Delta Youth Theatre is bringing Annie Jr. to the Genesis Theatre stage next week.
After holding its first few productions in Vancouver, Annie Jr. marks the theatre group’s first time staging a show at the recently seismically upgraded Ladner venue.
“The Metro Theatre was a wonderful venue for our first three productions but we always wanted DYT’s home to be in Delta,” says company artistic director Tony Barton.
He calls Genesis a good fit, especially seeing how the company has grown. Annie Jr. features the talent of over 90 singers/actors/dancers ranging in age from nine to 20. The production is made up of four different casts.
“Not one cast is better than the other. They all have different strengths and they all have moments in the show that shine in different places,” says Barton.
The musical takes place in New York City in the 1930s and tells the rags to riches story of a young orphan interspersed with songs like Tomorrow, Maybe, I Don’t Need Anything But You and Little Girls.
An early 1980s film starring Carol Burnett, Albert Finney and Bernadette Peters followed the success of the Broadway musical which debuted in the late 1970s.
Choreographer and music director Tracy Neff says the story “definitely stands the test of time.”
Opening night will see professional actor and Tsawwassen resident Neal McDonough play the role of Daddy Warbucks. He’ll be joining two of his kids who are cast members, Catherine and Morgan, on stage.
“I can’t wait to jump on stage and hang out with not just my kids, but to see what… Tony and Tracy have created with the sets and the music and the choreography and everything else,” he says.
McDonough says it’s great to see the enthusiasm of the play’s young actors while Barton notes it’s incredibly valuable to the cast to work with a professional.
Annie Jr. runs from Wednesday, Nov. 29 to Sunday, Dec. 3 at Genesis Theatre, 5005-45th Ave. Tickets ($23 or $25) are available from www.deltayouththeatre.com.
