Anastasia (musical)

Anastasia
Artwork from the Broadway Production
Music	Stephen Flaherty
Lyrics	Lynn Ahrens
Book	Terrence McNally
Setting	Russia & France
Basis	1997 film Anastasia
Premiere	May 27, 2016: Hartford Stage, Hartford, Connecticut
Productions	2016 Hartford 2017 Broadway
Awards	2016 Connecticut Critics Circle Award for Best Musical

Anastasia is a musical with music and lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, and a book by Terrence McNally. Based on the 1997 film of the same name, the musical tells the story of the legend of Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna of Russia, which claims that she in fact escaped the execution of her family. Anastasia, who appears in the plot as an amnesiac orphan named Anya, hopes to find some trace of her family and sides with conmen who wish to take advantage of her likeness to the Grand Duchess.

Production

A reading was held in 2012, featuring Kelli Barret as Anya (Anastasia), Patrick Page as Vladimir, Angela Lansbury as the Empress Maria and Aaron Tveit as Dimitri.^[1] A workshop was held on June 12, 2015 in New York City workshop, and included Elena Shaddow as Anna, Ramin Karimloo as Gleb Vaganov, a new role, and Douglas Sills as Vlad.^[2]

The original stage production of Anastasia premiered at Hartford Stage in Hartford, Connecticut on May 13, 2016 (previews), with direction by Darko Tresnjak and choreography by Peggy Hickey, and starring Christy Altomare and Derek Klena as Anya and Dmitry, respectively.^[3]

The musical will begin its Broadway run on March 23, 2017 at the Broadhurst Theatre and open officially on April 24, 2017, featuring the original Hartford principal cast.^[4][5]

Director Tresnjak explained: "We’ve kept, I think, six songs from the movie, but there are 16 new numbers. We’ve kept the best parts of the animated movie, but it really is a new musical."^[2] The musical also adds characters not in the film.^[4] Additionally, Act 1 is set in Russia and Act 2 in Paris, “which was everything modern Soviet Russia was not: free, expressive, creative, no barriers,” according to McNally.^[6]

Synopsis

Note: This synopsis is from the 2016 pre-Broadway run and is subject to change when the show opens on Broadway.

Prologue

Saint Petersburg: 1907-1917

In 1907 St. Petersburg, the Dowager Empress Maria Feodorvna is preparing to move to Paris. Her youngest granddaughter, Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna Romanov, is saddened that her “nana” is moving and begs Maria to take her to Paris with her. The Dowager Empress comforts her by promising her that she’ll live in Paris with her when she’s older, going to the ballet every night and walking on Pont Alexandre III, a bridge named after Anastasia’s deceased grandfather. Before she leaves, the Dowager Empress gives Anastasia a special music box that plays their lullaby (“Once Upon a December-Prologue”). Anastasia chases after her nana as she departs, but her father, Nicholas, the Tsar of Russia, distracts her by dancing and pretending to hold a ball. Ten years later, Anastasia is now a beautiful teenager who is being courted, along with her three older sisters, Olga, Maria, and Tatiana, by suitors at a ball. After taking photographs, the family is attacked by the Bolsheviks. The Romanovs attempt to escape them, but Anastasia leaves her family behind to retrieve the music box and is the victim of a bomb thrown by the Bolsheviks. The Romanov family is confirmed to be dead and the Dowager Empress mourns her loss (“Dance of the Romanovs”).

Act 1

Leningrad (Saint Petersburg): 1927

Gleb Vaganov, a general for the Bolsheviks who now control Russia, announces to the gloomy Russians that the now-poor Saint Petersburg has been renamed Leningrad, and he promises a bright and peaceful future. The Russians protest this change, but are uplifted by a rumor that Anastasia may have survived the Bolshevik attacks. Two wanted con men, the handsome young Dmitry and an ex-member of the Royal Court named Vlad Popov, hear the rumors and brainstorm “the biggest con in history”, in which they will groom a naive girl to become Anastasia in order to extract money from the Dowager Empress (“A Rumor in St. Petersburg"). Behind Gleb’s back, Dmitry and Vlad hold unsuccessful auditions for the scheme at the theater in the abandoned Yusupov Palace. Just as they are about to give up hope of finding a suitable imposter, a young street sweeper named Anya walks in to ask Dmitri about paperwork to get tickets for Paris. Vlad and Dmitry dismiss her, but Anya vaguely remembers that she was at the theater long ago and talks of a play. Dmitry and Vlad become fascinated as Anya explains that she doesn’t remember who she is and has very little memories of her past (“In My Dreams”). Amazed by her memory loss and resemblance to Anastasia, they select Anya as there impostor.

