Diana - Musical ****

🎭 REVIEW: Diana: The Musical — A Pop-Rock Crown for a People's Princess

There’s nothing subtle about Diana: The Musical—and that’s exactly the point. From the moment the lights go up and the electrifying anthem “To Be Unbreakable” (often misquoted as “To Be Underestimated”) tears through the theatre, we’re not watching a biography—we’re witnessing a glam-rock rebellion against the rigid world of royalty.

Directed with high-octane confidence and choreographed to the rhythm of a tabloid headline, Diana doesn't tiptoe through palace corridors—it struts in stilettos and guitar solos.

🎼 Opening Number: A Rallying Cry

The first number isn’t just a song; it’s a mission statement. Young Diana, bursting with wide-eyed charm and quiet fire, proclaims herself underestimated—and from that moment, she begins the slow-burning arc from bashful royal bride to defiant public icon.

The lyrics are sharp, the tempo infectious, and Jeanna de Waal’s Diana channels a kind of pop-theatre bravado that feels more Evita than The Crown. It's Broadway-meets-Buckingham, and surprisingly, it works.

👑 The Worst Job in England

The recurring theme—"The best girl gets the worst job in England"—could have easily been played for melodrama. But the musical, in a surprisingly self-aware tone, leans into the irony. It paints Diana not as a martyr, but as a woman trapped between an image and an institution.

She’s handed a crown, a camera flash, and a broken marriage—then expected to smile through it all. The show doesn’t pity her. It empowers her.

🎤 Performances: Pop Royals & Royal Pop

• Jeanna de Waal as Diana is undeniably the star. Her voice carries a rock-soprano intensity that breathes life into lyrics that range from sweet sincerity to full-throttle defiance. She’s not impersonating Diana—she’s interpreting her, with vulnerability and vocal verve.

• Roe Hartrampf gives Prince Charles a sharp edge, portraying a man both bound by duty and emotionally distant. His duets with Camilla (Erin Davie) are sly, layered, and eerily well-blended—a musical metaphor for their hidden affair.

• The ensemble brings the media circus to life, with camera shutters and headlines transformed into choreography and song. The paparazzi become percussion, and the stage becomes the tabloids.

🎵 Music & Lyrics: Camp Meets Catharsis

Composer David Bryan (yes, of Bon Jovi fame) and lyricist Joe DiPietro inject the score with pulsing beats, cheeky rhymes, and emotional ballads. The result? A jukebox-feel for a story that’s never had a jukebox.

Highlights include:

• “This Is How Your People Dance” — a witty take on class differences.

• “Pretty, Pretty Girl” — a haunting lullaby wrapped in public scrutiny.

• “If (Light the World)” — Diana’s emotional crescendo, sung with true heart.

Not every rhyme lands, and some lines border on clunky (“Harry, my ginger-haired son”), but the emotional undertow keeps the ship steady.

🎭 Staging & Spectacle

The staging swings between minimal and maximal. One moment we’re in a stately British hall, the next we’re swept into a charity gala in Angola. Costumes flash from 80s ruffles to the iconic revenge dress, and the lighting cues are as sharp as the Queen’s glare.

It’s camp. It’s big. It’s unapologetically theatrical.

⭐ Verdict: A Crown Jewel of Pop-Theatre?

Diana: The Musical is not subtle—and it’s not trying to be. It’s a power ballad disguised as history, a rock show dressed in royal blue. It may not win over purists, but it does something far more bold: it gives Diana a voice, and lets her sing above the noise.

With its beating heart, pulsing rhythm, and glittering ambition, Diana reminds us why the People’s Princess became more than just a royal headline.

And maybe, just maybe, being underestimated was her greatest strength.