The cast of Lima Christian School’s spring musical Anastasia gathered for this photo before a rehearsal. Photo by Bethany Warsaw
BY DONNA MACKENZIE
Part history and part rumor, the story of Russian Princess Anastasia Romanov captivated people for decades. Did she in fact survive the execution of her family, her father Tsar Nicholas of Russia, her mother Tsarina Alexandra, her three sisters and her brother on July 17, 1918 in Yekaterinburg by a group of Bolsheviks or were the several women who claimed to be her merely imposters? While her purported survival was conclusively disproven when the remains of the family were found in 1991 and in 2007, her possible survival spawned an animated film in 1997 that became the basis for the musical play Anastasia in 2016. Lima Christian School will present the musical Anastasia on Friday, March 7 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, March 8 at 2 and 7 p.m. at Honeoye Falls-Lima High School’s auditorium.
The show opens with a prologue where in 1906, Dowager Empress Maria Feodorovna comforts her youngest granddaughter, five-year-old Grand Duchess Anastasia who is sad that her grandmother is moving to Paris. Before departing, the Dowager Empress gives Anastasia a music box as a parting gift. Eleven years later, Anastasia is attending a ball with her family when Bolsheviks invade the palace. As they attempt to escape, Anastasia tries to retrieve the music box, only to be captured along with the rest of the family. The Dowager Empress later receives word in Paris that the entire family has been executed. Act I opens with a general for the Bolsheviks, Gleb, announcing that St. Petersburg has been renamed Leningrad. The people protest this change, but are uplifted by a rumor that Anastasia may have survived and escaped the royal family’s execution. Two wanted con men, Dmitry and an ex-member of the Imperial Court, Vlad, hear the rumors and brainstorm the “biggest con in history” by grooming a naïve girl to become Anastasia in order to extract money from the Dowager Empress. They hold unsuccessful auditions and are about to give up when a street sweeper named Anya comes in to ask Dmitry about paperwork to get tickets for Paris. They become fascinated when Anya explains she doesn’t remember who she is due to amnesia and has very few memories of her past. Amazed by her memory loss and resemblance to Anastasia, they select Anya as their imposter. Three bitter actresses report the plot to Gleb, he dismisses them and files a case for Anya while Vlad and Dmitry groom Anya to become Anastasia through history, dining and dancing lessons. Gleb orders Anya’s arrest and when she is brought to his office, he interrogates her and warns her about the consequences of pretending to be Anastasia. In trying to convince Anya that Anastasia is really dead, he reveals that his father was one of the soldiers who shot the Romanovs and as a boy, he heard the gunshots and the family’s screams. However, he notices that Anya has the “Romanov eyes” and realizes that Anya could be Anastasia. As he harbors feelings for her, he lets her off with a warning. Is Anya truly Anastasia, does she, Vlad and Dmitry make it to Paris or does Gleb stop them? Come see the show to find out.
“Join the LCS Drama Club on a journey to the past as we bring the story of Anastasia to life on stage,” artistic director Bethany Warsaw said. “Follow Anya as she sets out to uncover the truth about her past and identity, traveling from the shadows of revolutionary Russia to the dazzling streets of Paris in search of home, love and family. Through her journey, she discovers ‘you can’t be anyone unless you first recognize yourself’. You won’t want to miss this beautiful, heart-warming story of resilience and hope.”
Cast members are Laelynn Parsons (Young Anastasia), Laurel LaBarca (Anya), Molly Teitsworth (Anya understudy), Owen Teitsworth (Dmitry), Joshua Lakra (Vlad), Jordyn Warsaw (Dowager Empress), Olivia Kennell (Countess Lily), Evan Falco (Gleb), Sarah Churnetski (Tsarina Alexandra Romanov), Anthony Hage (Tsar Nicholas/Gorlinsky), Sophia Britton (Olga Romanov/Dunya), Anna Grace LaBarca (Tatiana Romanov/Marfa), Molly Teitsworth (Maria Romanov/Paulina), Caleb Warsaw (Alexei Romanov), Rebekah Lakra (Countess Ipolitov), Owen McCarty (Count Leopold), Gavin McCarty (Count Gregory) and Abigail Dils, Anna Miller, Anna Grace LaBarca, Anthony Hage, Brielle Hammond, Caleb Warsaw, Charlotte Moses, David Dils, Eden Falco, Eden Settle, Ethan Tripp, Gavin McCarty, Grace Vogt, Hannah Baker, Joanna Moxon, Jenna Warsaw, Molly Teitsworth, Noelle Slisher, Owen McCarty, Phoebe Moxon, Samantha Owens, Sarah Churnetski, Sophia Britton and Rebekah Lakra (Ensemble).
Bethany Warsaw is the artistic director, Tom Warsaw the technical director, Kaylee Corell (music director), Jill Teitsworth (vocal coach), Joanna Mason and Laurel LaBarca (choreographers), Jacob Tripp (lights), Kaylee Scott (sound), L. Herring (stage manager) and Angelo Tortorice, Sean Pfeif, Emily Oglesby and Gage Maley (stage crew).
“I was talking with some students at the end of last year and many said they loved the show,” Bethany Warsaw said when asked why she selected the show. “It has that typical musical theatre vibe. It has a princess but also a girl trying to figure out who she is as a person. The students have really loved doing a show that has historical roots, researching the characters and their actual stories. They’ve also enjoyed doing a story that is based on a rumor and have really gravitated toward their characters.”
Doing this type of show does present certain challenges, Warsaw said.
“Because of its historical aspect, the costumes need to be historically accurate,” she stated.
The show will be entered into the Rochester Broadway Theatre League’s (RBTL) Stars of Tomorrow program that recognizes high school musical theater in the Rochester area.
Tickets for the show are $8 students and $10 adults and can be purchased online at https://seatyourself.biz/limachristian or at the school office or at the door (cash or check only at the door).