At the capitol, government workers sort through rumors and reports for any that require further action (“The Rumors Never End”). Three bitter actresses report Anya, Dmitry, and Vlad's plot to Gleb, but he dismisses them. One of the actresses declares to a doubtful employee that the scheme is real. Gleb warns them to never claim the truth, for only he knows whether Anastasia is dead or alive. As a boy, he lived across from Ipatiev House, where the Romanovs were killed, and he heard the execution from his house. His father, who participated in the execution, died from shame afterwards. Despite his guilt, Gleb insists that he did something honorable and he must live out his legacy (“A Simple Thing”).

Back at the palace, Vlad and Dmitry groom a feisty Anya to become Anastasia through history, dining, and dancing lessons. Months later, Anya is poised to meet the Dowager Empress (“Learn to Do It”) when she is arrested in the streets and turned over to Gleb. While flirting with Anya, he observes that she has “the Romanov eyes” and might be Anastasia after all. He lets her go with a warning that her eyes could give her away (“Anya”).

Anya reunites with Dmitry and they are attacked by his old con partners, whom they must fight off (“The Neva Flows”). Dmitry is impressed by her fighting skills and she naively questions his toughness. Dmitry shows Anya his favorite spot in St. Petersburg and tells her how he survived the streets as a kid (“My Petersburg”). He also explains that his father revolted against the Bolsheviks and was killed in one of their camps. He begins to trust her enough to show her a broken music box, unaware it is the memento that was given to Anastasia by the Dowager Empress. Anya winds the box and begins to vaguely remember her past, including a royal family ball many years ago (“Once Upon a December”). In return, Anya gives Dmitry her most prized possession, a diamond that was found sewn to her dress when she was discovered as a girl (“In My Dreams-Reprise”). They reunite with Vlad and Anya gives them the diamond to obtain tickets to Paris.

At the train station, Count Ipolitov recognizes Anya as Anastasia and kisses her hand. As they board the train to Paris, Count Ipolitov leads everyone in a prayer of farewell to Russia (“Stay, I Pray You”). During the train ride, Anya, Dmitry, and Vlad reflect on what they hope to accomplish in Paris: Anya hoping to discover that she is actually Anastasia, Dmitry’s desire for the money, and Vlad hoping to win back Countess Lily Malevsky-Malevitch ("Sophie" in the 1997 animated film), the Dowager Empress’s lady-in-waiting with whom he had an affair (“We’ll Go From There”). Count Ipolitov is fatally shot by the police for illegally boarding the train. Triggered by the gunfire, Anya experiences an emotional breakdown. The police then go after everyone on the train, prompting Anya, Vlad, and Dmitry to jump off.

As they travel across Russia by foot, the head general of the Bolsheviks, Gorlinsky, orders Gleb to follow Anya and kill her (“Traveling Sequence”). Anya, Vlad, and Dmitry finally arrive in France, and as they travel to Paris, Anya summons the courage to continue on and hopes that she will finally discover who she is (“Journey to the Past”).

Act 2

Paris: 1927

Anya, Vlad, and Dmitry arrive in Paris and are swept up by the sounds, sights, and celebrities of the city, including Josephine Baker, Pablo Picasso, Gertrude Stein, and Coco Chanel (“Paris Holds the Key (to Your Heart)”). When Vlad and Dmitry go off on their own, Anya visits the Pont Alexandre III bridge and feels a strong connection to it (“Crossing a Bridge”).

