From The Little Mermaid to Toy Story, the 90s were a golden era for animated films. Many of these now classic films boasted amazing soundtracks, but one childhood favorite, Fox Animation Studio's Anastasia , which told the imagined story of the lost princess of the Romanov family, boasted something extra: a signature song by the iconic late R&B singer Aaliyah. Her version of "Journey to the Past," sung in the film by Liz Callaway, would go on to be nominated for an Academy Award. In comparison to the rest of Aaliyah's catalog, the song has been mostly forgotten. Now as a new musical based on the film prepares to open on Broadway, audiences are remembering Aaliyah's contribution to the film, while the movie's creators reminisce about what it was like to work with the unforgettable musician.
All of the film's songs were scored and written by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, the Broadway legends behind Once on This Island , Ragtime, and Seussical . In an interview with Broadly, Ahrens recalls writing "Journey to the Past" to express the excitement of the film's lead character, Anya, as she set out on the adventure to finding the truth about her family. "We knew we wanted to write a number... that would allow her to express her nervousness and fear and joy about setting off into the world for the first time," Ahrens says. "The director wanted the song to travel visually from the Russian orphanage all the way to Saint Petersburg, so it needed a feeling of motion and a sense of excitement." Ahrens and Flaherty never intended for the song to become the film's breakout hit, but as they wrote it, they felt an energy that hinted at the number's potential.
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