Under a veil of deep secrecy George Lucas begins production of the Star Wars prequel in June 1997. (Originally it's set for September, but he moves it up because of Natalie's school schedule.) Natalie spends the summer shooting her dual role of Amidala/Padme at the Leavesden Studios near London, and on location at the La Reggia di Caserta palace near Naples, Italy and the desert site Onk Ejmel in Tunisia. The filming turns out to be very tedious and technical, with long hours spent hitting marks in front of bluescreens, and Natalie later says that for the first time acting seems like real work to her.
	When Natalie returns to the US she begins a drastically different acting experience as rehearsals for The Diary of Anne Frank start. After rehearsing through September the production holds three weeks of previews at the Colonial Theater in Boston from mid-October to mid-November, then returns to New York for another week of previews in late November. The play officially opens on Broadway at the Music Box Theater on December 4. Natalie receives excellent reviews from the merciless New York theater critics, and the show is a hit with audiences.
	The play's success is a mixed blessing for Natalie--her Stakhanovite schedule calls for her to perform the play eight times a week in Manhattan while also attending high school full-time on Long Island. Amazingly, she keeps this up for the entire school year. After working on the play for ten straight months, she gives her final performance as Anne Frank on May 31; without her, the play closes a few weeks later. · 1997: September        Beyond Beauty · 1997: September 8     New York magazine · 1997: October            Boston magazine · 1997: November        Harpers Bazaar magazine · 1997: November        W magazine · 1997: November 24   Fourth appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman · 1997: November 27   Time Out New York · 1997: December 1      Second appearance on the Today Show · 1997: December 5      Opening night review from the New York Times · 1997: December 15    Newsweek magazine · 1998: January             Article written by Natalie in Seventeen magazine · 1998: January 9          Appearance on the Rosie O'Donnell Show · 1998: April                 Vanity Fair "Hollywood 1998" issue · 1998: May 8               The New York Times
	After leaving Anne Frank, Natalie spends her summer vacation of 1998 shooting the mother-daughter drama Anywhere But Here with Susan Sarandon. In the fall she begins her senior year of high school. In April 1999, as massive hype builds about the release of Star Wars Episode I, Natalie signs on to appear in another "chick flick", the awful-looking Where the Heart Is. · 1998: October 25   New York Times article about making "Anywhere But Here" · 1999: January 12    "Necessary Targets" · 1999: April 25        Kids for Kids Carnival · 1999: April 28        Variety article about Natalie's casting in "Where the Heart Is" · 1999: May 4           Audrey Hepburn Birthday Tribute