Theatre review: Anastasia is a fairy-tale spectacle, complete with ballet and Broadway-belt songs
The Broadway musical, inspired by the animated film, rides on the talents of its young, triple threat cast and dazzling digital projections
Willem Butler, Veronica Stern and company in Anastasia. Photo by Evan Zimmerman for Murphy Made
Broadway Across Canada presents Anastasia to March 12 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
ANASTASIA SPARKLES like a Swarovski diamond. The touring production of the Broadway musical, inspired by the animated film, opened in Vancouver last night, sweeping audiences into an idealized world of European grandeur in its telling of the legend of Anastasia Romanov.
Directed by Darko Tresnjak, the show is a spectacular fairy tale come to life onstage, with a pleasing score by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, and a young triple-threat cast led by the glowing Veronica Stern.
Beginning in St. Petersburg in the early 20th century, we witness the downfall of the Romanov family as the Bolsheviks soldiers descend upon their palace. We fast-forward to post-revolution Russia, where, amid rumours that Anastasia survived the execution of her family, young con man Dmitry and his partner-in-crime Vlad Popov are attempting to find a young woman to impersonate Anastasia—and collect a sizable reward from Anastasia’s grandmother, the Dowager Empress, now living in Paris.
When Dmitry and Vlad meet Anya, a young woman who has limited memory of her past due to amnesia—but who strangely also seems to have royal instincts—the con men believe they’ve found the ideal person to groom to achieve their goal.
The plot may seem fanciful, but that’s exactly the point. This is an enjoyable stage spectacle that encourages you to suspend your belief in reality and indulge in a song-and-dance world of tiaras, glittery ball gowns, majestic European architecture, and of course, romance. With the use of beautiful, vividly coloured digital art illuminating tall onstage panels, scenic designer Alexander Dodge and lighting designer Donald Holder provide ample visual delight. We’re taken from the Romanov palace, through the streets of post-revolution Russia, to 1920s Paris, including a scene inspired by the Palais Garnier. The digital designs are so lifelike, including falling snow and lighting changes to indicate the passing of time, it feels like you really have been transported into the show’s settings.
Linda Cho’s costume designs are exquisitely detailed and period-appropriate, featuring gorgeous Imperial Russian-era ball gowns, stylish 1920s Parisian suits and flapper girl outfits, and even Swan Lake tutus.
As Anya, Stern presents herself as a fairy-tale princess from start to finish. Her crystal-clear voice is wonderfully pleasing in its resonance and storytelling, as demonstrated by her Broadway-belt solo “Journey to the Past” and the serene and haunting “Once Upon a December”. She portrays Anya with a great combination of feistiness, vulnerability, and heart. As Dmitry, Willem Butler is an excellent counterpart to Stern. Butler displays street-groomed mannerisms appropriate to his character, which contrasts nicely to Stern’s poise. Butler’s voice soars brilliantly in his solo “My Petersburg” and his chemistry with Stern is enjoyable to watch, ranging from classic rom-com love/hate to touching sensitivity in the pair’s duet “In a Crowd of Thousands”.
With his robust baritone-tenor range and expressive performance, Christian McQueen adds drama and suspense as Gleb, a Soviet official tasked with silencing Anya. While his character is a constant reminder of the darkness of the Russian revolution, McQueen also offers compelling complexity and humanity to his role. As Dowager Empress, Gerri Weagraff provides an affectionately maternal presence, and Bryan Seastrom and Rebecca Hartman are energetic and likeable as Vlad and his resurgent love interest Countess Lily. Their duet “The Countess and the Common Man” provides great comic relief.
Hartman, who is actually a swing, went on as Countess Lily on opening night with so much sizzle and pizazz—including a rousing, ensemble-leading performance of the splashy song-and-dance number “Land of Yesterday”—that it’s hard to believe she was filling in. And it would be remiss not to commend the adorable performance of nine-year-old Alexandrya Salazar as Little Anastasia, whose smile radiated to the back of the theatre.
One of the reasons why this show plays out like a dream is the fact that many in the ensemble are ballet-trained dancers, and as such, carry themselves with grace and poise throughout, resulting in a constant ethereal aesthetic. Of course, the dance talent also provides for excellent performances of Peggy Hickey’s choreography. Hickey’s stylized sequences, which range from a balletic waltz in the Romanov palace to 1920s-Charleston-shaded jazz to a gorgeous excerpt from Swan Lake, is brilliantly performed by the cast, under the leadership of dance captain Alec Lloyd. The dance talent features Lauren Teyke as Odette in the Swan Lake section alongside male partners Luke Rands and Lester Gonzalez, and a trio of female Swans, who like Burke, dance en pointe. On opening night, this number evoked a tremendous roar of appreciation from the audience.
Anastasia utilizes many of the tried, tested, and true techniques in the classic Broadway musical repertoire—splashy production values, hummable tunes, impressive choreography. But what makes this production truly special is the genuineness in how the cast deliver the story. Stern is so sincere as Anya, and the rest of the cast share the same commitment in their storytelling, that despite the fantastical nature of the story, you can’t help but lose yourself to the magic.
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