Thursday, September 3, 2015

Annie

I was never young enough to be in Annie.

It was the first musical I ever saw, and I was of course obsessed with the movie. There is a recording of me singing Tomorrow at my grandma's house perfectly on pitch (because you can't teach that shit, it happens or it doesn't) when I was 4. When I realized performing was an actual option for me to do, I WAS 11 (just like Annie), but I was already the height I am now (5'5.5") and developing hips. The window for me to play Annie was like 2 months when I was 9 years old.

If I ever do a cabaret of emotionally connected songs from roles I will never play, the first song on the list will be Maybe.

I LOVE Annie. I don't care if you don't. I don't care if you make fun of me for loving it (because YOU are wrong). There is a reason Annie is produced so often and it's not because theaters love dealing with children and their crazy parents. This musical shows that you CAN have an established source material and still create something interesting, heartfelt and GOOD.

The reason this show works so well is because Annie really believes her parents are alive and she makes us believe it to. Yeah, we want her to get out of the orphanage, but we really want her to be reunited with these people who are CLEARLY alive. Even Oliver Warlocks believes it and wants it.

Here are some random thoughts I had while listening to Annie (which I have seen multiple versions of and have known my entire life):
-- Why am I crying so much??
-- Where is Oliver Warlbucks's mansion supposed to BE in Manhattan??
-- This musical is surprisingly political with its differing views on Herbert Hoover (like 50 years after he was president)
-- STAR-TO-BE. It's so simple and it made me cry on a plane. "Tomorrow a penthouse that's way up high! Tonight: (sad pause) the Y! (audible sigh and then immediate turn around) Why not? It's NYC!" THIS KILLS. EXCELLENT WORK, STAR-TO-BE!!!! STAR-TO-BE IS ALL OF US.
-- Roosevelt forcing his staff to sing during the Tomorrow reprise is hilarious.
-- FDR should seriously be in every musical.
-- During the song I Don't Need Anything But You, I heard the lyric (amongst things that people needed in their lives to be complete) "Hamlet needed his mother" and I immediately though, "WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY HERE, DADDY WARBUCKS!?!?!?"

Annie
Music by Charles Strause
Lyrics by Martin Charnin
Book by Thomas Meehan


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