Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years, setting a record for the Alvin Theatre (now the Neil Simon Theatre). It spawned numerous productions in many countries, as well as national tours, and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. The musical's songs "Tomorrow" and "Hard-Knock Life" are among its most popular musical numbers.
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Act 1[]
It is 1932 and eleven-year-old Annie is in the Municipal Girls Orphanage, along with Molly (age 6), Kate (age 7), Tessie (age 10), Pepper (age 12), July (age 13), and Duffy (age 13). When Molly awakes from a bad dream at 3:00 AM, Annie comforts her. She then asks her to read the note her parents gave her in 1922, when she was left on the doorstep of the orphanage. The note says that they will come pick her up, so she is always hopeful that they are still out there ("Maybe").
Annie decides to escape to find her parents, but is caught by Miss Hannigan, who is currently suffering from a hangover. She is angered by this and forces all the girls to vigorously clean the orphanage ("Hard Knock Life"). Shortly after, Mr. Bundles, the laundry man, comes in to pick up the blankets. While Miss Hannigan is flirting with him, Annie climbs into the laundry basket and the orphans cover her up with the blankets. Once Miss Hannigan realizes she is gone, the other orphans express their frustration ("Hard Knock Life (Reprise)").
Annie successfully escapes, running into a friendly stray dog. As she comforts him, she tells him of better days yet to come ("Tomorrow"). The dog catcher is after him, so she pretends he is hers by calling him Sandy. Though at first unsuccessful, he is convinced, and she continues. She later finds a Hooverville, where people made homeless by the Great Depression have come together as a community ("We'd Like To Thank You, Herbert Hoover"). However, a policeman named Lt. Ward (who had been sent by Miss Hannigan) catches Annie and brings her back.
Grace Farrell, assistant to the billionaire Oliver Warbucks, comes to the orphanage asking for an orphan to come to his mansion for the Christmas holiday. Because Annie was in Miss Hannigan's office, Grace asks to take her, and Miss Hannigan reluctantly agrees. Once she has left, Miss Hannigan explodes with her hatred for all the girls in the orphanage ("Little Girls").
Meanwhile, at the Warbucks Mansion, the staff welcomes Annie with open arms ("I Think I'm Gonna Like It Here"). When Oliver Warbucks comes back though, he is very moody and not too happy to have an orphan in his mansion. He asks Grace to take Annie to a movie, but she persuades him to come. As he and Annie begin to like each other, they enjoy a fabulous night in New York City ("N.Y.C.").
Back at the orphanage, Miss Hannigan's brother, Rooster, and his floozy girlfriend, Lily, pay a visit. She mentions that Annie is staying at a billionaire's house, and they think they could use this situation to get rich, though they do not yet know how ("Easy Street").
Warbucks sees the locket around Annie's neck, and buys her a new one from Tiffany & Co. He debates taking her "under his wing" because he does not know much about children, but decides he loves her and gives her the locket ("Why Should I Change A Thing?"). However, she bursts into tears saying it was the only thing left by her parents, and refuses to accept a new one. Grace and the staff then pledge to find her parents no matter what it takes ("You Won't Be An Orphan For Long").
Act 2[]
Annie appears on the radio on a show by Bert Healy ("Maybe" Reprise) where Warbucks announces that he is offering $50,000 to the couple who can prove they are her parents. Healy then sings a song with the Boylan Sisters ("You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile"). The orphans are listening, and decide to dance and sing to the song they have just heard ("You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile" Reprise). When Miss Hannigan hears, she barges in and demands to know what was happening. Molly announces that Annie was on the radio, and that there is a $50,000 reward for her parents. Miss Hannigan is anything but pleased. Shortly after, a couple named Ralph and Shirley Mudge arrive, saying they left a little girl here eleven years ago and have come back for her. Miss Hannigan is shocked. They soon reveal themselves to be Rooster and Lily, and explain their plan for the reward. They request information about Annie from Miss Hannigan for one third of the money, though she demands one half for this service, and tells them about the note and the locket. ("Easy Street" Reprise).
Warbucks brings Annie to Washington, DC where she requests to meet the president. Warbucks thinks that it would be better if Annie waited outside, but Franklin D. Roosevelt asks her to stay. She begins to sing "Tomorrow", though shushed by the cabinet. Roosevelt, however, believes that people must be optimistic during tough times, and commands them to sing ("Tomorrow" (Cabinet Reprise)). Once back home, Warbucks tells Annie how much he loves her ("Something Was Missing"). Because her parents have not shown up, he announces he would like to adopt her ("I Don't Need Anything But You"). They decide to throw a Christmas party, and Annie wants to invite Miss Hannigan and the orphans. While preparing, the delighted staff tell of how her arrival has changed their lives ("Annie").
