Pro-Am Annie for Parramatta

Leapin' Lizards! Little Orphan Annie is hitting the Riverside Theatre stage at Parramatta (NSW) in one of the world's best-loved musicals.

Packemin Productions is set to build on its reputation for Pro-Am musical theatre productions at Parramatta, established with productions in grand style of shows including Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat, Oliver!, The Wizard of Oz and Hairspray, with casts of over 200 performers.

February 2014 sees Packemin staging the extremely popular Annie, starring Amanda Muggleton (Prisoner, Hello Dolly, Shirley Valentine) as Miss Hannigan, Rodney Dobson (Wicked, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Miss Saigon, The Full Monty) as New York 'zillionaire' Oliver 'Daddy' Warbucks and Christopher Horsey (Hot Shoe Shuffle, Bootmen, Singin' in The Rain) as charismatic conman Rooster, with locals Melody Beck (winner of the 2012 Your Theatrics International Cabaret Contest) as Grace Farrell, Warbucks secretary, andAimee Timmins as Lily St Regis.Nine-year-old Stella Barahona makes her theatre debut in the title role of Annie.

With equal measures of pluck and positivity, Annie charms everyone's hearts, despite a next-to-nothing start in 1930's New York City. She is determined to find her parents, who abandoned her on the doorstep of a New York City Orphanage, run by the cruel, embittered Miss Hannigan. With the help of the other girls in the Orphanage, Annie escapes to the wondrous and magical world of NYC where she meets billionaire Oliver Warbucks, his personal secretary Grace Farrell, and a lovable mutt named Sandy.

“I am thrilled to be doing Annie for the second time in my career,” says Amanda Muggleton (Miss Hannigan). “I was in the 2000 production for John Frost with Anthony Warlow and loved the role and show so much.

“Working with Packemin is like working with a huge family and I love the way they involve the community by using local talent – and they are talented! I’ve been blown away by the dedication and professionalism of everyone, even those rascally orphans that give my character so much grief! I am really looking forward to this huge production.”

“I’ve just finished the critically acclaimed Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and in a few months I’ll begin a long run with the 25th Anniversary Production of Les Miserables,” says Rodney Dobson. “So when Packemin offered me the role of Warbucks in Annie, it fit perfectly in the middle of those two commitments - how could I say no? It was a little while later that producer Neil said, ‘By the way, you have to shave your head’.

“The musical Annie is inspired by the cartoon Little Orphan Annie, and my character, Daddy Warbucks, doesn't have a scrap of hair. My 13-year-old son did the honours the other week, and my 16-year-old daughter took photos of the process. I’m slowly getting used to it and I’m grateful it isn’t winter. Rehearsals are in full swing and looking fantastic with only a week until opening, so I can’t wait to get on stage and perform the show. I’m looking forward to adding Annie to my growing list of credits, but I’m NOT looking forward to the itchy, awkward stage of growing back my hair!”

Aimee Timmins studied music theatre at London Studio Centre, graduating in 2008, and has been in the industry for over 10 years performing in plays and musicals in Australia and in the UK, but it’s Parramatta that holds special memories for Aimee.

“The Riverside theatre is such a beautiful venue, and it’s where I first performed at age five, so it’s brilliant to be going back there with a show like Annie,” says Timmins. “Generations of my family have worked and lived in Parramatta, so it’s definitely home. It is so exciting knowing all my family and friends can easily come and enjoy the show.

 “The 1930s was such a hard time, with a lot of poverty and few opportunities, so people had to be very resilient in those days just to get by. Lily and I are alike in that we’re both determined and will persevere to achieve our goals. The difference is, for Lily that means being a crook, and for me it means lots of auditions and hard work!”

While deep in rehearsals for Annie, Melody Beck (Grace Farrell) also recently found time to compete in the 2014 Your Theatrics International Cabaret Contest, winning the Grand Final. As part of her prize Melody will get to tour the major cabaret festivals around Australia, as well as New York Musical Theatre Festival, with her self-devised homage to American classical singer Marni Nixon, famous for voicing some of the world’s most iconic musical songs.

“My Fair Lady, West Side Story, The King and I – that’s all Marni’s voice. I have always admired her work and I love performing this tribute to her and the Golden Age of Hollywood and Broadway.”

Before she heads off to wow audiences around Australia and in New York, Melody is focused on performing much closer to home.

“I grew up in the Hills, so a lot of my friends and family will get to see me perform locally for a change. I’ve really enjoyed taking on the role of Grace Farrell as we have a lot in common. Organising the schedule of a billionaire would be an intense job, yet Grace does it with style and professionalism. Balancing my own training and performing with my job as a music teacher, plus spending time with my big family and all of my friends is no easy feat, but I cope with it all pretty well. One difference is that I still manage to fit in a social life around my work, which Grace doesn’t really manage to do until the very end of the story.

“Rehearsal days are the best day of the week for me! It’s been so inspiring working alongside people like Amanda Muggleton and Rodney Dobson who have so much experience in the industry. Everyone in the show has been so warm and inviting- it has a real family atmosphere. Packemin provides us all with a creative outlet that has a very professional feel and we can’t wait to share that with the audience when we get on stage.”

Stella Barahona (Annie) has been dancing since the age of 2, adding singing and drama classes over the last two years.

“I really couldn’t believe it when I found out I got the role!” says Stella.“I even asked my Mum to pinch me. My favourite thing about rehearsals is learning new things, meeting new people and making friends because it is a great experience and I really want to make the most of it. I have been dancing since I was 2, but this is my first musical. I think I am like my character Annie a bit because I am tough, sort of bossy, always looking on the bright side and always getting things my way. I am only a tiny bit different from Annie because my Mum basically does all the work and my Mum is the one running me around all the time.”

Boasting a classic Broadway score with hit song after hit song including Tomorrow, It's The Hard Knock Life, Maybe and Little Girls, Annie looks set to delight audiences of all ages.

ANNIE

Music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and book by Thomas Meehan.

Produced by Packemin Productions with Direction by Luke Joslin, Musical Direction by Peter Hayward, and Choreography by Camilla Jakimowicz

www.packemin.com.au

Feb 7-22, 2014

Tickets from $35 On sale now from Riverside Theatres Parramatta

www.riversideparramatta.com.au/show/annie/ 

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