The Blaine County Journal News-Opinion - We've Got The County Covered

On Wednesday, January 5, Montana Actors’ Theater (MAT) will be holding auditions for their youth production of the musical Anastasia. These auditions are open to all high school age students and will be held at the Havre High School Auditorium from 4:00-6:00 p.m.

Because Havre High no longer has a theatre director, MAT has teamed up with them to develop a production of the musical Anastasia in March. “The best thing about this partnership is that it isn’t limited to just Havre High students. Any high school aged youth are encouraged to audition, even home schooled students and students from surrounding areas,” Andi Daniels, Marketing Director for MAT stated.

Tony winners Terrence McNally, Stephen Flaherty, and Lynn Ahrens revisit this legendary tale. Based on McNally’s vision, Flaherty and Ahrens re-conceive the story by re-examining the myth and attempting to make it more historically accurate. In Ahrens words, “This is a more grown-up version of the Anastasia tale. This is more romantic and more adventurous. We have real relationships and real family connections. Anya is a princess who doesn’t need a prince to save her. I’m very proud to have written her because she’s pretty much the first animated heroine who is self-actualized and who went on a journey of self-discovery without being saved.”

Anastasia is set years after the execution of Tsar Nicholas II and his family. It opens as a young amnesiac shows up in Russia with only a few hazy memories and a keepsake that suggests she might be Grand Duchess Anastasia Nikolaevna. As “Anya” sets out to discover the mystery of her past, two con men make plans to pass her off as the real thing to the Dowager Empress in Paris, hoping to get money from the woman who would be Anastasia’s grandmother. Anya is also pursued by a Bolshevik general who has orders to hunt down and kill her.

According to MAT personnel, “this dazzling show transports its audience from the twilight of the Russian Empire to the euphoria of Paris in the 1920s, as a brave young woman sets out to discover the mystery of her past. Pursued by a ruthless Soviet officer determined to silence her, Anya enlists the aid of a dashing con man and a lovable ex-aristocrat. Together, they embark on an epic adventure to help her find home, love, and family.”