It’s not long until Adelaide audiences can take a journey to the past when Anastasia – The Hit Broadway Musical opens at the Adelaide Festival Theatre from 2nd August 2026.
Inspired by the mysterious tale of Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov’s rumoured escape in the dawning days of the Russian Revolution, and the 1997 Oscar-nominated animated film of the same name, Anastasia has been brought to life on stage by the Tony Award-winning creative team of Terrence McNally, Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens.
Anastasia is a lavish musical for all ages, transporting audiences from the twilight years of Imperial rule to the euphoria and exuberance of 1920s Paris, as a brave young woman named Anya sets out to discover the mystery of her past. Pursued by an army officer determined to silence her, she enlists the aid of a dashing conman and a loveable ex-aristocrat. Together, they embark on an epic adventure to help her find home, love, and family.
In the cast for Anastasia is Adelaide’s own Nathan Stafford. Nathan began performing arts training at the age of nine. After graduating school, he went on to study a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA). Last year, Nathan returned home to Adelaide with the touring cast of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, also understudying the roles of Lumiere, Cogsworth and Maurice.
Nathan spoke to Glam Adelaide about Anastasia, about performing to hometown audiences, about the cast he gets to work with and what it is about the theatre that led him to pursue a career in it.
“Musical theatre is storytelling and I’ve always loved being able to tell stories. In musical theatre, you’re singing, dancing and acting so you’re fully using your whole body to create and tell these stories, which I really love. Ever since I was little I always loved to dress up in costumes and perform around the house. There were moments growing up that I knew that this was the career that I wanted to pursue. I remember seeing one of my first musicals at the Festival Theatre, which was A Chorus Line. It is one of those pinnacle shows of musical theatre which really touches on the story of a performer. I was sitting there watching that show and I knew that it was something I wanted to do.”
Nathan is currently touring with Anastasia and is featured in the production’s ensemble. We asked Nathan what it is about the show that drew him to audition and be a part of it.
“It has such a great message at its heart. It’s about a woman searching for her identity and her place in the world, and I think that’s something that we all can identify with—trying to find your own identity, who you are and where you fit in the world. It was these messages in the story that drew me to wanting to be able to tell this story to Australian audiences. It also resonates with all generations, and not many shows do that.”
Not only does Nathan feature in the ensemble for Anastasia, he also is one of the covers for the role of Dimitri. Nathan shared with Glam Adelaide the story of the first time he stepped on stage as Dimitri.
“The first time I went on for Dimitri, I actually hadn’t started rehearsing any of the track, hadn’t sung any of the songs and hadn’t worked with anyone on the material. One day due to circumstances—which is what happens when you’re a cover; you never know what’s going to happen with the cast change that day—both of the people that had rehearsed Dimitri’s track couldn’t do the performance. So there was only me. I had a day to learn the whole show and put it all together before stepping on stage the next day and doing a double show. I ended up being on the whole week as Dimitri. So, that’s the thing with covering – you always have to be prepared and trust in your abilities and skills to be able to produce those sorts of things when you’re under that pressure.”
The cast includes Georgina Hopson as Anya, Nancye Hayes as Dowager Empress, Robert Tripolino as charming con artist Dmitry, Joshua Robson in the role of antagonist Gleb, Rodney Dobson as Vlad, and theatre icon Rhonda Burchmore as Countess Lily.
We asked Nathan what it’s been like working with such an incredible cast on this beautiful musical.
“It’s been insane. The amount of wisdom and experience that they have around the industry is the best to learn from. When I have to go on for Dimitri, I get to work a lot closer with the leads in the scenes with them and it truly is a masterclass watching how they structure their scenes. I have learnt so much from this cast, especially working with the likes of Rhonda Burchmore and Nancye Hayes.”
Nathan always loves being able to perform in front of a hometown audience.
“I could be biased because I’m an Adelaidian, but I love going home to perform for Adelaide audiences. They’re very supportive and very engaged with the show, so it’s always exciting when I get to come back and perform. Performing in front of my family and friends is really special.”
Anastasia – The Hit Broadway Musical will play at the Adelaide Festival Theatre for a limited season from August 2. Tickets are now on sale.
Anastasia – The Hit Broadway Musical
Adelaide Festival Theatre
From 2nd August 2026
https://anastasiathemusical.com.au/
Photo credit: Jeff Busby