Judge Louis Brandeis shows up to begin the adoption proceedings, but is interrupted by Mr. and Mrs. Mudge (Rooster and Lily in disguise) who come to pick up Annie. Grace and Warbucks are shocked, because they know about the note and the locket. Still, Warbucks does not think they are her real parents. He requests that she will be allowed to stay one more night for the Christmas party, and then be taken away to their supposed pig farm in New Jersey. Early that morning, she wishes she could have been adopted, and not sent off with her "parents" ("Maybe" (Reprise)). Warbucks then receives a surprise visit from Roosevelt and his Secret Service. It is revealed by him that Annie's parents are actually David and Margaret Bennett who died when she was a baby. They then realize that Mr. and Mrs. Mudge are really Rooster and Lily just as they show up to claim her and the money. They, along with Miss Hannigan, are arrested by the Secret Service, and everyone is delighted by Roosevelt's new deal for the economy ("New Deal for Christmas").
Characters[]
| Characters | Short Description |
| Annie | An 11-year-old redheaded orphan girl, optimistic and spunky, whose only wish is to find her parents |
| Miss Hannigan | The orphanage matron, disillusioned, she hates children, but is fond of alcoholic beverages |
| Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks | Billionaire businessman who opens his home – and 'finally' opens his heart – to Annie |
| Grace Farrell | Daddy Warbucks' faithful secretary, who loves Annie from the start |
| Daniel "Rooster" Hannigan | Miss Hannigan's no-good younger brother, out for the quick buck |
| Lily St. Regis | Rooster's girlfriend, is smarter than she appears from the name of the hotel |
| Franklin D. Roosevelt | President of the United States, he aids Daddy Warbucks in the search for Annie's parents |
| Molly, Pepper, Duffy, July, Tessie, and Kate | The orphans at the orphanage, ages 6 to 13 |
| Louis Brandeis | Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, he is called upon to assist in Annie's adoption |
| Bert Healy | Radio announcer who agrees to broadcast Annie's search for her parents |
| The Boylan Sisters | Singers on the Bert Healy Show who hope to be famous someday |
| Drake | The butler at the Warbucks Mansion; a good friend to Annie and Daddy Warbucks |
| Lt. Ward | A policeman sent after Annie, he finds her at the local homeless town (Hooverville) |
| Sandy | An abandoned mixed–breed dog that Annie rescues, he becomes her faithful companion |
Musical numbers[]
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Production history[]
The New York Times estimates that Annie is produced 700 to 900 times each year in the United States.
Pre-Broadway tryout[]
Annie had its world premiere on August 10, 1976 at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut. Kristen Vigard was the first actress to play the title role. However, the producers soon decided that Vigard's genuinely sweet interpretation was not tough enough for the street-smart orphan. After a week of performances, Vigard was replaced by Andrea McArdle, who played one of the other orphans, Pepper. Vigard went on to become McArdle's Broadway understudy.
Broadway original[]
The original Broadway production opened at the Alvin Theatre on April 21, 1977 and starred Andrea McArdle as Annie, Reid Shelton as Daddy Warbucks, Dorothy Loudon as Miss Hannigan, and Sandy Faison as Grace Farrell. Danielle Brisebois was one of the orphans. It was nominated for eleven Tony Awards and won seven, including the Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book. Replacements in the title role on Broadway included then-child actors Shelly Bruce, Sarah Jessica Parker, Allison Smith and Alyson Kirk. Replacements in the role of Miss Hannigan included Alice Ghostley, Dolores Wilson, Betty Hutton, Marcia Lewis, and June Havoc. Ann Ungar understudied and played for Dorothy Loudon in the role of Miss Hannigan. She also understudied Alice Ghostley and Dolores Wilson. The show closed on January 2, 1983, after a total of 2,377 performances, setting a record for the longest running show at the Alvin Theatre (now the Neil Simon Theatre), until it was surpassed by Hairspray in 2009.
United States National touring companies[]
During the Broadway run of Annie, there were four touring companies that were launched from the original production to tour to major U.S. cities:
The 1st National Touring Company opened in Toronto in March 1978 with Kathy Jo Kelly as Annie, Norwood Smith as Daddy Warbucks, Jane Connell, Ruth Kobart as Miss Hannigan, and Gary Beach as Rooster. It played in Miami from April 12 to May 13, 1978 then continued for a few more cities until it landed in Chicago where it played for 32 weeks. In April 1979, it continued on the road in with Mary K. Lombardi now in the lead as Annie. In the fall of 1980, Theda Stemler took over the part and was replaced in Boston when she grew too old. On May 15, 1981, Louanne Sirota, who had played Annie in the long-running Los Angeles production (see below), took over the role for four months. In August 1981, Becky Snyder became the company's last Annie, closing the tour on September 6, 1981.
