Anastasia at Geva Theatre

Today's adventure began with a race against the clock.

Shayna wanted to visit Rochester. Although she has been here many times since meeting Trace, she had never really experienced the city, so the four of us—Trace, Shayna, Serge, and I—made plans to see Anastasia at Geva Theatre.

The morning filled itself with errands. One thing led to another and by the time we were ready to leave the house we were already late. Rochester is about forty-five minutes away, and we still had to find parking and get to the theater.

Shayna drove. She made up time on the 90.

By the time we arrived the curtain had already gone up. We hurried inside, expecting to be turned away, but the staff quietly escorted us to our seats while the performance was underway.

The musical tells the story of a young woman searching for her identity in the years following the Russian Revolution. The sets moved from St. Petersburg to Paris. The costumes were elaborate. The audience was completely engaged from beginning to end.

When the final curtain fell, we stepped back out into the city and headed to dinner.

We ate at SEA, a Vietnamese restaurant in Rochester known for its pho. The restaurant was busy and energetic. Bowls of steaming broth moved constantly from the kitchen to waiting tables. We settled in, talked about the show, and enjoyed a leisurely meal before making the drive home.

The adventure was never really about Anastasia. It was about spending a day together, seeing a different corner of our region, and letting Rochester become the destination instead of simply the place we pass through on the way to somewhere else.