Helen Mirren returning to Broadway as Queen Elizabeth II

Helen Mirren will once again assume the conservative dresses, crisp diction and distinctive hairdo of Queen Elizabeth II when she reprises her role as the British monarch in a Broadway run of “The Audience,” which is scheduled to open March 8 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre in New York.

Mirren previously appeared in “The Audience” last year on London’s West End, winning an Olivier Award for her performance. The play, by Peter Morgan, imagines the ritual closed-door meetings between the queen and the many prime ministers who have served under her.

Morgan -- who wrote the screenplay for the movie “The Queen,” for which Mirren won an Oscar -- updated the play during its London run to include topical references. There have been rumors that Morgan will once again change aspects of the play for its New York run, but there is no official word.

“The Audience” is scheduled to begin preview performances Feb. 17 and is to run through June 28. Stephen Daldry will direct the Broadway production as he did in London. No other members of the ensemble cast have been announced.

Th production will mark Mirren’s third Broadway outing, following performances in Turgenev’s “A Month in the Country” and Strindberg’s “Dance of Death,” the latter opposite Ian McKellen. Mirren was nominated for Tony Awards on both occasions.

The London production of “The Audience” was broadcast to cinemas around the world last year as part of the National Theatre Live series.

The announcement Wednesday of Mirren’s return to Broadway comes just a couple of days before the opening of her latest movie, “The Hundred-Foot Journey.”

Twitter: @DavidNgLAT