It is conventional for the reviewer to point out the flaws in a production but in Annie I can scarcely recall any.
The laundry man collided with the screen on his way in and the trumpeter started trumpeting before the announcements were over but they were first night wobbles.
I also thought that some of the solo singing might be a little flat, but perhaps that was in the plaintive nature of the songs.
Apart from these quibbles this was a flawless show – colourful, well-rehearsed, slick and hugely entertaining. It pulled at the heart-strings.
From the moment the curtain went up on the squabbling orphans to their reappearance in Warbucks’s Christmas party at the end, the show carried the audience along on a wave of music, drama, sentiment and sheer enjoyment.
The squabbling orphans Molly (Caitlin Lauder), Kate (Rachel Frater), Tessie (Erin Robertson), Pepper (Kirsten Hood), July (Rachel Boyes), and Duffy (Kirsty Doogan) stilled immediately, any fears that we might have had about the quality of a show with so many bairns in it; they played it like seasoned troopers.
Annie (Shannon Smith) was superb. I remember Little Orphan Annie from my American comic days. Shannon was what I remember – sweet yet feisty, independent yet loveable, brow-beaten but ever optimistic.
She blended perfectly with austere billionaire Oliver Warbucks (Steve Sadler) to produce a finely worked tale of growing mutual affection.
Aiding the pair was Lyn Manderson as Warbucks’s secretary Grace Farrell. She brought a commanding stage presence and a lovely singing voice to the role.
Before Annie reached Warbucks’s mansion she had to escape the non-too-tender mercies of Miss Hannigan (Maureen Gillie).
I am not sure how pickled Miss Hannigan usually was, but Maureen ought to be preserved for she is as valuable as she is versatile. Raymond Williams played her nefarious brother Rooster with all the panache we have come to expect from him.
He also made an inspired choice when he picked Lily (Katie Blatchley) as his ‘Moll’.
She looked the part and played it to slinky perfection. Both then switched neatly to the characters of Mr & Mrs Mudge, Annie’s prospective parents with just enough hypocrisy to invite us to despise them.
Annie is peppered with a host of other characters, all played, in this production, with verve and convincing realism.
Thus the chaotic crew of the radio station became sage members of Roosevelt’s Cabinet within a couple of scenes (Eddie Stewart, Dave Jones, Angus Watt, and Donald Duggan). Eddie Stewart also played Judge Brandeis, and Angus Watt Bundles McCloskey the laundry man. Campbell McNeil demonstrated two contrasting aspects of the actor’s craft in his two roles.
As Bert Healy he demonstrated how to ham it up, and as a member of the Cabinet how to act when not actually doing anything.
Barry Jones, I thought, handled the rather corny part of President Roosevelt well, George Kay carried off the part of Drake, the snooty butler, as to the manner born, and David Ireland, a new boy, I think, was so good as Lt Ward that we can forgive him for being hard on the dog (Jed Carey)!
The women too added atmosphere and colour in their cameo parts with Linda Shardlow in the Cabinet, and Ethne Turnbull, Lilian Smith, Karen Short and Janis Boyce as servants in Warbucks’s mansion.
Two experienced and expert troopers (Christine Henderson and May Jappy) gave us a glimpse of the Great Depression in the bleak streets of Hooverville.
And let’s hear it for the Boylan Sisters (Hannah McLennan, Leoke Spouse and Eilidh Wilson)!
They looked and sounded precisely what they were meant to be. So did Tamara Turnbull.
A ‘Star to be’? Of course!
That is quite a list – and we should be impressed by it. I am sure there are not many amateur companies that can boast such versatility in depth. There wasn’t a weak one amongst them.
Then there was the music. What a treat it is to have a live orchestra!
Under the baton of Margaret Carey they swung us and danced us through the show, creating atmosphere, never too loud to drown out the songs, rollicking enough when the scene demanded it. Special thanks go to Stephen Bender, rehearsal pianist and accomplished music maker.
The soloists all performed well, though I suspect some of the songs were not easy to sing.
The routines were well worked and pleasing – especially that of Miss Hannigan, Rooster and Lily when they first meet, and ‘I think I’m going to like it here’ with Grace, Annie and the servants.
The choral singing was top class – better, I would say, than the very acceptable performances of recent years. Due to more men with a wider range of voices, perhaps?
I cannot praise enough the contribution of the children to this show.
Their acting was sure and convincing, their singing super, and their routines of near professional standard. I could have listened and watched their performance of ‘Fully Dressed’ in Act Two over and over again. It was a piece of rich heart-warming theatre.
Well done the children and well done those that honed their performance to such polished perfection!
Of course, none of this would have been possible without the dedication and slog of the backroom girls and boys.
The sets were simple but effective leaving the stage free for the large company that frequently occupied it.
The costumes, make-up and hair were just right, from the glorious outfits of Lily in Act One and Grace at the Christmas party in Act Two to the simplicity of the orphans and the obviously opulent Warbucks.
Sympathetic lighting helped to create just the right atmosphere and sensitive sound allowed us to hear clearly every word said or sung.
The programmes and posters were excellent and Front of House staff looked after us well without fuss.
Pauline Grieve and Andrea Thacker produced the show and should be immensely proud of the entertainment they provided for us.
The best yet?
