Daring tale of orphan’s search for her true identity comes to stage in Liberty’s ‘Anastasia’

In the first production of the season for Liberty University’s Department of Theatre Arts, students will join professionals to tell the grand fairy tale of “Anastasia” (Sept. 6-22), a journey of self-discovery sure to inspire audiences as much as it has the cast and crew.

The musical, a stage adaptation of the 1997 animated film of the same name, centers on the orphan Anya who uncovers a past life of royalty in the Russian Empire.

This is the first time Liberty has staged the show. Director Chris Nelson said “Anastasia” will have wide appeal for audiences.

“We always love when we have a show available to us that has merit and a lot of connection points for audiences: the animated movie, the real-life history, and the Broadway show. There’s a sweeping epic quality to this show as we go along on her journey. It has a strong central protagonist, it’s uplifting, and it’s also family-friendly while still being layered.”

“Anastasia” is this season’s sole production by Alluvion Stage Company, Liberty’s Broadway-quality professional theatre company. As an Alluvion show, multiple professionals from outside the Liberty community will be on and off the stage, including five guest performers, vocal director Cris O’Bryon (a 1993 Liberty alumnus), and the return of former theatre department staff member Darryl Willard as lighting designer.

The show also features a live orchestra conducted by the School of Music’s Dr. Zachary Bruno, director of the Liberty University Symphony Orchestra & Wind Symphony, and local child actors.

“Alluvion accomplishes a lot of great outcomes for us as a department: it allows us to bring in professionals, bring in alumni, and be a stepping point to the professional world,” Nelson said. “It’s a wonderful opportunity for our students to play very closely with these outside folks.”

Senior Bella Burke, who is earning her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre and a minor in dance, plays Anya.

“It’s been so challenging, but in the most wonderful way,” she said. “It has been so much more freeing than I expected it to be, working with these outside professionals and seeing their willingness to constantly jump in and go for it. I get to see them and say, ‘This is how they are doing things in the professional world, and this is what I’m trying to do when I graduate in a few months.’”

In a show known for its soaring score and emotionally layered lyrics, Burke said the cast has gained appreciation for the music’s significance in telling the story.

“He (O’Bryon, guest vocal director) has challenged both the students and the professional cast members to really read the music in depth, to know the core of why the song is even happening and what it’s saying fully. There are so many beautiful moments in the music with motifs or references to other time periods or places. The music (enhances) the story so beautifully.”

A native of Richmond, Va., Burke grew up with dance as her primary artistic interest and attended a performing arts high school to focus on dance. But her perspectives changed when she joined a Christian theater program as a teen.

“The fact it was a Christian environment, teaching how to use theater and arts as a ministry and equipping kids to go out and use it, helped me realize how much I love theater and want do it for the Lord,” she said. “I came to the Lord through that ministry. He really directed me to theater, and He has continually guided me closer and closer to the performative aspect of it.”

“Anastasia” is Burke’s ninth Liberty production. She said with each one, she has grown as an artist. Playing a stepsister in last fall’s “Cinderella” was one of her favorite experiences.

“That was when I felt I was most able to use my training as a student in one show, because it was very out of my typecast. It was comedic, and I wasn’t singing much and wasn’t dancing, and so it was everything other than what I’ve done my whole life. It made me really love acting as an art and studying it in that way.”

“Her work in ‘Cinderella,’ to me, really illuminated her charisma on stage and her connection to an audience,” Nelson added. “She’s very accessible and vulnerable onstage, the audiences really enjoy seeing her work through a role. This is a great opportunity for her to cut her teeth on a professional role before she leaves Liberty.”

A core plot element is Anya’s search for her identity as an orphan with an unknown past. Burke said audiences will connect with Anya as they ponder their own identities.

“I think it will touch a lot of audiences; it is so heartwarming, but also it breaks your heart at the same time because it is a very sad circumstance. Anya is kind of living in this shroud of trauma because she doesn’t know who she is, she doesn’t know where she came from. She’s been orphaned for as long as she remembers. It’s made me realize how wonderful it is to know your identity.”

The topic is also a tenet of the theatre department, as Nelson said one of its core values emphasized this year is “finding true and lasting identity in Christ alone.”

“That’s something we’ve really made a point to engage our students with,” he said. “As a department, it’s something we wanted to focus on, and to be able to have our first show centrally focused on a character trying to find out who they are, it’s a good parallel.”

“People who are not believers struggle with that so much because there’s nothing to root it to, because everything’s constantly shifting and changing,” Burke said. “There is a strength that comes with knowing who you are and not having to rely on the world around you or anyone else to tell you what that is. When we have the Lord, we know who we are (in Him) and nothing can take that from us.”

Coinciding with the start of the theatre season, the Tower Club will have its first family event of the year on Saturday, Sept. 7. Members will meet guests from the cast for a magical time filled with crafts, fun, and delicious treats. For more information and to join, call (434) 582-2078 or email kpdoby@liberty.edu.

“Anastasia” will have performances during Homecoming (Sept. 13-14) and College for a Weekend (Sept. 19-21). Visit the Department of Theatre Arts website for ticket information.

Showtimes

• Sept. 6, 7, 12, 13, 14, 19, 20, 21 – 7:30 p.m.
• Sept. 7, 14, 21 – 2 p.m.
• Sept. 8, 15, 22 – 3 p.m