Information About Annie

Annie is a 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 musical ran for nearly 6 years on Broadway, spawned numerous productions in many countries, as well as national tours, and won the Tony Award for Best Musical. The popular songs "Tomorrow" and "Hard Knock Life" are from this musical.

plot

Act I

Annie is an 11-year old girl who grew up in the Great Depression. Late one December night little Annie, is jolted awake by dreams of her parents. Annie shows a little girl a note her parents left her in one half of a heart-shaped locket, which promises that they will one day come for her ("Maybe").

But Annie realizes that her "folks are never coming for [her]" and decides to find them by escaping, but is quickly thwarted by Miss Hannigan, the cruel woman who manages the orphanage for the city. The children are forced to clean the orphanage at this early hour ("Hard Knock Life"). When Bundles McCloskey, the laundryman, comes to pick up the orphan's sheets, Annie escapes in a laundry basket, and the orphans celebrate her escape ("It's the Hard Knock Life - Reprise").

Annie is in St. Mark's Place as city dogcatchers pursue stray dogs. She finds a sad-faced mutt who has been wandering alone. "They're after me, too," she tells the dog, and then assures him that "Everything's gonna be fine." ("Tomorrow") Officer Ward of the New York Police Department suspects that Annie's dog is a stray, but she tells him that the dog is hers: "I call him Sandy because of his nice Sandy color." Sandy responds to his new name when he is called by Annie, and Officer Ward is reluctantly persuaded that the dog indeed belongs to Annie.

Underneath the 59th Street Bridge, Annie and Sandy meet a group of people living in a Hooverville ("We'd Like To Thank You Herbert Hoover"). During a raid on the Hooverville, however, Annie loses track Sandy, and is found by the police and is taken back to the orphanage where she is reprimanded by Miss Hannigan ("Little Girls"). Mere minutes later, Grace Farrell, secretary to billionaire Oliver Warbucks, arrives at the orphanage. Warbucks wishes to have an orphan stay at his home for Christmas (reasons for the adoption vary from version to version, from the need for an heir to a PR stunt), so Annie is taken by Grace.

Though the servants at Warbucks' mansion welcome Annie warmly ("I Think I'm Gonna Like it Here"), Warbucks is more hesitant to accept Annie as he was expecting a "boy orphan." The two strengthen their bond during a trip to the Roxy ("N.Y.C."). Miss Farrell convinces Mr. Warbucks that money isn't everything and he should open his heart to the orphan. Warbucks decides to adopt Annie. Hannigan is clearly angered over this news, and with the help of her conman brother Rooster and his girlfriend Lily St. Regis, the three develop a plan to get rich from Annie ("Easy Street").

To break the ice for a request for adoption, Warbucks buys Annie a new heart locket. ("Why Should I Change A Thing?") When the girl approaches hysteria as he attempts to take the old locket off, Warbucks realizes that Annie still wishes to find her parents. He promises Annie that he will find her mother and father ("You Won't Be An Orphan For Long").

Act II

The pair go on a radio show to initiate a public plea for Annie's parents. Warbucks offers $50,000 to anyone who can prove that they are Annie's parents - or, whoever has the second half of the locket ("You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile"). The radio broadcast is heard by the orphans ("You're Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile - Reprise"), as well as Miss Hannigan. Rooster and Lily plan to pose as Annie's parents, and with Hannigan's knowledge of the second half of the locket, take the reward money and leave town ("Easy Street - Reprise").

Meanwhile, during a visit to the White House, Warbucks and Annie inspire Franklin Delano Roosevelt and his Cabinet to introduce the New Deal platform ("Tomorrow - Cabinet Reprise"). After a paper from the F.B.I. shows that it will be impossible to trace Annie's parents through the locket - over 90,000 were made - and the 1,236 people claiming to be Annie's parents turn out to be liars, Warbucks decides to adopt Annie ("Something was Missing").

During an improvised party celebrating the eve of Annie's adoption ("I Don't Need Anything But You", "Annie"), Lily and Rooster enter disguised as "Ralph Mudge" and "Shirley Mudge", and claim to be Annie's parents. As the couple has a false birth certificate and the other locket half, Warbucks begrudgingly accepts the two as Annie's parents. Warbucks invites the pair to come pick her up the next day, on Christmas morning.

Warbucks, and surprisingly Annie, are saddened over this turn of events ("Maybe - Reprise"). New news from the F.B.I. is quickly received - Annie's real parents, David and Margaret Bennett, have died. Lily, Rooster, and their accomplice Hannigan are all arrested. All celebrate the adoption of Annie and the other orphans by their new father, Warbucks and new mother, Grace, and the re-uniting of Sandy and Annie, then Roosevelt introduces the New Deal ("New Deal for Christmas").Production history

Pre-Broadway Tryout

Annie made its World premiere on August 10, 1976 at the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam, Connecticut. Kristin 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. Vigard went on to become McArdle's Broadway understudy.

Broadway

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. It was nominated for 11 Tony Awards and won 7, including Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book. Replacements for McArdle in the lead role included then-child actors Shelley Bruce, Sarah Jessica Parker, Allison