by Ceci LeBeau
5/27/2016

That this spring's production of Annie, Jr at Prana is delightful is no surprise. Nicole Mulready as Annie has both charm and flair as she sings her way through the orphan-meets-billionaire adventure. Daddy Warbucks is handled admirably by Jason Stokes, and he projects well to the back of the theater. Miss Hannigan, the wicked director of the orphanage, as played by Laura Ogilvie, rages and connives with the best of them. Katie North delivers a smooth and elegant Grace Farrell. Caroline Nealon as Miss Hannigan's ex-con brother and Olivia Dailey as his swanky doll, Lily St. Regis, will stoop to any maudlin tactics to get their hands on those fifty thousand smackers. This heart-warming tale of Depression Era poverty, of despair turned to joy, and of forgotten orphans finding love at Christmas would make even the stoniest theater goer smile. The thirties were never so happy, and they probably never were.

But the scale of this production is what brings awe. Eighty young people, from tiny tots to teenagers, filled every role here except director and piano accompanist. They manned the lights, wrote the choreography, ran the tech crew, provided props, moved furniture between scenes, danced, sang, and coached. Student directors ran many segments. The teenagers played many of the older roles, but also served as aides during rehearsals after school, helping younger ones with costumes and placement. For such a huge undertaking, it seems a marvel that all this came together in only two months.

As an avid theater goer and mother of a working actor, I have seen hundreds of shows over the years, including programs at the Middle School, High School, Washington Street Players (both children's theater and adult,) the Franklin School for the Performing Arts and countless community theater, regional and all-professional international tours, and productions at the Huntington Theater, the professional repertory theater in residence at Boston University. But the freshness of the Prana show holds up. No detail is overlooked. When FDR appears on stage, he is in a convincing wheelchair. In the Burt Healy radio show section, the girl dancers have identical black wigs and shiny shimmies. When the maids dance, they have the grace of ballerinas as they swish their feather dusters, even in matching black uniforms and with sharp white collars and aprons. In the NYC scene, these same girls have bright red Christmas dresses with Pom Pom hats. Another group of girls is in lovely green velvet. Santa Claus and two elves appear in full regalia, and the two flappers wear sequined gowns and headbands. An antique radio in an authentic oval shaped wooden case broadcasts the ad for Annie's parents. Two Queen Ann mahogany chairs, tufted in gold, and a two piece telephone with cord suggest the era. Real handcuffs are clapped on the three charlatans as they are discovered and packed off to justice. Policeman blues, complete with caps, are fitting for the thirties. Grace Farrell's pale pink suit with brocaded buttons gave her just the right touch of class. Even the butler, Drake,has a proper black tailcoat, bow tie and cummerbund.

Although this was a junior version, with shorter lyrics and easier keys, only a viewer with a keen knowledge of Annie the original would have been able to tell the difference. All the great songs were sung with gusto: "It's the Hard Knock Life," "Tomorrow," and "Easy Street" were especially done with life and enthusiasm. The three rows of adorable, scruffy orphans in pajamas was worth the price of admission in itself. Loosely based on the 1930's comic strip Little Orphan Annie, the show opened on Broadway in April of 1977, and ran for 2,377 performances. Producers has turned it down for years, but with director Mike Nichols taking over as producer it became a theater staple. The character of Annie became a symbol of the end of the Great Depression, and the beginning of Roosevelt's New Deal in 1933. As welcome in Jimmy Carter's administration as is is today, this show was a sure fire crowd pleaser, and a tribute to the organizational talent of Roberta Weiner.

Ceci LeBeau