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Tsawwassen teen gets second opportunity to play Annie

Camryn Macdonald is excited to reprise one of her favourite roles. The 13-year-old Tsawwassen actress will make her debut with Align Entertainment in its upcoming production of Annie at the Michael J. Fox Theatre in Burnaby.
annie
Tsawwassen actress Camryn Macdonald will make her debut with Align Entertainment in their production of Annie at the Michael J. Fox Theatre in Burnaby on Friday night.

Camryn Macdonald is excited to reprise one of her favourite roles.

The 13-year-old Tsawwassen actress will make her debut with Align Entertainment in its upcoming production of Annie at the Michael J. Fox Theatre in Burnaby.

“I loved the role of Annie since I was little,” she said. “We had the movie and I watched it a lot. I loved her spunkiness and how she was so tough. She is almost my age, so I kind of connect to her in that way. She is almost like a role model for me and I relate to her a lot.”

Macdonald says she is thrilled to be joining Align Entertainment this season.

Her previous roles include Delta Youth Theatre productions of Elf, The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Willy Wonka and Annie.

She participates in musical theatre training and has been dancing since the age of five with Deas Island Dance, studying ballet, modern, jazz, tap and hip hop. She also works with vocal coaches Tracy Neff and Simon Isherwood.

“I played Annie last year at DYT. This is a bigger production, so it’s very exciting,” she said. “In DYT it was an amazing role to play. I connected to the role then and I connect with it a lot more now too because I have a bit more depth with the character, so I kind of already have an idea of what she is like and how I portray her. I’m a little nervous, but I’m very excited for opening night.”

The Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical is set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, making the spirited title character’s hopefulness a sharp contrast to the dire times.

The production also features a live 12-piece orchestra and a talented ensemble of a dozen young actors performing as orphans, who were selected from auditions that had more than 100 children.

The production runs Feb. 1 to 16.

Tickets are $29 to $42 and are available at alignentertainment.ca/tickets or vtixonline.com.

The Michael J. Fox Theatre is at 7373 Macpherson Ave. in Burnaby.