In an unexpected but exciting turn of events for any royal fan, Diana: A True Musical Story will head to Netflix in early 2021. The musical, about the late-life of royal Diana Spencer, was only a week and a half into its Broadway previews—slated for a March 31 opening—when it was forced to shut its doors due to the coronavirus pandemic. But on Wednesday, the show's producers announced the musical would now first premiere on the streaming giant before its new Broadway opening on May 25, 2021. The performance will join a lineup of other live shows already on Netflix, including Kerry Washington's American Son and Shrek the Musical.
"We speak for the entire company when we say that we couldn't be more excited to finally be able to share our show with theater lovers everywhere. Though there is no substitute for the live theater, we are honored to be a part of the quality entertainment that Netflix provides its subscribers worldwide," the show's producers said of the unprecedented move, per The Hollywood Reporter.
The musical event reportedly will be filmed soon, featuring the musical's original cast at the Longacre Theater in New York City. An audience won't be present, because—hello— COVID-19.
Jeanna de Waal, who stars as the late-People's Princess, previously discussed with PEOPLE the challenges of playing someone who is so adored worldwide. "People, within like two seconds of seeing you, are going to decide: they either buy it or they don't," said de Waal. "If they don't buy it, it's going to be hard for them to enjoy the story and get lost in it."
We can't say yet if the musical will be good or not, but we do know that we're already fans of making theater more accessible.
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