“Annie" at the Spotlight Theatre -- December 6 through 15.
Friday, December 5, through Sunday, December 15
Spotlight Theatre, 1800 Seventh Avenue, Moline IL
Winner of seven 1977 Tony Awards and one of the 25 longest-running productions in Broadway history, the iconic comic-strip adaptation Annie enjoys a December 6 through 15 run at Moline's Spotlight Theatre, the show described by the New York Times as "an intensely likable musical" that's also "an unstoppable sunshine steamroller."
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. She is determined to find the parents who abandoned her years ago on the doorstep of a New York City orphanage that is run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the other girls in the orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous world of NYC. In adventure after fun-filled adventure, Annie foils Miss Hannigan's evil machinations ... and even befriends President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She also finds a new home and family in billionaire, Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary, Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.
Based on the Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie that originated in 1924, the musical Annie boasts many songs that have become iconic show-tune stapes, among them "It's the Hard Knock Life," "Maybe," "Easy Street," "Little Girls," "N.Y.C.," and, of course, the memorable and hummable "Tomorrow." The show originally debuted at Connecticut's Goodspeed Opera House on August 10, 1976, after which is transferred to Broadway on April 21, 1977, where it ran for 2,377 performances and nearly six years. Among its Tony wins were awards for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Original Score, and Annie went on to inspire two Broadway revivals, three film versions, a live television event, and an estimated 700-900 productions annually throughout the United States alone.
Serving as director for the Spotlight Theatre's Annie is Valerie Moore, a castmate in the venue's Tarzan: The Musical and The Spongebog Musical and Davenport Theatre veteran who co-helmed its 2023 production of The Skokie Detective Charter School. Laura Hammes provides the show's music direction, with additional members of the creative team including: choreographer Jenny Hampton; stage manager Kimber Cartwright; set, lighting, and sound designer Brent Tubbs (the theatre's co-owner and artistic director); costume, hair, and makeup designer Heather Blair; and props master Sarah Greim.
Sloan Utz portrays the feisty heroine Annie, while Spotlight Theatre veterans Matthew Downey (Evita, Anastasia) and Sara Wegener (Legally Blonde: The Musical, Matilda: The Musical) respectively portray the kindhearted Daddy Warbucks and villainous Sara Wegener. Warbuck's secretary Grace is played by Brianna Call while Tommy Ratkiewicz-Stierwalt and Sydney Crumblehome enact Miss Hannigan's troublemaking co-horts Rooster and Lily, and the Annie ensemble is completed by: Abigail Bennett; Matthew Call; Zoey Coers; Christina Crosby; Olive Dokolas; Erik Finch; Carys Gleason; Lyra Gordon; Jennifer Cook Gregory; Robert Gregory; Jackson Grubbs; Laura Hammes; Adley Hampton; Noah Hill; Esther Hoffman; Addie Jorgensen; Amelia Kipp; Rose Klinger; Chloe Knobloch; Regina Knobloch; Addisen Kuffler; Jolene McKittrick; Harper Moran; Andan Nguyen; Ava Pulford; Maeli Sanchez Carmona; Reese Schaaf; Henrick Senne; Yvonne Siddique; Dace Sommer; Charleigh Weatherspoon; and Olivia Young.
Annie will be performed in Moline from December 6 through 15, with performances Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Admission is $25, and more information and tickets are available by calling (309)912-7647 and visiting TheSpotlightTheatreQC.com.
