Review: The Anastasia File, Newcastle Theatre Royal

Invited: Review by Joanna Andrews 16 September 2026

The Anastasia File is a fascinating new take on a long-told story. Most of us have, if not a passing interest in, then at least an awareness of the legend of Grand Duchess Anastasia, the daughter of Tsar Nicholas II who, for decades, was rumoured to have somehow escaped the assassination of the Romanov family in 1918.

Here, we are presented with a new adaptation of that possible story, inspired by the life of Anna Anderson, later Anna Manahan, the woman who famously claimed to be the lost Grand Duchess.

Jenny Seagrove plays the suspected Duchess incredibly well, maintaining a flawless Russian accent throughout the piece and even slipping seamlessly into Russian dialogue at times. Simon Shepherd brings excellent gravitas to his roles as both the original inspector investigating her claims and, later, the inspector’s son.

The piece is cleverly bookended by the end of the story. We initially meet Shepherd as the son of the original inspector before travelling back to 1920 and the beginning of the investigation.

The first half packs in a huge amount of action, despite covering only around three years of her life. Much of this comes through the dialogue between the inspector and the woman claiming to be Anastasia, as he seeks to prove what he already believes to be true.

The scenes are extremely well written, with plenty of back and forth and enough space for the audience to become completely drawn into the investigation. Although the first half has a running time of around an hour and five minutes, I never felt as though I’d been sitting there for over an hour.

The second half covers a lot more in a shorter space of time and I might have enjoyed seeing a little more of her later life, but that’s merely a testament to how much I was enjoying the story!

The ancillary characters are played excellently by Ashley D. Gayle and Rosie Thompson, each taking on numerous roles, personalities and accents with huge energy and efficiency. I did, however, feel that the production could have benefited from another two multi-role performers. This would have given the actors slightly more breathing room between characters while also allowing the audience a little more time to adjust to who was who. At one point, I found myself waiting for Thompson to speak before I could establish which character she was playing.

The chemistry between Seagrove and Shepherd is absolutely brilliant. These are two actors bringing enormous dedication to their roles, grounding their performances in the historical world of the story.

One particularly interesting choice is to continually present Seagrove’s character in her nightgown, almost as though she has never quite escaped the institution in which she was first found. It maintains a sense of vulnerability around her throughout the piece, even during the moments when she is fighting hardest to be heard and believed.

Lighting and sound also make a huge contribution to the overall production. Both are used with great precision, with the lighting frequently reflecting the emotional state of the characters on stage while the sound design builds an additional layer of atmosphere around the audience.

The Anastasia File is an excellent production and well worth seeing. I hadn’t looked at the Anastasia story for years, yet after leaving the theatre I immediately went home and spent far too many hours on the internet researching Anna Anderson and revisiting the Romanov legend with renewed interest.

And finally, a huge shout-out to Newcastle Theatre Royal for its wonderful hospitality. The front-of-house team are incredibly friendly, approachable, efficient and welcoming.

Frankly, they’re so lovely it’s almost worth going to the theatre just to see the staff.

Photo Credit: Simon Vail