APRIL 28 • 2022 | 43

came as soon as I said that line,
and it was so loud and sustained
[that] we had to stop and freeze
the moment until the applause
died down. I will never forget
that.
”
Weagraff wanted to be part of
this musical since seeing it on
Broadway with a pre-pandemic
version that featured her son’s
fiancee. The book is by Terrence

McNally, and the score is by
Stephen Flaherty (music) and
Lynn Ahrens (lyrics).
“I love the fact that it is such
a gorgeous show, costume-wise
and set-wise,
” Weagraff said.
“Characters are compelling and
likeable, and there is something
for everyone — romance, mys-
tery, adventure.
“It appeals to all ages. The

little ones will love watching
a story about a princess who
doesn’t know she’s a princess.
Some of the young adults will
remember the 1997 animated
film Anastasia that they fell in
love with and will fall in love
with the musical as well. History
buffs will be interested in the
historical aspect of the produc-
tion.”
Weagraff, 64, who is at the
center of two musical numbers,
is realizing a lifelong dream
as she and her husband, Paul
Weagraff, navigate the empty
nester phase. Although the
sometime-actress appeared
in community theater before
and during her work as a radio
newscaster and public relations
specialist, professional aspira-
tions remained.

THE IMPORTANCE
OF FIDDLER
“My mother’s father was in
Yiddish theater, and my parents
were both in community the-
ater,
” said Weagraff, who lives
in Delaware after growing up
in Pennsylvania with the begin-
nings of performance experienc-
es. “I appeared in Detroit with a
2010 production of Fiddler on the

Roof at the Fox Theatre.
”
Fiddler productions have been
important throughout her life.
Besides the professional tour, she
has joined her parents, husband
and children in staging commu-
nity versions.
Weagraff met her husband,
retired from being both a his-
tory teacher and director of the
Delaware Division of the Arts,
during a 1986 Fiddler production.
As she played Tzeitel and he
played Motel, her mother had the
role of Yente (the matchmaker).
“When our youngest child
went off to college, I saw a notice
for the national tour of Fiddler,
”
she recalled. “I never would have
thought about a tour before that,
and it was only on a whim that I
auditioned not even thinking it
was going to lead to anything.
“I got cast in 2010 when I was
in my mid-50s, and my husband
said I had to go do it. I toured
for two years. I was Shandel the
first year and Golde during the
second year.
”
Casting in regional theater
continued after that, and her
many roles included Grandma
Rosie in The Wedding Singer at
the Surflight Theatre in New
Jersey, Dorothy Cleves in Any
Wednesday at the Montgomery
Theater in Pennsylvania, Ethel
McCormack in Footloose at the
Fireside Theatre in Wisconsin
and Miss Hannigan in Annie
at the Candlelight Theatre in
Delaware.
In her current part, Weagraff
gets to project a range of moods,
from first act scenes where she is
depicted as loving and caring to
a later act scene where she comes
across as cold-hearted. Her two
songs reflect these different
expressions.
“Once Upon a December”
is a recurring motif that has to
do with the relationship shared
by the Dowager Empress and
Anastasia. “Close the Door” has
to do with reaching a point of
not wanting to talk to any more
imposters.

LEFT: Marley Sophia
(Little Anastasia)
and Gerri Weagraff
(Dowager Empress) in
the North American
Tour of Anastasia
RIGHT: Gerri Weagraff
(Dowager Empress)
and Kyla Stone (Anya)
in the North American
Tour of Anastasia

Gerri Weagraff

PHOTOS BY JEREMY DANIEL

“I LOVE THE FACT THAT IT IS SUCH A GORGEOUS

SHOW, COSTUME-WISE AND SET-WISE.”

— GERRI WEAGRAFF