Glenwood Springs High School is gearing up for its spring production, “Anastasia.” The curtains will first open on Friday, Feb. 21 at the Jeannie Miller Theater. 

The musical tells the tragic tale of Anastasia Romanov, the fourth daughter of Russia’s last imperial family, during the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. Glenwood Springs High students will bring the story to life over the final two weekends in February. 

The show is directed by longtime local theater figure and current GSHS theater director Amy Moritz, with music directed by GSHS choir director Shanti Mae Gruber. 

“It’s been kind of on a bucket list for both Amy and I,” Gruber explained. “We decided to do a different show that wasn’t as ensemble heavy last year. But we have a terrific freshman and sophomore class that came up. So we have the numbers and talent in our ensemble to do a bigger show like Anastasia.”

GSHS sophomore Audrey Trask will take center stage as Anya. She will be joined in the lead by junior A.J. Lott playing Dimitri, and seniors Charlie Hippensteel, and Andrew Schleep playing Vlad and Gleb. 

The play brings you back to the overthrow of the Russian oligarchs and the transformation of royal Russia into the Soviet Union. The story follows Anastasia, the youngest daughter of Nicholas II. She was said to be the only member of the family to make it out of the revolution, and the audience follows her from royalty to orphanhood and then ultimately, her rediscovering her past. 

After seeing an amazing, student-directed, fall show for a capstone project, the GSHS theater department put their heads down and have been working their tails off to put on an amazing performance for the community. 

“​​I’m so excited. We cast the show in October, and we start rehearsing directly after. So we’ve been rehearsing basically since November,” Gruber said. “There’s still some fine tuning, but we’re going to be ready for opening night for sure.”

With the final week of rehearsals approaching, the pre-show nerves are setting in. However, Gruber said she is ultra confident in her students as they head into the final stretch. Dress rehearsals will feature live musicians to help the cast adjust to the full production experience.

“It’s just that nervousness of, ‘Oh boy, here we go. We’ve got a lot of work to do.'” Gruber said. “But I’m not nervous about the students. They’re so talented, they’ve been working so hard, and we’re probably in the best shape we’ve ever been at this point before our final week.”

The play opens Friday, Feb. 21, at the Jeannie Miller Theater at Glenwood Springs High School and will run throughout the final two weekends of the month. Tickets are $20 for adults and $15 for students, children, and seniors. Tickets can be reserved in advance at Cur8.com, and will also be available for purchase at the door with cash or credit card.