Hard Road Theatre in Highland to present 'Annie Jr.'
Hard Road Theatre — in conjunction with Lee's Fine Jewelry & More, Rinderer Law Firm and Scott Credit Union — will present "Annie Jr." July 12-15 in The Kennel at Highland High School, 12760 Troxler Ave. in Highland.
"Annie Jr." features everyone’s favorite little redhead in her very first adventure. The show is based on the popular comic strip and adapted from the Tony Award-winning Best Musical, with a beloved book and score by Tony Award winners Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin.
With equal measures of pluck and positivity, little orphan Annie charms everyone's hearts despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930s New York City.
"Annie Jr." tells the tale of the fiery young orphan, who must live in a miserable orphanage run by the tyrannical Miss Hannigan.
However, Annie's seemingly hopeless situation changes dramatically when she is selected to spend a short time at the residence of billionaire industrialist Oliver Warbucks.
Annie wins the heart of the household staff, and even the seemingly cold-hearted Warbucks cannot help but love this positively wonderful girl. He decides to help Annie find her long lost parents, who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of the orphanage, by offering a reward if the come to him and prove their identity.
However, Miss Hannigan, her evil brother Rooster, and a female accomplice, plan to impersonate Annie's parents to get the reward for themselves, which puts Annie in greater danger.
Annie eventually foils Miss Hannigan's evil machinations, finding a new home and family with Warbucks, his personal secretary Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.
"Annie Jr." features several audience favorite tunes, including, “It’s the Hard Knock Life,” “You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile,” and “Tomorrow.”
Show times will be at 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and at 2 p.m. on Sunday. House doors open approximately 30 minutes before the scheduled show time.
Tickets for kids (ages 4-12) and seniors (ages 60 and up) are $9. General admission for adults is $10. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time online at the Hard Road Thearte website at hardroad.org, the Hard Road Facebook page, on at showclix.com. Tickets can also be purchased at the Highland Chamber of Commerce or at the door. Seating is on a first come, first serve basis. All online ticket sales stop approximately 30 minutes before scheduled show time.
Hard Road Theatre Productions is a non-profit theater organization committed to providing Highland and the surrounding area with high-quality, affordable, live productions.
For more information about "Annie Jr." or Hard Road Theatre in general, visit the Hard Road website.
The Cast
The cast is composed of students from communities all around the area, including, Highland, Grantfork, Troy, Edwardsville and Hillsboro. The show is directed by Angela Nuxoll, assistant directed by Kristy Hindman-Cook with musical direction by Dani Boulanger and choreography by Karlee and Kenzie Holzinger.
Annie: Emma Clark
Mr. Warbucks: Dietrich Gossmeyer
Grace Farrell: Madi Crawford
Ms. Hannigan: Julia French
Rooster Hannigan: Patrick Boulanger
Lily St. Regis/ Orphan Ensemble: Maddie Wesselmann
Sandy/ Orphan Ensemble: Kylie Townzen
FDR/Bundles/Bert Healy: Matthew Clark
Mrs. Greer/ Officer Ward: Sophia Himsel
Dogcatcher/ Orphan Ensemble: Kori Huelsmann
Apple seller/Ensemble: Taylor Dressler
Star-to-be/Servant Ensemble: Kayla Peery
Usherette/Mrs. Pugh/NYC Ensemble: Kendal Devlin
Woman/Servant/ NYC Ensemble: Madison Hook
Cecille/NYC Ensemble: Lily Niebrugge
Annette/NYC Ensemble: Emma Hook
Drake: Cordes Michael
Orphans:
- Molly: Morgan Dressler
- Kate: Layna Powers
- July: Jessica Olliges
- Duffy: Bailey McPhillips
- Tessie: Ellen Nuxoll
- Pepper: Peyton Robison
This story was originally published July 9, 2018 at 11:02 AM.