Princess Diana is the subject of a new Broadway musical.
Diana: A True Musical Story will air on Netflix next year ahead of its Broadway debut.
This move is in response to the coronavirus pandemic, which has forced theatres across the globe to close.
An industry first, the big-budget musical will premiere on the streaming service before its planned May 25, 2021 Broadway premiere.
The cast will film in the coming months before an empty audience for the Netflix special.
Who is in Diana The Musical?
Filming will take place at Longacre Theatre, with Broadway heavyweight Christopher Ashley directly.
Broadway star Jeanna de Waal will take the lead as Princess Diana.
Jeanna has starred in past productions of Carrie: The Musical, Waitress and Kinky Boots – just to name a few.
Roe Hartrampf will be Prince Charles. Roe is reprising his role from the show’s original pre-Broadway run at La Jolla Playhouse.
Two-time Tony Award winner Judy Kaye will play the Queen.
Actor’s Equity Association has worked with the creators of Diana: A True Musical Story.
Netflix social distancing
They will ensure that a safe and social distancing environment is in place for the Netflix filming.
Equity Executive Director Mary McColl said in a statement: “Today, we can announce that we have approved a safety plan for Diana. Now comes the hard part – taking a safety plan from the page and putting it into practice.
“The work to provide the safest workplace possible in this environment will require everyone to work together, from the employer to every employee.”
The producers have spoken of their ‘honour’ to be premiering the musical on Netflix.
They said in a statement: “We speak for the entire company when we say that we couldn’t be more excited to finally be able share our show with theatre lovers everywhere.
“Though there is no substitute for the live theatre, we are honoured to be a part of the quality entertainment that Netflix provides its subscribers worldwide.”
Jeanna told Broadway.com that she has empathy for and a greater understanding of Princess Diana since taking on the role.
She said: “It was really up to her to find her strength. Everything that she became and is today was because she found that little nugget inside of herself to say, ‘I’m not going to let go.’
“She moulded that and grew to become this role model who is still very much in our zeitgeist today.
[Playing Diana], it’s helpful to be older than her when all this happened, so I could reflect on how complicated and challenging that must have been, considering how badly I handled my 20s with far fewer challenging moments.”
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