Belle Vernon Area High School musical hits the stage with help from community
BELLE VERNON, Pa. (KDKA) — The opening night of Belle Vernon High School's production of "Anastasia" went on Thursday with costumes that came from all corners of the country.
On March 1, a fire in Buffalo, New York, destroyed a three-story building. On the first floor was DC Theatricks, the costume shop that has outfitted the school's musicals for years. Over 100 costumes that were boxed and ready to be shipped to Belle Vernon were incinerated.
"We got phone calls and emails and text messages, private Facebook messages, from not only local but from people in other states," said Michael Rozell, the musical's director.
Rozell said the outpouring of support for the school was overwhelming. Help even came from a costume company in Philadelphia that dressed the cast for "Anastasia: Once Upon a Time," a movie loosely based on the original and released to streaming platforms.
A military jacket from the movie is one of many items donated to the theater department that Rozell said has helped to give his students the experience they deserve.
The generosity also turned an unfortunate situation into something unforgettable for students like Sienna Lehner and Lani Povlish, who plays Tsarina Alexandra.
"We can't even express how happy we are to have these. We are very thankful," Povlish said.
Lehner, who plays the lead role of Anastasia, said she hoped the theater community would come through for them.
"Anastasia herself has these two iconic dresses to the Broadway show," Lehner said. "This beautiful red dress and a beautiful blue dress that we're absolutely essential. So I'm really glad we were able to pull some strings and get ones that look really really similar."
Belle Vernon's story even made its way to the professionals. Rozell said during Wednesday's dress rehearsal, he got a phone call from a cast member with the North American tour of "Anastasia." They said they were touched by what happened to their costumes and recorded a video telling the students to "break a leg."
Rozell surprised them with the video before Thursday's performance.
"The theme of this show is hope, it's hope and love," Rozell said. "And it doesn't get more hopeful and loving than tons of people and businesses just coming together to help students."
A firefighter in Buffalo, New York, was killed trying to save the building the costumes were in. And before the show Thursday, a moment of silence was held in his honor.
"Anastasia" runs through Sunday at Belle Vernon High School.
