Interesting, stimulating family entertainment is rare enough in Denver, so a sprightly show like Annie is welcome, indeed. Now playing at the Denver Civic Theatre, the musical revue offers local parents a breather from the inanities of television and a handy opportunity to introduce children to the excitement of live theater.
For those who somehow are not familiar with the story, Annie is Little Orphan Annie. The comic strip come to life finds Annie in an orphanage as the play opens. Run by the abusive, self-pitying alcoholic Miss Hannigan, the orphanage for little girls is a "hard-knocks life" for them, as proclaimed in one of the show's best musical numbers. Annie runs away to find her parents, who left a note and a broken locket with her when they dropped her at the orphanage eleven years earlier.
Out on the streets of Depression-era New York, Annie finds a dog and a friendly Hooverville where the homeless thank the president for their dispossessed status in a rousing number, beautifully choreographed and performed by the company.
When the authorities raid Hooverville, Annie is returned to the mercies of Miss Hannigan but is saved from the paddle by the arrival of Grace Farrell, private secretary to the billionaire Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks. In an eccentric stab at philanthropy, Warbucks wishes to treat an orphan to Christmas with him. Naturally, Warbucks falls for the little redhead and wants to adopt her. But Annie is faithful to the hope her parents will return and claim her. So Warbucks offers a huge reward.
Meanwhile, back at the orphanage, Hannigan, her brother Rooster and his floozy Lily St. Regis, scoundrels all, plot to con Warbucks and kill Annie. But, hey, this is a musical comedy and nothing bad is going to happen to an orphan.
One reason kids relate so well to the play is that so many kids have substantial roles in it. Another reason, of course, is that childhood's worst fear is of parents' dying. There are dozens of fairy tales about orphans with wicked stepmothers just like the evil Miss Hannigan, and the end is always the same: The wicked stepmother gets hers and the good Cinderella or Rapunzel or Snow White gets the prince. Annie's prince this time is a prince of industry, and a father figure rather than a husband. But the appeal is the same, and the kids in the audience lap it up.
The music in the show is tuneful, the songs amusing, and in this production the dancing is inventive and delightful. The company has double-cast the title role; the performance I attended featured Maren Lynne Lewis, who brings with her a sweet, hardy voice and a good stage presence. I've seen the other Annie, Sarah Maria Lowenstein, perform the same role in another production and remember clearly her pretty voice and adorable presence, so the theatergoer will not lose out either way.
Mike Moore's Daddy Warbucks is splendidly gruff and forceful--likable even as a robber baron. Pam Ward's Miss Hannigan is almost too frightful; she delivers her nasty songs with a fervor that makes even the wicked witch from Snow White pale by comparison. James McLoud's Rooster needs a trifle more restraint to fit the production--after all, you have to buy what the con is selling.
But as with any Annie, it's the orphans who make the show. All of the children here have fine stage presence, good voices and budding acting talent. They're a treat.
