Annie – Bord Gais Energy Theatre – Review
by Fran Winston

– 22 August – 03 September 2023 – ANNIE WITH CRAIG REVEL HORWOOD

Bord Gais Energy Theatre, Grand Canal Square, Docklands, Dublin 2.
Runs until  September 3rd at 7.30pm nightly with matiness on 26th and 30th August and 2nd and 3rd September. Ticklers from €21.50

This production of the iconic and much-loved musical Annie is somewhat poignant. While Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood takes on the role of Miss Hannigan, many people attending were only too aware that the part was originally to be filled by the late beloved entertainer Paul O’Grady. Following his tragic death a few months ago Craig stepped into Miss Hannigan’s shoes, but it is still difficult not to imagine the Lily Savage star in the role.

It’s safe to say at this stage that Annie is an enduring classic. She first appeared as a comic character in 1924, a musical based on that was first staged in 1977 (Sex and the City’s Sarah Jessica Parker was one of the actresses to play her on Broadaway) and since then it’s spawned four movies in 1932, 1938, a legendary one in 1984 and an extremely forgettable 2014 offering which juxtaposed the story into the present day.

This version sticks to the depression era setting and is all the better for it. And, of course, the songs are classics – Tomorrow, You’re Never Fully Dressed Without a Smile, Maybe and Easy Street are all instantly recognisable and infuriatingly catchy.

In case you are not familiar with the tale, It’s a Hard Knock Life for Little Orphan Annie who was abandoned by her parents at an orphanage 11 years previously. Left with just half a locket and a note promising to return for her, she whiles her days away dreaming of being reunited with her family as the evil Miss Hannigan forces her and the other orphans to work their fingers to the bone.

Enter Daddy Warbucks, a philanthropic billionaire who’s looking to host an orphan over Christmas but who ends up wanting to adopt the bubbly redhead only to end up helping her try to find her parents. But Miss Hannigan’s unscrupulous brother and his girlfriend have a lot of information about the little girl and scheme to get her away from the wealthy father figure while making a wad of cash for themselves.

It’s a straightforward story that is completely reliant on you falling in love with Annie. Three young actresses alternate the roles in this run due to child labour laws and on the night I attended, Sharangi Gnanavarathan played the titular character. I was surprised to learn that this role was her stage debut as she exuded the confidence of a far more seasoned performer. She has great chemistry with seasoned actor Alex Bourne who takes on the role of Daddy Warbucks. You very much get the impression that they are also friends offstage.

The ensemble cast did a great job although on the night I attended there were definitely sound issues and some of the big moments were lost. This was through no fault of the cast but did affect the comprehension and enjoyment of the show.

Obviously, everyone was intrigued to see what Strictly’s Mr Nasty Craig Revel Horwood brought to the role of Miss Hannigan. Traditionally a female role, it is only in recent years that she is being played by a man in drag. As an over-the-top character I understand why some directors might look at the part and think of it as a panto dame but in an age where we are apparently supposed to be conscious of casting it seems unfair to deprive an older musical theatre actress of what is a brilliant female role.

That aside, while his motivation for taking the part in honour of Paul is commendable, and I can appreciate he had fewer rehearsals than the rest of the cast, he really didn’t seem to embody the ballsy and blousy Orphanage head. When he was singing or dancing he really threw himself into it, but his straight acting scenes were ordinary and his accent was awful. He also seemed to suffer most from the sound issues, which could have affected my perception of the accent and performance.

Of course, he’s performing alongside children and a dog so clearly has no respect for the “never work with animals or children” rule. And personally, I think Sandy the dog was absolutely wasted having received some of the best reactions of the night during her first appearance. She then disappeared bar a walk-on part at the end.

Paul French has no mean task in the role of Rooster, which was very memorably played by Tim Curry in the 1984 movie, which many of the audience members would have recalled. However, he does an excellent job of making the part his own.

There were a lot of children in attendance the night I was there, and they all seemed to enjoy it. For older audience members it was a great nostalgia trip. It is lacking polish in some sections, possibly due to the loss of Paul and having to reconfigure so quickly, and hopefully, the sound issue was a one-night-only thing, but overall this is good family fun.