Indy Theatre Habit

 

On Friday I drove over to the northwest side of Indianapolis to attend Media Night for “Annie” at Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre.  The book for “Annie” is by Thomas Meehan; the music is by Charles Strouse; and the lyrics are by Martin Charnin.  The musical is loosely based on Harold Gray’s “Little Orphan Annie” comic strip.  B&B’s production was directed by Eddie Curry, choreographed by Ron Morgan, and musical directed by Kristy Templet.  It is sponsored in part by Indy’s Child parenting magazine.

It is a charming, family-friendly production, filled with strong, lovely voices, and a sweet, live dog.  The show itself has catchy songs, interesting historical references, and a satisfying story arc.  I left the theatre feeling optimistic about every aspect of my own life, in spite of my initial resistance to the determined optimism of the diminutive main character.

“Annie” is also the perfect show for a bachelorette party or a single girls’ night out.  Who knew?

“Hope, How Can You Not Have Seen ‘Annie’?!”

This was my first time to see a live, staged version of “Annie.”  I had seen the movie version that starred Carol Burnett, Tim Curry, and Bernadette Peters and not cared for it, although I admire those three performers in general.  I was planning to sit this show out because a) I don’t have time to see and write about every show in the Indianapolis area and b) I mostly review for the pleasure of it.  It’s no fun to write about a show I don’t care for.  I definitely do not write about sickly-sweet little kid shows.  I thought that “Annie” was one. 

On the other hand, the other reason I review shows is to learn about live theatre as an art form and, through theatre, to learn about myself and my world.  “Annie” is one of those shows that community theatres do every year.  The professional Beef and Boards theatre has done it more than once over the years, too.  It won seven Tony awards, including Best Musical, in 1977.  Maybe I owed it to myself as a student of theatre to see “Annie” at least once and try to figure out its appeal.

The clincher came when I heard that Ty Stover would be singing as Daddy Warbucks.  I heard his singing voice for the first time in “Cats” at Beef and Boards a few months ago and loved it.

Time Out for Some Psychoanalysis

I went to Media Night for “Annie” by myself.  Most of my regular theatre buddies were busy that night, but I admit that I did not try very hard to book a companion.  Sometimes I really would rather just go solo.  I know this makes me a freak in some people’s eyes, but there you have it.

This does not mean that I don’t get lonely sometimes.  Early in “Annie,” the title character – played in B&B’s production by the adorable and hugely talented Kara Oates – sings that “Maybe” the parents that left her behind as a baby at the orphanage are somewhere thinking of her and doing what they need to do in order to be able to come back for her. 

Well, actually, as I look at the lyrics online I see that Annie just sings with unconditional love about her parents, whoever and wherever they are.  She imagines them going about their daily lives while she yearns for them to “please come get your ‘Baby.’”  But the feeling of the song reminded me that I sometimes think that my life partner, whoever he is, is somewhere working through his “stuff,” too, just as I am working through mine, and that when we are both ready to work – and play – within a long-term, committed relationship, we will find each other.

The song “Some Day My Prince Will Come” has never moved me, but “Maybe” from “Annie”?   Made me cry.

And even though Annie is unfailingly optimistic, she is no doormat.  When two losers (Jeff Stockberger as Rooster disguised as Mr. Mudge and Carol Worcell as Lily St. Regis disguised as Mrs. Mudge) show up and say that they are Annie’s real parents, she is polite, and she is willing to go back with them to their pig farm up in Canada or whatever for a while to give them a chance.  But you know this spunky little girl is not going to stay with them forever if they turn out to be NOT her people after all.

Fortunately, she doesn’t have to.  The villains’ deception is found out, as is the fact that her real parents have passed away, and Mr. Warbucks is free to become Annie’s Daddy Warbucks by adopting her.  He has had orphans visit him before, but they were all boys and he sent them back to wherever they came from when the holiday was over.  Spending time with Annie, however, has made him realize that having all the money and power in the world is meaningless without someone special to share it with on a more committed basis.

And once that door for growth is opened, he realizes that his kind and beautiful assistant, Grace Farrell (Bobbi Bates), who has been at his side all along, would make an excellent wife.

I tell you, this show is straight out of a chick lit novel.

That, or a psychology textbook.  One that says that all of us – male or female – want to be seen and loved and chosen for ourselves.

