YC Performing Arts performs grand, gorgeous ‘Anastasia’ Nov. 8-17 at J&LLPAC
A fallen Czar; an empire lost. The glorious spectacle of a royal return and the flickering light of love that kindles it all. Join us for the grandeur and gorgeous music behind a mysterious princess and her return to the light. Yavapai College Performing Arts Department proudly presents its production of the Broadway hit Anastasia, Friday, November 8 through Sunday, November 17 at YC’s Jim & Linda Lee Performing Arts Center, in Prescott.
Presented by the Yavapai College Performing Arts Department and directed by Dr. Craig J. Ralston, Anastasia was created by the Tony Award®-winning authors of the Broadway classic Ragtime – music by Stephen Flaherty, lyrics by Lynn Ahrens and book by Terrence McNally. This dazzling musical transports audiences from the twilight of the Russian Empire to the giddy euphoria of 1920’s Paris, as a brave young woman sets out to discover the mystery of her past. Pursued by a ruthless Soviet officer determined to silence her, she enlists the aid of a dashing conman and a lovable ex-aristocrat. Together, they embark on an epic adventure to help her find home, love, and family.
Based on the 1997 animated film of the same name, Anastasia taps the enduring mystery surrounding Czar Nicholas II and his family, who were assassinated by Bolsheviks as Czarist Russia fell to the Communist Revolution in 1918. Because the communists did not disclose the location of their graves – and were at first reluctant to even admit the deaths of the Czar’s children – rumors swirled that the Nicholas’ youngest daughter, the 17-year-old Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna, had escaped to Western Europe. The idea that a flickering ember of the Romanov family might have survived has captured imaginations ever since.
Anastasia, The Musical, added 16 songs to the animated film’s original six. It opened at Connecticut’s Hartford Stage and moved to Broadway in 2017, where it played more than 800 performances before closing in 2019. In addition to touring productions across the United States, Anastasia has enjoyed productions in Spain, Germany, Finland and Japan.
The Yavapai College production of Anastasia will feature actresses Alyssa Ebel and Callie Voorhies doubling the roles of the Romanov princess; Dani Harnett and Ellie Schaible will double in the role of Dmitry; Phantom of the Opera’s André Sylvester returns to portray Vladimir; and Juliet Lapointe as the Dowager Empress. The production continues the YC Performing Arts Department’s tradition of presenting elaborate, large-scale musicals on the Prescott stage – after enjoying critical success with prior productions like Chicago, Into the Woods, Hello, Dolly! and Phantom of the Opera.
Anastasia will offer two evening performances – Friday, Nov. 8 and Friday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m.; and 3 p.m. matinees on each of the following Saturdays and Sundays: Nov. 9, 10, 16 and 17. The Jim & Linda Lee Performing Arts Center will also hold a special Princess Tea, at 1 p.m. before the Saturday, Nov. 9 performance, at $15 per person.
Tickets for Anastasia start at $35, with $10 Youth tickets available. For reservations or more information, please contact The Jim & Linda Lee Performing Arts Center Ticket Office, located on Yavapai College’s Prescott Campus, 1100 E. Sheldon Street. The office is open Tuesday – Wednesday from 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.; and Thursday – Friday from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. For more information, please call: (928) 776-2000 or visit: www.ycpac.com.