The lush production of Anastasia at Shea’s this week is a feast for the eyes.

The End of the Romanov Dynasty

The lush production of Anastasia at Shea’s this week is a feast for the eyes. In a bit too long 2-1/2 hours, the audience is treated to lavish costumes from the last years of the Romanov dynasty in St. Petersburg to the stylish flapper dresses of the Roaring 20s in Paris, and to stunning 3D projections depicting everything from an ancient red truck roaring by to a train ride through the countryside. The revolutionaries storming the palace, as the background turns red, gunfire shatters the quiet, and soldiers march in, is a shocking and terrifying intrusion. The most exquisite projections are the ghosts dancing in the Romanov ballroom in Anya’s dreams. Breathtaking.    

Based on the animated 1997 movie, created by the team behind Ragtime, Terrence McNally (book), Stephen Flaherty (music), Lynn Ahrens (lyrics) it is an alternate history tale about the Romanov princess who lived on in rumor after the entire family of Czar Nicholas II was executed in July 1918 by the revolutionary government.

In this story, amidst all the rumors about Anastasia surviving, a poor young con-man-on-the-make, Dmitry, has the bright idea of finding a young woman to pretend to be Anastasia, spiriting her off to Paris and convincing the Dowager Empress there that she is the real deal, therein receiving a reward that will set him up for life. He enlists his friend, Vlad, who had been passing himself off at court as a Count, and barely survived being placed before a firing squad, in the scheme. Enter the street sweeper, Anya, who has amnesia and troubling dreams.

The Players

Kyla Stone, the first African American to play the role, is Anastasia. She possesses a beautiful voice and excellent acting chops. She radiates a fierceness that belies her precarious existence and is quite convincing as the Cinderella who really might be a princess.

The entire cast excels. Sam McClellan as Dmitry has just the right amount of bravado, showing cracks in his persona as an unfeeling con artist. His partner-in-crime Vlad, played by Bryan Seastrom, provides some comic relief, particularly in the number The Countess and the Common Man, with Countess Lily (Madeline Raube), his paramour in Paris.  Brandon Delgado as Gleb, the Bolshevik Deputy Commander, is the main antagonist. His deep voice projects the rigidity of the dedicated revolutionary but also the heart of a man torn between his duty and his conscience. He is outstanding.

A Lively Musical

With a total of 31 songs, the music eventually seemed to repeat itself, which does not take anything away from the expertise of the orchestra, conducted by Jeremy Robin Lyons. While there may not be any tunes one might whistle on the way out of the theater, there are very clever lyrics (“St. Petersburg is gloomy! St Petersburg is bleak! My underwear got frozen standing here all week!”), as well as more romantic images of longing and desire.

There is also an earnest and heartfelt tone to the musical. The disparity between the enormous wealth of the Romanovs and the grinding poverty of the masses in Russia is apparent. While the glitter and glamour are candy for the eyes, there is an underlying darkness that permeates in the knowledge that the wealth was acquired through the sweat and tears of the poor.

Anastasia, while not perfect, is a romantic musical and a lively and entertaining one. The special effects are dazzling, the costumes scrumptious, and the acting and singing crackerjack.