Annie

Photo: Andrea Denniss Pink Lily Photography

Annie has never been one of my favourite musicals and Annie and the rest of the orphans certainly have a hard-knock life in the hands of this evil Miss Hannigan played ably by Kathryn Addison with all the hate she can muster. Add to that her ruthless brother Rooster (Matthew Ainsworth) and his girl friend Lily (Anna Mitchelson) and you have an evil trio par excellence, with no redeeming features. Musical numbers, well sung, like Little Girls and Easy Street emphasise the characters to good effect.

Despite a very tired looking set, the orphans bring the show to life with A Hard-Knock Life with excellent singing and dancing. Many groups often cram the stage with as many girls as they can but on this occasion the director has wisely opted for seven very talented and disciplined young people. Their reprise of Fully Dressed is a delight!

Again the small but capable ensemble, swap roles with ease from the down and outs in Hooverville, New Yorkers (NYC) and the polished servants of Warbuck’s mansion.

The rather unbelievable ‘fairy tale’ begins with the rescue of Annie by Warbuck’s Secretary Grace Farrell, played by the delightful Toni Feetenby, from Miss Hannigans clutches who transports her to the home of billionaire Oliver Warbucks. Having won Warbucks heart, he offers to adopt her but Annie wants to find her real Mom and Dad, so Warbucks agrees to help. Richard Bainbridge plays a warm but assured Warbucks summing up his need for Annie in Something Is Missing.

The star of the show is definitely Annie who plays the role with confidence and a strong singing voice. She sings the recurring theme song Tomorrow with ease, but I particularly liked her rendition of Maybe.

To top it off an excellent orchestra under the baton of Musical Director Paul Laidlaw (and the shows Director). Good choreography and a generally slick production.

Photo: Andrea Denniss Pink Lily Photography

• Type: admin
• Performance Date: 21/03/2017
• Star rating: 12345