The 2nd National Touring Company (sometimes referred to as the West Coast or Los Angeles Production) opened in San Francisco on June 22, 1978 with Patricia Ann Patts starring as Annie and the then-unknown Molly Ringwald as one of the orphans. The show landed in Los Angeles on October 15, 1978 for an open-ended run at the Shubert Theatre. On June 12, 1979, Sirota, just 9 years old (up until that time, all Annies had been 11 years old), took over the role from Patts. Marisa Morell took the role in December 1979, closing the Los Angeles run and continuing on tour with the show through December 1980. Kristi Coombs then played Annie until this touring company closed in Philadelphia on January 23, 1982. Alyssa Milano played one of the orphans in 1981.
The 3rd National Touring Company opened in Dallas on October 3, 1979 with Roseanne Sorrentino (who would later go on to portray Pepper in the 1982 film version) in the title role. This company toured to 23 cities playing mostly shorter runs of a month or less. On March 27, 1981, Bridget Walsh took over as Annie. Becky Snyder (who had closed the 1st National Tour) joined this company in the summer of 1982 and stayed with it until it closed in September of that year.
The 4th National Touring Company opened on September 11, 1981 with Mollie Hall playing Annie. This production was a "bus and truck" tour, with a slightly reduced cast, that traveled the country and often played in two cities a week. This company was still touring when the original Broadway production closed in January 1983, making Kathleen Sisk the final performer to play Annie from the original production team. This tour closed in September 1983.
West End original[]
The musical premiered in the West End at the Victoria Palace Theatre on 3 May 1978. Though Andrea McArdle played the title role for 40 performances, British 12-year-old Ann Marie Gwatkin was also cast in the title role and appeared on the Original London cast recording. She alternated with Christine Hyland and five other Annies were cast at this point: Anne O'Rourke, Tracy Taylor, Jacinta Whyte, Helen Thorne and Gillian White, who were all to play the role over the next three years. Miss Hannigan was originally played by Sheila Hancock, and later by Maria Charles and Stella Moray; Daddy Warbucks was played by Stratford Johns and later by Charles West, with Deborah Clarke playing Pepper and Melanie Grant playing Molly. Annie closed on 28 November 1981, after 1485 performances.
UK tour[]
The musical transferred to the Bristol Hippodrome for a special Christmas season before touring Britain. Because of strict British employment laws for juvenile actors, a succession of actresses took on the lead role every four months. One of the last girls to perform the role at the Victoria Palace before the show went on tour was 10-year old Claudia Bradley from Leeds who was featured on a 1981 BBC programme called Fame.
Broadway revival (1997)[]
A 20th anniversary Broadway revival, which played at the Martin Beck Theatre (now called the Al Hirschfeld Theatre) in 1997, entitled Annie, the 20th Anniversary, starred Nell Carter as Miss Hannigan, but controversy surrounded the casting of the titular character. The original actress cast in the role, Joanna Pacitti, was fired and replaced by her understudy, Brittny Kissinger (who usually played orphan July) just two weeks before her Broadway debut, while battling bronchitis in Boston. The Pre-Broadway Tour was playing the Colonial Theatre. 'Annie' Understudy and Swing Orphan Alexandra Keisman performed the role the first night Pacitti was absent. The producers then gave Kissinger the next performance. The show then moved on to the Oakdale in Connecticut where an insert was placed in the Playbill claiming "The Role of Annie is now being played by Brittny Kissinger". Public sentiment seemed to side with Pacitti as she was the winner of a highly-publicized contest to find a new Annie sponsored by the department store Macy's. This incident, coupled with the mixed reviews the new staging garnered, doomed it to a short run, although it was followed by a successful national tour. Kissinger, then 8, became the youngest actress to ever play Annie on Broadway.
More controversy surrounding the show involved Nell Carter. Carter reportedly was very upset when commercials promoting the show used a different actress, Marcia Lewis, a white actress, as Miss Hannigan. The producers claimed that the commercials, which were made during an earlier production, were too costly to reshoot. Carter felt that racism played a part in the decision. "Maybe they do not want audiences to know Nell Carter is black", she told the New York Post. However, the ads did mention that Carter was in the show. "It hurts a lot", Carter told the Post, "I've asked them nicely to stop it — it's insulting to me as a black woman." Later reports stated that "Nell Carter of Broadway's 'Annie' denied Thursday that she called her show's producers racist because they chose to air commercials featuring a previous Miss Hannigan--who is white--instead of her." Her statement, released by the Associated Press, read: " 'Yes, it is true that I and my representatives have gone to management on more than one occasion about the commercial and were told that there was nothing they could do about it,' Carter said in a statement Thursday. 'Therefore, I have resigned myself to the fact that this is the way it is.' The statement also addressed the alleged charges of racism, first published in Thursday's New York Post. Carter is black. 'I, Nell Carter, never, ever, ever accused my producers or anyone in the show of racism,' she said. Producers have said it is too expensive to film a new commercial." Carter was later replaced by another white actress, Sally Struthers. The revival closed on October 19, 1997 after 14 previews and 239 performances.
