Anastasia – Z-Arts, Manchester

Like My Fair Lady wrapped in the fairy-tale romance of Cinderella, with occasional glimpses of the epic sweep and moral gravitas of Les Misérables, Anastasia is an ambitious musical that asks a great deal of its performers. Fortunately for Manchester Musical Youth, this exceptionally talented company proves more than equal to the challenge.

There is something fitting about Anastasia becoming Manchester Musical Youth’s 40th production. For well over a decade, MMY has established itself as arguably Manchester’s leading youth musical theatre company, renowned for producing powerful vocal ensembles while continually raising its artistic ambitions. Under the assured leadership of Kimberly and Dave Holden, this milestone production demonstrates a company continuing to evolve, marrying its trademark musical excellence with increasingly sophisticated storytelling and theatrical ambition.

The musical itself is an intriguing hybrid. It carries the fairy-tale romance of Cinderella, borrows the class-conscious transformation of My Fair Lady and Pygmalion, and occasionally reaches for the sweeping historical canvas of Les Misérables. Like Les Misérables, Anastasia places private lives against sweeping political upheaval, something Holden captures effectively, ensuring that the personal journeys of its characters remain at the heart of a much larger historical landscape. While its book never entirely delivers on the emotional promise of those influences and its resolution lacks the impact it deserves, Holden’s production overcomes many of those shortcomings through sheer quality of execution.

The company’s greatest strength remains its ensemble work. From the stirring opening of A Rumour in St Petersburg through to the bustling Parisian scenes, the chorus sings with power, warmth and precision, creating a richly textured backdrop for the principal characters. Few youth companies produce ensemble singing with this combination of confidence and refinement.

Another significant leap forward comes through Matthew Rawcliffe’s choreography. MMY has always sung superbly; now it dances with equal assurance. Rawcliffe mixes styles with confidence, from exuberant flapper-inspired routines to the gloriously Fosse-esque swagger of Land of Yesterday, where sharply defined movement perfectly complements the song’s infectious energy.

Most ambitious of all is the extended Quartet at the Ballet. Classical ballet is rarely attempted with such confidence by a youth company, yet Rawcliffe embraces both its elegance and technical demands, producing one of the evening’s most memorable sequences and underlining the company’s growing theatrical maturity.

The principal cast matches that ambition. As Anya, Adali Strayer delivers a beautifully measured central performance. Rather than rushing towards confidence, she allows the character’s vulnerability to develop naturally. Her heartfelt In My Dreams establishes Anya’s longing before a superb Journey to the Past, sung with warmth, clarity and emotional conviction. By Once Upon a December, Strayer convincingly reveals a young woman discovering both her memories and her inner strength. It is an intelligent performance that favours emotional truth over vocal grandstanding.

Freya Gow provides the perfect foil as Lily. If Strayer’s performance quietly blossoms, Gow explodes onto the stage with irrepressible charisma. Her barnstorming Land of Yesterday combines commanding vocals with razor-sharp comic timing and a deliciously sassy, Velma Kelly-inspired swagger that fits perfectly within Rawcliffe’s affectionate Fosse homage. She steals every scene she enters.

Gow’s chemistry with Charlie France’s Vlad is another highlight. Their sparkling The Countess and the Common Man is played with impeccable comic timing, France bringing warmth, charm and understated wit to the ageing aristocrat without ever tipping into caricature.

Isaac Ford gives Dimitry exactly the right balance of swagger and sincerity. His growing affection for Anya unfolds convincingly through Everything to Win, while his scenes opposite Strayer develop with genuine emotional credibility, ensuring the romance feels earned rather than inevitable.

As Gleb, Charlie Lockett brings quiet authority, his interpretation of Still is one of the production’s emotional high points, delivered with vocal control and dramatic maturity. There are moments when his commanding physicality and vocal delivery stray towards Javert in style and presence, but that is no bad thing. Given the musical’s occasional echoes of Les Misérables, the comparison feels entirely appropriate, lending Gleb both gravitas and genuine humanity. Rather than presenting him as a conventional antagonist, Lockett reveals the conflict between unwavering duty and emerging compassion.

Kitty Little lends quiet dignity to the Dowager Empress, her scenes with Strayer carrying considerable emotional weight as long-suppressed grief gradually gives way to hope.

Among the featured ensemble, Freddie Cummins deserves recognition as Count Ipolitov, not least for some exhilarating Cossack dancing that becomes one of the production’s visual highlights.

Collectively, the cast display remarkable professionalism. Holden keeps the storytelling clear despite the scale of the production, while slick scene changes and unwavering characterisation create a convincing journey from revolutionary Russia to the glamour of 1920s Paris.

If there is one reservation, it lies with the musical rather than the company. At around twenty minutes too long, Act Two occasionally loses momentum, while the book never fully resolves its central dramatic questions with the emotional force they deserve.

Fortunately, Manchester Musical Youth proves more than capable of transcending those flaws. Dave Holden’s assured direction, Matthew Rawcliffe’s inventive choreography, MMY’s exceptional ensemble singing and a uniformly impressive principal cast combine to produce a thoroughly engaging evening that showcases exactly why this company continues to set the benchmark for youth musical theatre in the region.

If Manchester Musical Youth’s first forty productions established its reputation, Anastasia suggests its most exciting work may still lie ahead.

Reviewer: Paul Wilcox

Reviewed: 16th July 2026

North West End UK Rating: