Jeanna de Waal as Diana (Photo: Evan Zimmerman, MurphyMade)
Your royal highness shall return! The musical adaptation of the life of Diana, Princess of Wales, will return in two forms over the next few months: first as a Netflix stage-to-video presentation and finally back on Broadway later this year.
Diana the musical had been playing at the Longacre Theatre on Broadway when it halted performances last March due to COVID. Now, the highly anticipated musical, which had not yet enjoyed its opening night, will dazzle audiences online on Netflix, where the show will stream beginning October 1. (The production was filmed last fall.) The musical will then return to Broadway, assuming vaccinations take hold and it is safe to do so, on December 1 with an opening night set for December 16, 2021. Tickets are now on sale for the Broadway production and start at $49.
Jeanna da Waal as Diana. (Photo: Evan Zimmerman, MurphyMade/Matt Murphy)
“The chance to share our show, first with Netflix’s global audience, and then welcoming a live audience back on Broadway, is something we’ve all been dreaming about for more than a year. We could not be more thrilled to finally share both the film and the Broadway musical with the world,” producers Beth Williams, Frank Marshall and The Araca Group said in a statement.
The late Princess Di is very much back in popular conscience: she was fictionalized in the most recent season of “The Crown,” is the subject of a multi-episode series on the podcast “You’re Wrong About,” will be played by Kristen Stewart in an upcoming movie, and is now being musicalized in a splashy Broadway show.
Thrust into a spotlight brighter than any the world had ever known, Princess Diana soon finds herself at odds with her husband, an unrelenting news media, and the monarchy itself in this musical adaptation. Leading fiercely with her heart, Diana stands up for her family, country, and herself while managing to capture the world’s heart. She defied expectations, she rocked the royals and she created a legacy that will endure forever.
Diana the musical features a book and lyrics by Joe DiPietro, music and lyrics by David Bryan, direction by Tony Award-winner Christopher Ashley (Come From Away), and choreography by Kelly Devine. Enjoy it on Netflix this fall, and then catch it on Broadway shortly thereafter!