West End revival (1998)[]
The show was revived at the Victoria Palace, running from 30 September 1998 to 28 February 1999. It starred Lesley Joseph and then Lily Savage (the female alter ego of comedian Paul O'Grady) as Miss Hannigan and Kevin Colson as Warbucks.
Further UK tours of the show were also staged, including a one-month run at The Theatre Royal in Lincoln in 2001. Members of the original cast included Kate Winney and Jemma Carlisle as Annie, Louise English (Grace), Vicki Michelle (Miss Hannigan) and Simon Masterton-Smith (Daddy Warbucks). The show proved to be a success, and so for the first two tours and the Malaysian Genting Highlands Production, the role of Annie was then shared by Faye Spittlehouse and a young Lucy May Barker. This particular production toured from 2001–2007 and resumed in September 2008.
1999-2000 United States tour[]
Starting in August 1999, the post Broadway National Tour continued with Meredith Ann Bull as Annie. In the spring of 2000, Ashley Wieronski, who had been playing Duffy, moved up to play Annie. In July 2000, Dana Benedict took over as Annie.
2000-2001 Australian tour[]
In 2000/2001 a tour played Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Anthony Warlow starred as Daddy Warbucks with Amanda Muggleton as Miss Hannigan. A new song, "Why Should I Change a Thing", was written for Warlow. Appearing as Annie in the Sydney production was Rachel Marley. A publicist noted that "each time the show moves to a new city two casts of seven orphans plus two Annies have to be found to join the adult cast."[13]
2005-10 United States tours[]
Starting in August 2005, a 30th anniversary traveling production of Annie by Networks Tours embarked on a multi-city tour. This production was directed by Martin Charnin. For the first year of the tour, Conrad John Schuck played Daddy Warbucks, Alene Robertson was Miss Hannigan and Annie was played by Marissa O'Donnell.Throughout the run of the show, there were a couple of replacements, including Amanda Balon, who took over as Molly. For the 2nd year of the tour, Annie was played by Marissa O'Donnell again. This Equity Tour closed on March 25, 2007, at the Hippodrome Theatre in Baltimore, Maryland.
The 2007-2008 cast included Amanda Balon, returning as Annie, David Barton as Oliver Warbucks, Lynn Andrews as Miss Hannigan and Zander Meisner as Rooster. The 2008-09 cast for the tour featured Tianna Stevens as Annie. Early in 2009, Amanda Balon returned temporarily to play the role of Annie until Madison Kerth was rehearsed to play the title role. Also returning were Barton, Andrews and Meisner. Other cast members included Mackenzie Aladjem (Molly). In the 2009-10 tour, Kerth returned as Annie along with most of the previous year's cast.
Broadway revival (2012)[]
A 35th Anniversary production opened on Broadway in 2012. Thomas Meehan revised the musical, with James Lapine directing. Lilla Crawford stars as Annie with Katie Finneran as Miss Hannigan, with Anthony Warlow playing "Daddy" Warbucks. Featured cast includes Brynn O'Malley, Clarke Thorell and J. Elaine Marcos as Grace Farrell, Rooster and Lily St. Regis (respectively).The revival started previews at the Palace Theatre on October 3, 2012, and officially opened on November 8, 2012 receiving mostly positive reviews. Jane Lynch will take over the role of Miss Hannigan for a limited engagement lasting beginning May 14, and ending July 14, 2013.
International productions[]
Annie has been produced professionally in Argentina (19821), Australia (19781, 2000, 20111), Denmark (1982), Germany(1999), Hungary (1998), Israel (20011, 2010), Italy (1982,2006), Japan (1979, 1986, 2004, 2010)2, United Kingdom (19781, 1983, 1998, tours from 2000–2010), Mexico (19791,1991, 2010), The Netherlands (1997-19991, 2005-20071, 2012-20131), Norway (19911, 20041), Philippines (1978, 1987, 1998), Portugal (1982,1, 2010), Spain (19821, 20001, 2010), Sweden (1979 (Stockholm), 1999 (Stockholm), 2005-2006 (Malmö)1), Peru (2002), Zimbabwe (2003), Colombia (2006) Miami (2006), Belgium (1992, 2008–2009, 2012), Poland 1989 North America (1978, 2003), Denmark (2011), Puerto Rico (2012), Australia (2012), Singapore (2012).
Indicates the production made an official cast recording. In Japan, a special demo recording of selected songs is made each year, with the new actress playing Annie.