That’s why I say this would make a great show for a bachelorette party:  you’re celebrating the bride and her Mr. Right finding each other, correct? And for a single girls’ night out, this is a great show for confirming your optimistic belief that you will eventually find your own significant other(s).

In fact, there was a bridal party in the house on Media Night.  Both I and the man announcing the birthdays and other celebrations during the curtain talk were surprised that they were there, but now that I have seen the show, it makes perfect sense!

Back to the SHOW and how it was cast

But you don’t have to see “Annie” in any of those ways if you don’t want to.  You’ll leave feeling good even without thinking about it.   As I said before, it is an engaging story on the surface, too, with fun-to-sing songs and a satisfyingly specific sense of time and place paired with timeless hope.  The Beef and Boards production of the show is completely entertaining.

Director Eddie Curry and B&B Media Relations manager Patricia Rettig each came to my table for a schmooze before the show began.  Patricia told me that her parents had taken her to see the original “Annie” on Broadway when she was a little girl, and now she is bringing her own little girl to see it at B&B.  I agree that it is a show that generation after generation will enjoy.

Eddie and Patricia both told me that more than 200 girls auditioned for B&B’s production of “Annie.”  A piece in my press kit says that “Kara Oates was selected to play the title role after viewers voted online for their favorite finalist as part of a live televised sing-off on Indy’s Fox 59.”  Eddie told me that he kept the right to make the final decision, just in case he disagreed with the viewers’ choice.  However, he did agree with them that 10-year-old Kara Oates would make a wonderful Annie, and she does. Throughout the show, I kept thinking what great timing she has, and how genuine she is. She is not annoying at all.

And she has one of those huge, Broadway voices whose owner seems able to effortlessly place it wherever it needs to go, even when trying to control a dog that is as big as she is.

Kara’s little sister, Molly Oates, plays an orphan named Molly in the show.  7-year-old Molly is adorable and talented, too. 

In fact, all of the orphan girls are cuties – i.e., appealing without being movie star-ish.  Eddie told me that he cast “ordinary girls” on purpose.  They are all good dancers and singers.  Here is a list of them:

• Molly Oates (Molly)
• Alexandra Young (Pepper)
• Gwendolyn Stout (Tessie)
• Allyson Hankins (July)
• Elyse Haskell (Kate)
• Anna Lasbury (Duffy)
• Lindsay Alissa Porter (Ruby)
• Gabrielle McAree (Ginger)

I don’t know how they found the dog that plays Sandy, nor what its name is in real life, but it is one of those irresistible, happy-looking dogs that invite hugs even from people who are not usually “dog people.”

Eddie also gave me some food for thought about what it means to be a lead in a show.  “An adult lead doesn’t just have the biggest part,” he said.  “She or he sets the standard for the rest of the cast to live up to.”

There is no adult lead in this show, not really, but I guess all of the adults have found their own ways to raise the bar for each other, because their individual portrayals, and the chemistry between the characters, are all treats.  I was delighted when I looked in my program at intermission and realized that many of the actors are artists whose work I have enjoyed before in other theatres around town.  Many, of course, are B&B audience favorites, too.

Several of the cast members play more than one dancing/singing/speaking role, from the Hooverville-ites that take Annie in temporarily when she flees the orphanage, to the well-trained staff of the Warbucks mansion, to the varied citizens of N.Y.C. that share Mr. Warbucks’ delight in their city when he, Annie, and Grace go for a walk, to the grumpy advisors to President Roosevelt, to the staff of a live radio show.  More about these in a moment. 

More about the characters and the design elements

Ty Stover (Oliver Warbucks) doesn’t sing as much as I had hoped – although what he does sing is, again, a deep pleasure to listen to – but he is a lot of fun to watch.  I was intrigued more by his acting than his singing in this show.  He gives Daddy Warbucks several layers of personality beyond blustering tycoon.

Cynthia Collins, co-founder of the Actors Theatre of Indiana, is a sympathetic, multi-dimensional hoot as the horrible orphan mistress, Miss Hannigan, with her alcoholic, nerve-snapped shakiness and her eternally unfulfilled sexual desires.

Bobbi Bates’ exquisite singing voice perfectly suits the refined yet warm Grace Farrell.  I appreciated Bobbi’s work in “Victor Victoria” at the old American Cabaret Theatre.  It is a pleasure here, too.

