REVIEW

Annie Jr

By Hilary Scott

THE tale of loveable orphan Annie was brought to life at Innerleithen’s Memorial Hall last week, with a debut performance by the talented proteges of the town’s youth opera, who delivered the award-winning musical in sensational style.

When I was a little girl, I fell in love with the classic 1982 story of feisty, freckly redheaded Annie, who sings her way through a hard knock life at the orphanage run by child-loathing Miss Hannigan, going from rags to riches and capturing the heart of billionaire Mr Warbucks.

And bringing this classic to the stage was the Kids Innerleithen Youth Theatre (KIYT) who, with three sell-out performances, won over the audiences with their charming adaptation of the Broadway musical.

A fan of theatre, it has become a family tradition to don our Christmas jumpers and kick off the festive season at the King’s Theatre panto in December. Perhaps a little too early for the jumpers, I attended the Memorial Hall eager to feast upon the much-anticipated performance of these young thespians.

Could they really deliver this magical Christmas story and live up to the incredible reputation set by their mentors, Innerleithen & District Amateur Operatic Society? You bet your bottom dollar they did!

From the moment the music started and the curtain opened on this stunning production, I along with the audiences were captivated.

Playing the hopeful orphan was Freya Wilson. She already looked the part with red hair and freckles, and with stunning vocals she belted out classics ‘Tomorrow’ and ‘Maybe’, which I have no doubt produced a few tears from the audience. She embraced the character with her cheeky charm and wit, and carried out the role of the ever-optimistic character beautifully.

Hatching a plan to escape the orphanage and find her parents, Annie is helped by her urchin friends, who had the crowd’s toes-tapping and knees bouncing to a fantastically choreographed ‘Hard Knock Life’. Credit where it’s due, this incredible young cast, who reprised their roles as servants and New Yorkers, were amazing, bringing life to the entire show.

But Annie’s cunning plan to escape fails, and it isn’t long before she is dragged back to the evil clutches of the vile Miss Hannigan, played by Lizzie Bell. What was in the champagne bottle, I do not know, but the teenager stumbled about the stage, and conveyed the child-hating orphanage boss to comic perfection. Hannigan’s flirtatious manner with Officer Ward (Ewan Little), who brings Annie back after running away, had the audience chuckling, and truly convinced us of her distaste for the girls in her care with a jaw-dropping performance of ‘Little Girls’.

Annie’s capture isn’t the end of her adventure, it’s only just begun, as she returns in perfect time to meet Grace Farrell.

Miss Farrell is gracefully played by the suave and sophisticated Ava Church, dressed impeccably as the 1930’s private secretary to Oliver Warbucks. Annie cheekily seizes a golden opportunity to spend Christmas with Mr Warbucks, and is swept off to live the life of royalty at his mansion.

Annie soon melts the heart of wealthy businessman Oliver Warbucks (Thomas Brydon) who gave an endearing performance as the billionaire. The two gave a heart-warming rendition of ‘I Don’t Need Anything But You’. This will be Thomas’s first and last performance with KIYT, but I’m sure it won’t be last we’ll see of this talented young man.

After promising to help Annie find her parents, in step the villains of the show – scheming Rooster Hannigan and his ditzy blonde girlfriend Lily St Regis.

Together with Miss Hannigan, the three plot to swindle Mr Warbucks out of a $50,000 dollar reward by posing as Annie’s parents.

Alex Paterson pulls off the flashy self-assured gangster brilliantly, and with his money-grabbing side-kick Lily St Regis, the two are perfectly paired bringing not only the comic element to the show, but impeccable American accents, which polished off their characters.

Now at this point I must declare my motherly interest, as Lily was played by my daughter Neve Scott. It is very difficult for one to critic her own child. However, I am very proud to call her a vain, blonde bimbo, red-lipstick wearing, smoking, winey voiced, floozy!

The three baddies gave a show-stopping performance of ‘Easy Street’ which had the audiences in stitches.

True to the classic, their evil plotting is foiled and Annie has her happy ending after being adopted by Mr Warbucks. The whole cast came out in glorious chorus for the finale of ‘Tomorrow’.

There is one furry four-legged actor who deserves a mention for his tail-wagging performance, the adorable Harry who is no stranger to the spotlight after his dog debut as Toto in the Opera’s ‘The Wizard of Oz’. Stardom beckons for the pooch, whom I’m sure could be crowned a Peeblesshire Pet Idol in the future!

Praise swept over social media for the young cast last week, leaving many hoping this will be the first of many shows by the talented KIYT cast. But there was one vital element missing from this show. My Christmas jumper!