SyncBlog

De Waal is capable, if a bit stiff, as Diana, with a propensity for standing motionless with her hands folded politely in front of her. This is especially awkward during the song “The Rage” when Charles is scolding her. She’s supposed to be unsure of herself as the younger Diana but barely registers as someone who ultimately will have a profound impact on everyone she meets, especially later in her life when she’s clever enough to shine her constant limelight on causes like AIDS and landmines.

She is, however, up for the multitude of wardrobe changes asked of her—many of which occur right before us, and with a bit of trickery. Diana was, after all, a fashion icon, so there’s an entire song (“The Dress”) devoted to the sexy, black revenge number she wore to a gallery dinner while Charles was on television admitting he’d been unfaithful with Camilla Parker Bowles (Erin Davie). And when de Waal steps into Diana’s behemoth pouf of a wedding gown, I had to rewind and re-watch three times trying to figure out how she did it, so seamless is the sorcery. (Costume designer William Ivey Long recreates dozens of Diana’s most famous outfits, including the sweater with the little sheep on it.)

But speaking of Parker Bowles, Davie nearly steals “Diana” away from Diana herself as Charles’ longtime true love, pulling the strings behind the scenes. She has a much more powerful voice and sparky stage presence. And the veteran Judy Kaye pulls double duty as both Queen Elizabeth II and romance writer Barbara Cartland, Diana’s step-grandmother, giving her room to be both haughty and saucy. As the Queen, she also gets to show off her vocal range while telling her own story in the second-act tune, “An Officer’s Wife.”

Despite a few musical bright spots, you’ll leave humming the costumes.

On Netflix today.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7s7vGnqmempWnwW%2BvzqZmq52mnrK4v46doJqmkWLBqbGMpqysoZOWuW65zq%2BgnmWimsOqsdZmaWlqYQ%3D%3D