Originally, Saguaro City Music Theatre planned to cast six kids to play orphans in its upcoming production of "Annie."
But six is a small number, especially given how many kids showed up to audition for the show, which runs Dec. 20-Jan. 4 at the Berger Performing Arts Center.
"So many talented kids came out to audition so we expanded the six named orphans to essentially 12, and then we added an orphan ensemble to some of the larger numbers" including "It's the Hard Knock Life" and "A New Deal for Christmas," said Director Drew Humphrey. "And so there's 28 orphans."
Saguaro City Musical Theatre cast 28 Tucson kids in the roles of orphans for its production of "Annie," running Dec. 20-Jan. 4 at Berger Performing Arts Center.Β
"Annie," based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie," is the story of a headstrong orphan girl intent on causing trouble for Miss Hannigan, the disillusioned matron of St. Hudson's Home for Girls. Annie believes that her parents are somewhere beyond the orphanage's walls looking for her, which leads her to scheme various ways to escape to find them. In the end, her spunk leads her to Daddy Warbucks, the mogul who decides to adopt Annie and give her a real family.Β
Miss Hannigan (Jodi Darling, left) confronts Annie (Abigail Barrett) during a rehearsal for Saguaro City Music Theatre's production of "Annie."
"Miss Hannigan's life is overrun with little girls. Most productions can only do that with six or seven, and we feel like we're perfectly positioned to actually tell the story of what it would be like for Hannigan to run an orphanage that is just out of control," Humphrey said. "And 28 orphans seemed like the perfect number to do that."
They also threw in a couple of boys, even though the musical has no roles for boys.Β
"So we found a few moments in 'Hooverville' and 'N.Y.C.' and a few other places scattered throughout the show where there's like newsboys and ragamuffins and ruffians that are a part of the street story," said Humphrey, Saguaro City Music Theatre's co-founder and artistic director.
Annie (Abigail Barrett, left) consoles an orphanΒ (Josie Kevelson) in Saguaro City Music Theatre's production of "Annie," based on the comic strip "Little Orphan Annie."
The cast also includes six teens working with the children and with the adult ensemble, bringing the cast to nearly 60.Β
Interestingly, this is not the company's largest production since it launched three years ago; that goes to last summer's production of "Shrek the Musical," which had a cast of 72.
Humphrey double cast the lead role of Annie with sixth-grader Julia Wetzel and eighth-grader Abigail Barrett.
From left, orphans Elowyn Lipson, Seliana Johnston, Josie Kevelson, Miriam Howell, Kennedy House, Betty Mullenix and Everleigh McGill rehearse a scene from Saguaro City Music Theatre's production of "Annie."
This is 13-year-old Abigail's second show with Saguaro City and her first in a leading role.Β
"I'm having so much fun," she said. "It's just so fun to be a kid on stage."
In the show, Abigail and Julia lead the biggest numbers, accompanied by a band of six musicians.Β
"All of the songs are like, so good, and I love all of them," Abigail said. "And all of them share a really nice message, if you get down into it. 'It's the Hard Knock Life' is so full of energy. And the songs 'Maybe' and 'Tomorrow,' they're so full of hope, and like '(I Don't Need) Anything But You' and 'A New Deal for Christmas,' they're all full of happiness and feeling at home with family and stuff. All of the songs are just super sweet and they're all really fun to do and to watch."
Abigail said she and her fellow orphans bring a bit of well-tempered emotion to the signature "The Hard Knock Life" that's true to the crux of the story.
"They're all orphans in an orphanage, and they only get like, mush for food, and they're living in rags," she said. "It's not hard to act as if you're really, really mad about that, right? Like, if those were your circumstances, you'd be really mad about that."
Having a cast of 28 orphans was challenging for choreographer Dena DiGiacinto, who had to create movement that would convey the chaos of orphans in an orphanage.Β
"We've got kids jumping on beds, climbing on beds, jumping from bed to bed, having pillow fights, climbing under the beds, pulling the sheets off, throwing them everywhere," she said. "Pillow fights with feathers everywhere. I mean, it's just been a blast."
"This show has been special to me since I was a little girl so being able, after being in the business for all these years and never getting to do it as a performer, to choreograph it has been really kind of a dream come true, to be honest," she added. "And watching all these kids' dreams come true, you know, Abigail and Julia getting to play Annie and all these orphans that just came in to audition for us with this dream of playing an orphan. I mean, it's so moving to see all these kids just living their dream."
"Annie" closes out Saguaro City's third full season. Showtimes at the Berger, 1200 W. Speedway on the Arizona Schools for the Deaf and the Blind campus, are at 2 and 7 p.m. Saturdays; 2 p.m. Sundays; and 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 2. Tickets are $28.50 to $69.50 throughΒ saguarocity.org.Β
