Created by Charles Strouse, Martin Charnin and Thomas Meehan, the musical “Annie” was based off Harold Gray’s comic strip “Little Orphan Annie.” The show first opened on Broadway in 1977 and continues to endear modern audiences with its messages of hope, acceptance and perseverance.
Saguaro City Music Theatre will put on “Annie” Saturday, Dec. 20, to Sunday, Jan. 4.
The show tells the story of Annie, a girl living in an orphanage run by Miss Agatha Hannigan. She longs to find her biological parents and is a leader amongst a group of orphan girls who have become her surrogate family.
Annie goes to stay with Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks, who takes in her and her dog Sandy in an attempt to boost his public image. Along the way, Annie endears herself to Warbucks and his staff.
Annie’s efforts to live a better life are challenged by Miss Hannigan and her brother, Rooster.
The show is filled with memorable songs, including “Tomorrow,” “It’s a Hard Knock Life,” “Maybe” and “Little Girls.”
There have been several film adaptations of Annie, including a 1982 version starring Carol Burnett as Miss Hannigan, Aileen Quinn as Annie, Tim Curry as Rooster and Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks.
The show sends powerful messages of remaining optimistic in times of hardship, finding common ground with those who are different and the power of young voices.
Producing Artistic Director Drew Humphrey said although “Annie” isn’t considered a Christmas show, its message of the importance of family fit with the holiday season.
The show is set in the Depression era. Humphrey said the time period is important to the overall story.
“They were so obsessed with the ‘rags to riches’ story. I think that’s something we really understand as a society, still just in different ways. Maybe it’s through reality TV stars that are blogging or putting something up on YouTube and getting plucked out of obscurity…At the end of the day, human beings, what they want, the obstacles that they face on a daily basis, don’t really change that much,” Humphrey said.
The Saguaro City production will have a real dog named Sadie playing the role of Sandy. She also played Toto in Saguaro City’s production of “The Wizard of Oz.”
The cast includes a diverse youth cast of people of different abilities and backgrounds.
The show has a large orphan cast of 29 kids, including Annie.
Humphrey said the larger cast of orphans allows songs such as “Little Girls” and “It’s a Hard Knock Life” to be more impactful.
Two youth actresses, 8th grader Abigail Barrett and 6th grader Julia Wetzel, are portraying Annie.
Humphrey said when they were casting Annie, they were looking for different abilities and qualities.
“When looking for Annie, there’s a couple of benchmarks you have to reach. One is someone who can deliver the demands of the role vocally, ‘Tomorrow’ alone. The original Annies, like Andrea McArdle, essentially made their fame in being one of the few people that can actually sing that song over and over again….The story is of someone who in the face of all of this, all of the suffering, all of the pain and all of the troubles of 1933, still has hope…It is as underdog of an underdog story that has ever been written. A young girl on the streets of New York alone, fighting for her place in the world, looking for her family, is something that takes a lot of grit,” Humphrey said.
Annie is portrayed as a kind, caring girl who is always there for and is protective of her friends, including a young orphan named Molly.
“She is a really loving, caring kid. You can see that right at the beginning of the show, when little Molly is having a nightmare. She’s the person that Molly’s able to go to because they don’t have a mom and dad….It shows right away the kind of heart that Annie has…At the same time, if anybody messes with her, she’ll do what she has to do,” said Dena DiGiacinto, the show’s choreographer and Saguaro City’s managing director.
DiGiacinto said the show highlights the struggles that the orphans face on a daily basis and the relationships that they have built with each other.
“We have 29 orphans that have to share beds, share clothes and share food. They probably don’t get enough food every day. They’re all hungry. They’re cold. They’re not warm enough in the winter. It’s Christmas time. They’re basically like siblings, in a way. Just like siblings, one minute you’re getting along, the next minute you’re having a fistfight. They all have that edge and that ability to do what they have to do to get what they need every day,” DiGiacinto said.
The youth actors use a lot of props in the show, especially in “It’s A Hard Knock Life.” This number requires them to interact with pillows, sheets, blankets, mops, rags and buckets.
DiGiacinto said they started using props during the first rehearsal.
“We were just trying to introduce everything to them one at a time so it wasn’t too overwhelming. We have kids of varying levels of experience and kids of varying abilities in this ensemble. We had to consider the fact that having buckets slammed on the floor might be overwhelming to some of the kids who might have a sensory issue. We had to work through things in stages, but by the end of the night, they were on the beds, throwing pillows around…. Some of these kids are doing their first big show ever in their entire life. We’re asking a lot of them. It’s lot to absorb, even working through a minute of choreography in just a couple of hours….We kept reminding them we don’t expect you to get everything right on the first night. We just expect you to come in, give it your best try and go home and practice,” DiGiacinto said.
Humphrey said one of the biggest challenges to doing a show set in 1933 can be the props. They had to search for vintage items such as a sewing machine from that time period.
The cut of the dresses and suits and style of the hats and shoes also make a difference in bringing the time period to life onstage.
Humphrey describes Miss Hannigan, the woman who runs in the orphanage, as someone who wants to be glamorous but doesn’t have the funds for it. She often has a disheveled appearance and flirts with any man who comes to the orphanage.
Jodi Darling, a music teacher at Sewell Elementary School, is playing Miss Hannigan.
She previously worked with Saguaro City in their first production, “It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play.”
She is originally from Tucson but spent 10 years working as an actress in New York. She portrayed Magnolia on a national tour of “Showboat.”
Locally, she has also performed with Great American Playhouse, St. Francis Theatre, Arizona Choral Society, Khris Dodge Entertainment, Roadrunner Theatre Company, Arts Express and the Southern Arizona Performing Arts Company.
Darling started acting at age 8. When she was young, she was in Gaslight Theatre Christmas shows.
She did “Annie” one other time when she was 10, with the Southern Arizona Light Opera Company. She portrayed Tessie, one of the orphans.
In this version of “Annie,” Darling is featured in musical numbers such as “Little Girls” and “Easy Street.”
Darling has drawn from her own experience as a teacher in some ways in playing Miss Hannigan.
“I don’t think I’m mean to the kids. My patience is definitely being tried because I teach all day long, and then I have rehearsal from 5 to 11. I don’t think the irritability will be that hard to find,” Darling joked.
“Annie” has been a part of Darling’s life since she was young, so getting to be it in again means a lot to her.
“When I grew up, ‘Annie’ was such a huge thing. Anytime, my family got together, I had to sing ‘Tomorrow’ and “Maybe.’ I made my brother do the motions while I sang. ‘Annie’ for a girl my age was such a huge thing. To be an orphan or to be Annie was such as an amazing thing…Seeing Andrea McArdle on interviews, on Johnny Carson, on whatever she was doing, I just wanted to do that. When the movie came out, that was just huge. Carol Burnett put a face to Miss Hannigan for me, and I just can’t wait to play her,” Darling said.
Darling said that her character isn’t very emphatic in the musical version, but she is trying to showcase different sides of her.
“I’ll have to play with those levels and find the humanity in Miss Hannigan. She’s obviously had a very tough life. This was the only job she could get, and it’s not ideal for her… She’s a female, and they needed a female to work with these orphans. Does she have a drinking problem? Probably. But I’m excited to discover that human side. I’m sure she’s not all grouchy,” Darling said.
Saguaro City Music Theatre’s production of “Annie”
WHEN: Saturday, Dec. 20 to Sunday, Jan. 4. Audio described performance 2 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 3
WHERE: Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway Boulevard, Tucson
COST: $28.50-$69.50
INFO: saguarocity.org