 20 actors, singers, and dancers will present everything from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night to Neil Simon comedies to cabaret-style performances to full-scale musical productions. “Having a company of performers from different disciplines allows us to offer a greater variety of shows,” said Cunard’s entertainment director Martin Lilly, standing in front of the stage in the three-deck-high Royal Court Theatre, where workmen had paused their welding, pounding, and polishing long enough for him to chat with us.

Some three and a half hours after we’d boarded the Queen Elizabeth, we disembarked, handing our hard hats over to Fincantieri workers. I took a final look at the huge, graceful vessel that towered above me. Floating there at the shipyard dock, she reminded me of a performer waiting in the wings. When she makes her debut in October, she’ll likely do her two older sisters proud.

Queen Elizabeth will begin sailing October 12, 2010, when she’ll depart Southampton, England, on her maiden voyage. After a series of European cruises and one Caribbean voyage, she’ll begin a 103-day world cruise on January 5, 2011.