SOAP LAKE — The Masquers Theater’s production of “Anastasia: The Musical” will open Oct. 16, according to an announcement from the theater.

The play will star Emma-Jean Wydur as the title character, with Ben McLain, Jeremy Hansen, Alec Lobe, Christy McLain and Auti Kirk in supporting roles, according to a previous announcement from the Masquers. Rachel and Stacey Bresee are directing, and Clark Dalton is the music director.

“Anastasia: The Musical” takes place in 1920s Paris, where a young woman calling herself Anya has appeared with amnesia. Anya bears a strong resemblance to Grand Duchess Anastasia, the youngest daughter of the Tsar, who was murdered along with his entire family in the 1917 Russian Revolution. A con artist (Ben McLain) and an exiled Russian noble (Hansen) scheme to pass Anya off as the grand duchess, claiming that she miraculously survived. But what if Anya really is Anastasia?

The story is told with a lush score that includes songs “Journey to the Past,” “Once Upon a December,” “In a Crowd of Thousands,” and “My Petersburg,” according to the announcement.

“This cast is doing such a wonderful job,” Stacey Bresee wrote in the announcement. “There are so many songs and lots of choreography but the cast has jumped right in to learn it all as fast as they can.”

Stacey Bresee and her husband Clifford have directed most of the Masquers’ musicals for better than a decade, she told the Columbia Basin Herald last year. Rachel Bresee, their daughter, performed in last year’s production of “Little Shop of Horrors.”

“Anastasia: The Musical” is based on the 1997 animated film “Anastasia,” starring Meg Ryan and Kelsey Grammar. That film, in turn, was based on the story of Anna Anderson, who turned up in Berlin in 1920 claiming to be the grand duchess, according to Paul Gilbert, who has written several books on the Russian royal family. 

The claim sparked a long-running lawsuit, despite the testimony of surviving relatives that Anderson was an impostor, Gilbert wrote on his website. DNA testing proved that Anderson, who died in 1964, was actually a Polish woman with a history of mental illness.

Performances of “Anastasia: The Musical” will be Fridays at 7 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m., according to the announcement. The show will run through Nov. 8.

“Whether audiences come for the sweeping music, the romance, the history, the adventure, or simply the magic of live theater, ‘Anastasia’ offers an unforgettable theatrical experience for the entire region,” the Masquers wrote in the announcement.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.masquers.com.