Now a bitter, elderly woman, the Dowager Empress reads the letters of various Anastasia impersonators and, heartbroken, gives up hope of finding Anastasia (“Closing the Door”). As Gleb arrives in Paris, Lily parties at the Neva Club, where rich and noble Russians reminisce about the old Russia (“Land of Yesterday”). Lily is reunited with Vlad, with whom she is angry for stealing her jewelry. The two rekindle their scandalous romance and Vlad convinces her to let Anya meet the Dowager Empress at the ballet the next night (“The Countess and the Common Man”).

At the hotel, Anya has a nightmare about her family and the execution (“A Nightmare”). Dmitry comforts her and recounts a story of how he bowed to Anastasia at a parade as a young boy. Anya vividly remembers this, and the two realize that Anya is indeed the Grand Duchess Anastasia (“In a Crowd of Thousands”).

At the ballet, Vlad suspects that Anya and Dmitry are falling in love and is heartbroken that they can never be together (“I Never Should Have Let Them Dance”). During the performance of Swan Lake, Anya sees the Dowager Empress and remembers her. The Dowager Empress also sees Anya and recognizes her, but clings to denial. Dmitry and Gleb (who is about to shoot Anya) reflect on their romantic feelings for Anya. As Gleb is about to pull the trigger, the applause from the audience disturbs him and he flees (“Quartet at the Ballet”).

After the ballet, Lily also recognizes Anya as Anastasia and immediately takes her to the Dowager Empress. Dmitry is anxious about the meeting and realizes that he is in love with Anya, but knows he must let her go to her family (“Everything to Win”). Anya leaves the meeting enraged, having learned from the Dowager Empress that Vlad and Dmitry intended to use her in their scheme. As she storms off, Dmitry waits for the Dowager Empress. Marie coldly dismisses him off, but Dmitry disrespectfully stops her. He begs her to see Anya and when she refuses again, he damns her and Russia. Impressed by Dmitry’s courage to stand up to her, she agrees to see Anya.

At their hotel, Anya stops her packing to speak with the Marie. She is shocked by the Dowager Empress’s cruelty, asserting that she isn’t the nana that Anya remembered. The Dowager Empress angrily questions Anya about her past and the Romanov Family, but Anya compels her to reflect on the person she has become over last twenty years. Anya suddenly remembers the night that the Dowager Empress left her for Paris. When Anya produces the music box and sings the lullaby, the Dowager Empress finally realizes that Anya is Anastasia and the two embrace, now reunited after twenty years (“Once Upon a December-Reprise”).

A press conference is held the next morning, where Vlad and Lily try to fend off the hungry reporters (“The Press Conference”). Before appearing in public, Anya expresses misgivings about her future life as a princess. The Dowager Empress notices her anxiety and insists that no matter what she chooses, they’ll be together. Anya runs off to think and realizes that she is in love with Dmitry, and decides that she must go after him (“Everything to Win-Reprise”). As she turns to leave, Anya sees that Gleb has slipped in and locked them in the room. She realizes why he is there and Gleb says that he must kill her to complete his father’s mission. Anya now clearly remembers the day her family was killed and, without fear, taunts him to kill her so that she can be with her family. Overcome with emotion and not willing to bear the shame of his father, Gleb is is unable to kill Anya (“A Simple Thing-Reprise”). He decides to tell the Bolsheviks that the rumor of Anastasia having survived was a hoax, and Anya and Gleb call a truce.

Vlad, Lily, and the palace staff search for Anya and begin to question whether she was really Anastasia. The Dowager Empress is joyful, knowing that Anya is now where she belongs, and announces that the rumors of Anastasia will now cease. Anya finds Dmitry at Pont Alexandre III, where they declare their love for one other. The couple leave Paris together as the spirits of the Romanovs celebrate the life that Anya and Dmitry will have together (“In A Crowd of Thousands-Reprise/Finale”).

Musical numbers

2016 Hartford Stage Production

Sources:^[3][7]

Titles of songs, which appeared in the 1997 animated film are in bold.

Characters and casts

Awards and nominations

References

External links

• Internet Broadway Database
• Official website