The iconic musical begins its new tour in Denver
Spreading wonderfully wide-eyed optimism, the iconic Broadway musical Annie is making its first stop at the Buell Theatre in Denver as part of a six-month cross-country trek. Originally opening on Broadway nearly 50 years ago, this production is an extremely satisfying revival of Annie’s journey from the clutches of Miss Hannigan to the loving arms of Daddy Warbucks. With its well-crafted script by Thomas Meehan and catchy musical numbers by Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, this Annie shows no sign of aging. It’s a highly polished production that will appeal to both young and not-so-young theatergoers.
Annie (Rainier [Rainey] Trevino) may currently be living in an orphanage, but she is anything but an orphan. Convinced that her birth parents are alive, Annie searches for them even though it has been more than a decade since she was dropped at Miss Hannigan’s frightening doorstep. Hannigan (Stefanie Londino), a booze-swilling horror of a human being, oversees a group of young girls, including Annie, and treats each one of them with equal amounts of disdain. At first, Annie manages to escape from the orphanage and wanders the streets of New York City with her newfound friend Sandy (Georgie), a faithful canine companion. But her freedom doesn’t last long, and eventually she is returned to the orphanage and to an extremely incensed Miss Hannigan.
Everything changes for Annie when Grace Farell (Julia Nicole Hunter), secretary to Oliver Warbucks (Christopher Swan), a well-known billionaire, frees her from her servitude in the orphanage to spend two weeks with Warbucks over the Christmas holiday. Warbucks immediately becomes enamored with Annie and moves to adopt her — changing her life forever. Not so fast, Warbucks: Annie is still searching for her natural parents and eventually convinces Warbucks to join in the search.
In the meantime, Miss Hannigan is visited by her slimy brother, Rooster (Jeffrey T. Kelly), and his current squeeze Lily St. Regis (Samantha Stevens). Together, the three of them stop the show dancing and singing their way through “Easy Street,” dreaming of a better life for themselves.
Annie convinces Warbucks to engage his famous friends — including President Franklin D. Roosevelt (Mark Woodard) — to help find her parents. To enable the search, Annie is in possession of half a locket given to her by her parents and only her real parents will have the other half to confirm the validity of their relationship. Hundreds answer the call, but it is Rooster and Lily who know of the locket thanks to Miss Hannigan, and they disguise themselves as Annie’s long-lost parents to retrieve Annie and claim the $50,000 reward offered by Warbucks.
Fear not, Rooster and Lily are found out along with the duplicity of Miss Hannigan and are arrested on the spot. As it turns out, Annie’s parents are no longer living and in the happiest of endings, Warbucks extends his offer to adopt Annie and she gleefully accepts. In the final moments, Annie is reunited with her four-legged friend Sandy, making for a heartwarming tableau as the curtain falls.
A standout Annie
In the role of Annie, Trevino is a standout among child performers as she reaches new heights in both comedic interpretation and song presentation. She sings the quintessential feel-good song “Tomorrow” with great emotional honesty, giving the audience a chance to manifest their own flicker of hope that the future might bring something special. Londino as Miss Hannigan is the perfect foil for young Annie and the other orphans, clearly displaying her contempt for them in the song “Little Girls.” And as Oliver Warbucks, Swan lies somewhere between the successful billionaire and complete marshmallow, especially when it comes to Annie’s happiness. This is clearly set forth in the Act Two melody, “Something Was Missing,” as he describes the element absent from his life and finds in Annie.
Also worth mentioning for their individual contributions to this fine production is Hunter as Grace Farrell, Kelly as Rooster Hannigan, Stevens as Lily St. Regis, and Woodard as FDR. They are each well-versed musical comedy performers who know how to make the most of their characters and shine while doing it. Of course, Annie would not be possible without the irrepressible orphans played by Savannah Austin, Arianna Guller, Avery Hope, Addie Jaymes, Kylie Noelle Patterson, and Jade Smith. And finally, there is Georgie in the role of Sandy who manages to steal every scene he is in.
The director of this extraordinary revival is Jenn Thompson who stays true to the well-crafted script, including a slew of corny, and sometimes dated jokes, along with the music we have all heard a million times but continue to love. Choreographer Patricia Wilcox has managed to create an energetic dance dialogue that highlights the performers with great confidence in each scene. Scenic designer Wilson Chin and costume designer Alejo Vietti have delivered eye-appealing scenery and costumes that provide a very stylish production overall.
Annie is a first-rate musical comedy combining witty and meaningful dialogue and enjoyable music and this production raises the bar even further with its superb cast, direction, and choreography.
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