'Annie' at the Y: Classic Show Delivers Timeless Holiday Message

It surprises me sometimes how much a song can evoke a memory.

Long ago and way back when, one of the first musicals I ever got to see was "Annie."  Friday, I had the privilege of seeing it performed once again – and what a wonderful performance it was.

Annie is based upon the classic comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," created by Harold Gray and first appearing in newspapers in 1924.  "Little Orphan Annie" would be an iconic character, appearing in newspapers long after her original creator passed on. In 1977, the musical would open on Broadway, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. "Annie" would win a Tony award, tour all around the country, and a revival on Broadway is in the works for 2012.

I did not know what to expect when I was asked to review this production at the . I thought, OK, this will be different. And I was right.

It was a truly impressive show.

Director Reegan McKenzie, a longtime teacher, singer, recording artist vocal and drama coach, has put together an incredible cast and production.

There are two whole casts that are performing this show. Cast T, performing on Thursday and Sunday night, plus the Saturday matinee, and Cast F, performing Friday and Saturday night, and the Sunday matinee. I got to see Cast F.

The star of the show is, of course, Annie (played Friday night by Claire Kwon, doing her second show with the Y Arts Theatre Company).  I was blown away by the strength of her powerful voice.  She has a big role to fill—and she carried it wonderfully.

Annie begins her life in the orphanage, surrounded by colorful orphans like the precocious Molly (played by Olivia Fornasieri, this being her fourth Y Arts show), and of course the head of the orphanage, the cruel and often drunk Miss Hannigan (played with wicked flair by Glenna Godsey).

Annie runs away from the orphanage, and during her brief escape, she meets her lifelong companion Sandy (a wonderful trained dog named Mikey, who is himself a rescue from neglectful owners). Annie encounters a Hooverville full of dispirited, displaced souls in the throes of the Great Depression before she is caught and taken back to the orphanage.

Along comes the sweet Grace Farrell (Suzanne N. Beckman) personal secretary to the wealthy, bald and powerful Oliver Warbucks (Tal Jones). He wants an orphan to spend the holidays in his home—and Annie manages to win them over.

Miss Hannigan has a no-good brother, Rooster (Mark Quiles), recently freed from jail, who arrives on her doorstep. Together with his girlfriend Lilly (Julie Zier), they scheme to swindle Warbucks and get even with Annie.

With the help of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (played with all the accompanying pomp and circumstance by Ken Hapel), Annie and Daddy Warbucks trip up the nefarious trio and bring a merry Christmas to their new family and Annie's fellow orphans.

Musical director Georgianna Pappas put together an excellent group of players in the pit, and all of the classic songs, including Annie's quintessential "Tomorrow," the orphan ensemble's "Hard-Knock Life," Rooster, Lilly and Miss Hannigan's "Easy Street," and the sweet duet between Annie and Warbucks "I Don't Need Anything But You," were performed with a level of professionalism and pride you would expect from a Broadway cast.  

It was a sold-out show. And it was a joyful, hopeful message that rings as true today as it did in the era it is portraying. As the whole cast sings at the end, "The sun will come out tomorrow!"