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The timeless story of Anastasia returns once again to our mind as the drama unfolds on Valley Performing Arts’ stage. Anastasia serves as a spectacular opener to VPA’s 39th season. Under the sure hand of veteran VPA Director, Grant Olson, the entire play seamlessly captivates the audience and draws them back into the mid-1900s, about 10 years after the Bolsheviks murdered the Romanov family.
The play follows the actions of a trio composed of a banker, prince, and artist, who are trying to cash in on the fortune that Czar Nicholas II left upon his death. The method adopted by the trio in order to secure the money is to produce an heir to that fortune, namely Princess Anastasia. The leader of the trio is Prince Bounine, an exiled Russian prince turned taxi driver who is desperately looking for a way to gain the fortune through fair or foul means. During the hunt for Anastasia, their money sources threaten to dry up, so the trio is forced to select an unlikely candidate to present as Anastasia, whom they know is not the real princess. In order for them to gain access to the fortune and for the con to be successful, the grandmother of Princess Anastasia must endorse the purported princess. However, as the story moves forward, the trio begins to wonder if they actually have found the real princess after all.
Director Olson’s entire cast does a superb job. The four primary actors are veterans and effectively embody their roles without missing a beat. Stephen O’Brien plays Chernov the banker, Ted Carney plays Bounine the prince, Thomas Jacobs plays Petrovin the artist, and Birgit Hietala plays Anna, aka Anastasia. All four of them spend a large amount of time on stage and have many lines, which are produced nearly flawlessly with the accompanying actions.
The play keeps the audience’s attention the entire time. There are only three different scenes, which are broken up with intermissions, so the audience does not lose any of play’s moods while sitting in the dark waiting for people to more or less clumsily run around and shuffle stage props. Additionally, it is nice to see the normal flow of a play switched up occasionally, which makes the lack of in-show set changes even more appealing. The costumes and set are historically accurate, which also enhances the play. The accompanying music and lights are flawless, supporting the mood of the play and helping to bring the audience back to 1926.
Anastasia continues through Sept. 28 at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and at 2 p.m. Sundays at the Valley Performing Arts Theatre, 251 W. Swanson Ave., in Wasilla. Tickets may be purchased online at valleyperformingarts.org or by calling 373-0195. The cost is $19 for adults and $17 for students and seniors.