I saw “Anastasia” on Broadway, and I can’t believe it, but I was way more into the villain than Dimitri
If you’re like me, gentle reader, then there is one truth that you know perhaps above all else: Dimitri from the animated Anastasia movie was weirdly attractive, and you maybe even sometimes dreamed he’d be your first boyfriend.
So needless to say, when I received tickets to see the live adaption of Anastasia on Broadway in its final week of previews (#blessed), I had but one thing on my mind: DMITRY! (Spelled slightly differently in the stage version.) I couldn’t wait to see my childhood love come to life in the real world.
Thus, imagine my surprise when I found myself distinctly and undeniably drawn to another character in the show…and not just any other, but the VILLAIN, General Gleb Vaganov.
In case you missed it, the live adaptation differs from the 1997 animated film in several key ways. The biggest of which is arguably the absence of Rasputin and his bat companion Bartok. Instead, the show’s writer, Terrence McNally, grounded the story more firmly in reality, making the central antagonist a young Soviet general hell-bent on bringing “traitors” to justice.
The role went to actor Ramin Karimloo, and um…I’m not gonna beat around the bush here…DUDE IS HOT! And I don’t just mean physically (although I will be clear. He is a very attractive human). Take a look:
But more than that, it was his character that made him irresistible. And — as much as it pains me to say it — he was far more compelling than the nice, but relatively boring, Dimitri (played by Derek Klena on the left in the below pic).
(WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!)
For some backstory, Gleb is a passionate revolutionary, completely and utterly devoted to a communist (aristocracy-free) vision of Russia. He’s also clearly in love with Anya/Anastasia (who he sees sweeping the street as he walks to work each day), so his eventual orders to find and kill her brings his character’s political ideals and emotional desires in perfect, tragic opposition.
HE WAS JUST SO TORTURED YOU GUYS! One listen to his sad, soulful soliloquies (and two hours of staring at his incredible jawline) had me officially sold. I might be all about the animated Dimitri, but IRL, IT’S ALL ABOUT THAT GLEB.
Oh, and how was the actual play, you ask? Sorry, my B. It was incredible! The singing was amazing, the visuals were stunning, and I cried at least four times (in a good way). GO GET YOUR TICKETS AS SOON AS YOU CAN AND THEN WE CAN ALL BE IN LOVE WITH GLEB TOGETHER, okay? Or we can at least fight passionately over this, a la Angel v. Spike, Dawson v. Pacey, and Summer v. Anna.
Now excuse me while I fantasize about living in Soviet-era Russia for a while. (J/K, but actually not).
