Movie critics have given generally unfavorable reviews to the Netflix live film of the upcoming Broadway musical Diana, which features a cast led by Jeanna de Waal (Diana), Roe Hartrampf (Prince Charles), Erin Davie (Camilla Parker Bowles), and Judy Kaye (Queen Elizabeth). The creative team includes Joe DiPietro (book, lyrics), David Bryan (music, lyrics), Christopher Ashley (direction), Kelly Devine (choreography), David Zinn (sets), William Ivey Long (costumes), Natasha Katz (lights), Gareth Owen (sound), Paul Huntley (wigs), Angelina Avallone, (makeup), John Clancy (orchestrations), and Ian Eisendrath (musical supervision, arrangements). The stage production resumes performances Nov. 2, 2021, with opening night set for Nov. 17.
Boston Globe (Don Aucoin): To judge by the unpleasant aroma of exploitation that suffuses the superficial Diana, … cashing in on her name and enduring mystique is the primary motive behind its creation. As biography, Diana is shallow and reductive, checking the boxes of an extremely well-known story with numbing predictability. As musical theater, Diana is a forgettable farrago of painfully on-the-nose lyrics and clashing song styles that ventures perilously close to camp. 1-1/2 out of 4 stars.
CNN (Brian Lowry): Filtering Diana Spencer’s journey from wide-eyed 19-year-old through her divorce from Prince Charles feels a little too been-there, seen-that … which ratchets up pressure on the music and staging to bring something lustrous and distinctive to this template. Despite flashes of wit and abundant talent, a first viewing doesn’t find much that rises to that level. … What’s billed as a “special presentation” becomes another shiny bauble that ultimately doesn’t feel particularly special.
Evening Standard (Jessie Thompson): The whole thing feels like the result of someone who read Tina Brown’s The Diana Chronicles on a sun-lounger, semi-pissed on margaritas while listening to Aerosmith. Actually, no, that makes it sound quite good. … This didn’t have to be a terrible idea. After all, Diana’s life was dramatic. But she was also funny and knowing. Other than a tongue-in-cheek cameo from Barbara Cartland … what’s missing is humor and self-awareness. 1 out of 5 stars.
Guardian (Peter Bradshaw): Springtime for glamour and victimhood, winter for Windsors and Charles. Netflix have now given us the filmed version of the entirely gobsmacking and jaw-dropping Broadway show Diana. … Only by having Diana ride on stage on the back of a Jellicle cat could this be more bizarre. If it was deliberate satire it would be genius, but it’s not. It’s a saucer-eyed retelling of the life of Diana. … This is a Rocky Horror Picture Show of cluelessness. 1 out of 5 stars.
MSN (Sarah Carson): Really, it’s not bad at all. Ultimately the only thing I was left slightly struggling with was the exact point: DiPietro’s central thesis is to portray Diana in a positive, uplifting light as a woman who overcame adversity to find and better herself. … But if you’re somebody who struggles to find the British monarchy especially interesting, there’s maybe a sense of consequentiality missing. … Still, it’s good-natured fun with a big heart, probably best enjoyed after a couple of white wine spritzers.
Roger Ebert (Christy Lemire): You’ll probably find this song-and-dance extravaganza about the Princess of Wales to be frustratingly empty. … Diana: The Musical adds nothing novel or substantial to our understanding of her as a wife, mother, royal or celebrity. She remains one of the most famous and talked-about people on the planet, but this production merely rehashes in rushed, glossy fashion what we already know about her. 1-1/2 out of 4 stars.