Musical review: Annie
TO PUT on a production of Annie, you have to fly in the face of theatrical wisdom and work with the young and the canine. With ten children and two dogs on stage, disaster could strike at any moment.
Happily, in this show, both factions appear to have been polished to the point of professional competence without losing their inherent charm.
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Hide AdStarting life as a cartoon strip in 1924, the tale of little orphan Annie has had an enduring appeal ever since, and it's easy to see why.
Despite the ludicrous premise of a poverty-stricken waif taken in by a billionaire, there's something comforting about the extremity of this rags to riches tale. Set in 1930s New York, during a time of economic adversity, the drama is not short of characters moaning about lost jobs and reduced circumstances.
Today, more than ever, there will have been many in the audience wishing for their own Daddy Warbucks to make everything alright.
Politics aside, Annie retains its popularity due to its cracking line-up of songs. Well-worn though it may be, Tomorrow can still pack a punch with the right vocal chords wrapped around it, and Welsh-born lead Victoria Lewis certainly has those.
Meanwhile, the chorus of orphans (hand picked from Mary Erskine's School – try to ignore the irony) do justice to perennial favourite It's The Hard Knock Life.
And, after all those years trying to talk her way into a yellow coat in Hi-de-Hi, it's nice to see Su Pollard as the alcohol-soaked Miss Hannigan, finally centre stage and belting out the tracks.