Linus Karp spills the T on the return of Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story
Queer icon and champion of the underrepresented, Princess Diana was also wife to the heir apparent of the UK at the time of her sudden and tragic death, which his family had nothing to do with… But this summer she visits her true people once more – the gays, returning from the afterlife in the di‑conic Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story. The show plays in previews across the UK before heading off to the Edinburgh Fringe, and we were excited to speak with Awkward Productions’ Linus Karp to find out more about this next reincarnation of the award-winning tale.
Hi Linus. It’s so great to speak with you again. It seems like we’re lucky to catch you in the country at all after your tours to the USA and around the UK and Ireland. Awkward Prods is literally going places!
For anyone yet to see Diana, can you tell us a bit about what to expect?
Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story is a loving celebration of Princess Diana through drag, puppetry, audience participation, musical numbers, multimedia and a lot of queer joy. We show you Diana’s life not necessarily as it happened, but maybe as it should’ve happened.
How was the show received in the USA? Are they big fans of the People’s Princess, and did they get your humour?
It was GREAT. The US audiences found the audience participation outrageous in the best way possible, and were so happy to get involved. Selling out in NYC really felt magical.
Diana’s coming back for the summer, but who’s coming with her? Which special guests can we look out for?
Depends on you, the audience! It’s always so exciting to see who’s going to play the roles in the show. Besides that, the show has such a wonderful digital cast – Geri Allen, who’s just gone into the Oh Mary! cast, IS the Queen, Rob Madge is Mother Teresa, Zina Badran plays God and actual Broadway Diana herself, Jeanna de Waal, appears in one of my favourite scenes ever. Oh, and some guy called Joseph Martin plays both Charles and Camilla: feels like he got cast from sleeping with the director though.
Prince Charles, who appears in the play as a cardboard cutout, is now King. Has this altered your portrayal of him at all?
I don’t think so. I think him becoming King has just helped to bring him to the forefront of people’s minds, alongside the Diana/Camilla love triangle and moments like tampon gate, which for this show is quite helpful.
And of course, there are three of us in this interview… Camilla is one of the most distinctive characters in the play, and one of the earliest of your signature puppets. Why do you enjoy working with non-humans?
Everything is better with puppets! With Diana I wanted to do a show with a big cast without having the budget for one. So puppets, cardboard cut outs, video appearances and audience members are all roped in to complete the cast. I am very proud of how Joseph performs the Camilla puppet and the genuine fear she instils in people.
The play has been a brilliant opportunity to highlight all the amazing support Diana gave to the gay community, but have you found it’s additionally got audiences interested in the other work she did for marginalised groups, such as the homeless and disabled?
It’s been amazing to see what a wide range of people come to the show because of Diana, and how much love people have for her. I thought I was making a show mainly for queer people my age, but all ages and people attend. We once had a woman bringing her friends along for her 80th birthday party – which was amazing. Whether people get involved in the causes Diana championed after the show I have no way of knowing, but through the show we have partnered and fundraised for many different charities, which I’m sure Diana would approve of.
Where is the show previewing before coming to the Arcola in London and heading to the Underbelly in Edinburgh?
Diana is currently on a mini tour, she’s playing Brighton on 1 July before heading to London. So excited to be at Arcola: Diana feels like she’d be an East London girlie today, so it seems correct.
Thanks very much to Linus for telling us about the exciting return of what is a truly heavenly production.
Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story plays at:
Arcola Theatre, London 6-11 July
Underbelly, Edinburgh 24-30 August
You can find other preview dates across the UK through the link below.
