Princess Diana, the musical for Lloyd-Webber?
Added: (Tue Apr 22 2008)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
Forget the satirical student's effort at Brighton - there is a full professional musical ready for production and has been for a few years.
Conscious though that there has been considerable coverage of late during the Diana inquest, the UK agents (Stagescripts Ltd) have up to now not felt it appropriate to market the musical very strongly in the UK, although it has been made available to amateur drama groups.
It is a musical of our time with music written in a contemporary style eminently suitable for the West End - indeed, for most of last year, after 'anglicising' the dialogue, a production company in Germany planned to tour a full scale professional production throughout Germany and Austria. Rehearsals were at a very advanced stage, sets and costumes were ready and tickets were selling, but for financial reasons the production had to be cancelled.
To have been selected though for a professional production speaks volumes about the suitability of this musical for a general theatre audience.
The musical is a celebration of Diana's life, setting out the problems and passions she faced in her short life in a thoughtful, emotional and generally un-critical way, and presented on stage in a way that is powerful and exciting, amusing and entertaining. It finishes prior to her death and does not introduce the al-Fayed connection.
On Radio One yesterday, DJ Scott Mills jokingly suggested that next for years 'Nancy & Oliver' Andrew Lloyd-Webber might like to choose Princess Di and Charles to appear on the West End stage in 'Princess Diana, the Musical'. A bold step, maybe, controversial even, but a guaranteed success!
ENDS
The web page on our amateurs web site is here ...
http://www.playsandmusicals.co.uk/musicals/twoact/drama/diana.htm
where song clips can be heard.
David Waters
Managing Director
Stagescripts Ltd