Denver’s Backyard Musical theatre company has added another success to its portfolio: Anastasia: The Musical, played to over 600 people in three performances over the weekend of October 9 – 11, at Christ the King parish.
Not bad for a group that started about two years ago, literally in someone’s back yard.
The ensemble was the highlight of the show. The entire cast danced and sang with gusto, grace, and precision through a number of dance and choral numbers. Director Ross LeFort, Choreographer Tori Green, and Assistant Choreographer, Jessica Czapla, did a great job of creating a unified group.
Jessica Czapla also contributed a graceful Odette, alongside the talented Micah Marshall as Sigfried, as they danced the musical’s brief excerpt from Tschaikovsky’s Swan Lake.
Other highlights included Eileen Czapla-Haslam, who brought a commanding presence to the role of the Dowager Empress.
As Dmitry, an opportunistic con man who discovers love, Zach Erhardt enlivened the stage whenever he appeared. Dmitry’s co-conspirator, Vlad, was played by Thea Curtis, who has a gift for comedy. Vlad’s duet with Countess Lily (Ashlyn Dunn), “The Countess and the Common Man,” was a peak moment of the show.
The costumes were exceptional. Imperial white with sashes for the Romanovs, glittering gowns and fur stoles for the dances were period appropriate and elegant. And then there’s Vlad’s pink suit, which is a statement all its own, but perhaps we won’t inquire too deeply into that…
Stage Manager Renae Krupp ran a smooth show. Scene changes happened quickly and unobtrusively. Director LeFort came up with some ingenious staging. The curtain closed on one scene of people waiting for a train and quickly reopened into the interior of the train car as the train took off. It added up to an accomplished production.
Some choices were less effective. In place of backdrops, images of city streets or scenery were projected onto a large screen upstage. The screen itself was nearly swallowed in the cavernous stage (the show was staged in the auditorium/gym of Christ the King parish). It simply didn’t add to the atmosphere.
Speaking of that cavernous stage, the acoustics were not optimal. The actors didn’t always project. Vocalists, in particular, sometimes struggled with projecting from their middle register. Three microphones provided some help but it was a challenging setup.
Anastasia was an ambitious undertaking, and one undertaken with joy. Denver should be proud of its local talent and should continue to support them. Next up: in Spring, 2027, Ryan Thomas Noll, a Backyard Musical co-founder, directs A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt.
I’m their biggest fan! Love backyard musical
Judith Sears gives a comprehensive yet concise description of the production, fair-minded and complimentary.