I am laughing again, remembering John Vessels’ droll prissiness as Drake, the butler.  He is also quite smooth as Bert Healy, the radio announcer for the live radio show where Annie, Grace, and Oliver Warbucks go to advertise a reward for news of Annie’s real parents.  I enjoyed seeing him in last summer’s Beef and Boards production of “Smoke on the Mountain: Homecoming.”  I am looking forward to seeing him again later this summer in the Beef and Boards’ sequel production of “Sanders Family Christmas.”

Speaking of the radio show, Jessica Murphy is one of the three vivacious and harmonious Boylan Sisters who sing “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile” over the airwaves.  I think this is Jessica’s first time performing at Beef and Boards.  I loved her portrayal of Dorothy in “The Wiz” last year at the old American Cabaret Theatre.

The other two Boylan Sisters are Ronnie (Jill Kelly) and Connie (Amy O’Connell.)  Jill, Connie, and Jessica all double in several other singing/dancing/speaking roles.

Adam O. Crowe, too, plays more than one role in “Annie,” but my favorite is as the bored but skilled “Foley” in the radio show.  He holds up the “Applause!” signs for the audience and makes interesting sound effects as we watch.    

Kenny Shepard also plays many roles in this show but my favorite is that of Jimmy Johnson, the Masked Radio Announcer, complete with cape.  Oh, my, I am giggling again, remembering that gimmick. 

Nathanael Welch is swoon-worthy as the sexy police officer, and all the more seductive to both me and Miss Hannigan because Lt. Ward doesn’t know how attractive he and his accent are.  This actor, too, doubles in several other roles.

J.R.Stuart’s exuberant portrayal of F.D.R. in his wheelchair is startlingly believable, at least based on what I’ve read about that president. I laughed out loud with admiration more than once when he was on stage, and wondered what it would be like if every U.S. president commanded his cabinet members to sing “The sun’ll come out, tomorrow…” thereby jump-starting their creative problem-solving skills.

Carol Worcell and Jeff Stockberger are funny as Miss Hannigan’s scheming brother, Rooster, and his floozy girlfriend, Lily St. Regis, respectively.  The interactions between these three characters are hilarious.  The actors are “in the zone” in terms of acting and re-acting with each other.

Paradoxically, the only number that didn’t quite work for me was “Easy Street” – performed by Miss Hannigan, Rooster, and Lily St. Regis.  It didn’t work for me in the movie, either, though, so maybe it’s just an off song.   It is too tentative or something, in spite of its jazziness. 

However, the orchestra sounded good on that song and all of the others.  Terry Woods is the conductor and plays keyboard.  Neil Broeker is the new woodwinds musician.  David Coleson is on trumpet.  Tim Kelly is on percussion.  Musical director Kristy Templet is also on keyboard.

The versatile set was designed and lit by Michael Layton, with technical direction by Bill Mollencupp and sound design by Daniel Hesselbrock.  At first, I thought the border of the set was just an abstract pattern of spots of light. However, it is actually like a puzzle piece that makes sense when the inner piece is put in place in the form of a backdrop.  With that in place, the whole stage is the city of New York.  There are several other settings in this play, including the orphanage dormitory, the orphanage office, more than one New York street, a homeless camp (Hooverville,) the NBC radio station, and various rooms of the Warbucks Mansion.  The set revolves to make all of these possible on the intimate B&B stage.  I especially loved the golden, mirrored grandness of the living room in the Warbucks Mansion. 

The wealth of costumes designed by Brian Horton includes several beautiful, marcelled wigs; fur-trimmed gowns; patched orphans’ dresses; crisp mansion staff uniforms; and whimsical, matching, yellow plaid suits for a ventriloquist and his dummy.

“You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile” (Dressing My Review)

When all is said and done, “Annie” is an enjoyable musical about an unreasonably – but contagiously – optimistic little girl in a horrible orphanage who, after a brush or two with danger and heartache, gets adopted by a billionaire and lives happily ever after. 

Turns out, “Annie” is my kind of show after all. 

A $10 discount is available on tickets for kids ages 3-15.  For reservations, please call the Beef and Boards Box Office at 317-872-9664 anytime between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. daily.

Hope Baugh – www.IndyTheatreHabit.com